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Out: A Novel (Paperback)

by Natsuo Kirino (Author)

4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (16 customer reviews)

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Product Details

Paperback: 416 pages
Publisher: Vintage; Reprint edition (Jan 4 2005)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1400078377
ISBN-13: 978-1400078370
Product Dimensions: 20.1 x 13.2 x 2.8 cm
Shipping Weight: 273 g

Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (16 customer reviews)

Amazon.ca Sales Rank: #48,461 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)
Popular in this category:
#13 in Books > Literature & Fiction > World Literature > Japanese

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Product Description

From Publishers Weekly

Four women who work the night shift in a Tokyo factory that produces boxed lunches find their lives twisted beyond repair in this grimly compelling crime novel, which won Japan's top mystery award, the Grand Prix, for its already heralded author, now making her first appearance in English. Despite the female bonding, this dark, violent novel is more evocative of Gogol or Dostoyevsky than Thelma and Louise. When Yayoi, the youngest and prettiest of the women, strangles her philandering gambler husband with his own belt in an explosion of rage, she turns instinctively for help to her co-worker Masako, an older and wiser woman whose own family life has fallen apart in less dramatic fashion. To help her cut up and get rid of the dead body, Masako recruits Yoshie and Kuniko, two fellow factory workers caught up in other kinds of domestic traps. In Snyder's smoothly unobtrusive translation, all of Kirino's characters are touching and believable. And even when the action stretches to include a slick loan shark from Masako's previous life and a pathetically lost and lonely man of mixed Japanese and Brazilian parentage, the gritty realism of everyday existence in the underbelly of Japan's consumer society comes across with pungent force. FYI: This novel has been made into a Japanese motion picture.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From AudioFile

When a poor working mother in Tokyo 's sprawling suburbs murders her abusive husband, she calls upon the women she works with to help dispose of his body. This tabloid of desperation and gender warfare moves forward with the deliberate inevitability of the Noh theatre. Narrator Bernadette Dunne has the skill to inform the listener not only through accents, but also by tendering emotions in the voice of each character. Her voice conveys every nuance of fear, elation, and even resignation. The women are delineated with such skill that they move before our eyes. Truly a journey into the underbelly of urban life, this novel is not for the faint of heart. B.H.B. © AudioFile 2006, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Customer Reviews

16 Reviews

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

Average Customer Review

4.2 out of 5 stars (16 customer reviews)

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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Comparable to Crime and Punishment, Aug 1 2006

By	Ian Gordon Malcomson (Smithers, Canada) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)

Great psychological thriller and full of irony. It has all the appeal of a well-crafted murder mystery except there is no mystery as we have come to know it in the West. If so, what then rivets our attention, males and females alike? Perhaps it is the fact that Kirino sets out to prove in such a dispassionately gruesome and original fashion what men can do, women can do better: manipulate and destroy others and get a way with it. Her creation of compelling characters such as Satake and Masako and a fast-moving plot to go with them makes for both a satisfying and disturbing read. Good stuff!

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3.0 out of 5 stars Sukoshi tsumanakatta - A little dull, Sep 28 2007

By	C. Rybuck "Funk Bodysnatcher" (Alberta, Canada) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I don't know. The book was OK. I lived in Tokyo for a couple years and my in-laws are Japanese so I can appreciate the setting and some of the background culture but I kinda laboured to get through this one. I can see why it was a hit in Japan as there is not one decent male character in the whole story - cheating, gambling, indifferent, sexually-deviant and on and on. If you are familiar with Asian culture then this book is worth taking a flyer on.

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4.0 out of 5 stars Sometimes Gruesome, Mostly Gripping, Jan 26 2007

By	Craobh Rua "Craobh Rua" (N. Ireland) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

"Out" was first published in 1997 and won Japan's top mystery award. It is Natsuo Kirino's first novel to be translated into English. Set in Tokyo, it's centred around four women who work the nightshift in a boxed-lunch factory. The pay is good for a part-time job, but the work is far from rewarding, the hours aren't sociable and the chances for progression are limited. Unfortunately, their home lives aren't much better.

Yoshie is the most likeable of the four friends. She is nicknamed the Skipper since she is so hard-working and effectively runs the line the women work on. Yoshie's husband died from cirrhosis, leaving her to look after her family and mother-in-law - who'd suffered a stroke more than six years previously. She's finding it difficult to make ends meet : the insurance from her husband's death, and her own savings, have been spent - largely on looking after her mother-in-law. She is desperate for her daughter to receive a good education. Meanwhile, her landlord is talking about tearing down her dilapidated house, hoping to build a modern apartment block. Yoshie knows this will involve higher rents.

Kuniko is a different matter entirely. Vain and self-absorbed, she is a thoroughly dislikeable character. She lies about her age, drives an expensive, imported car and spends beyond her means on clothes. She had claimed to be married to her live-in boyfriend : sensibly, he blows town early in the book and carefully covers his tracks. Due to the money she spends on her image, she owes a fortune to a loan-shark.

At 34, Yayoi is the youngest and prettiest of the four friends. Kenji, her husband, had once pursued her relentlessly. However, once married, things changed dramatically. Kenji started spending more time away from home, drinking and gambling. Recently, he had been visiting two clubs in Kabuki-cho. In one, he had been spending a great deal of time (and money) in the company of a beautiful hostess. In the other, he'd lost a fortune at the baccarat tables - including the couple's savings. Eventually, after an argument, Yayoi's patience snaps and she strangles him. She then phones Masako : unsure what to do, she knows her colleague will help her.

Although the focus of the book switches from one character to another, Masako is essentially the book's central character. In her early forties, she is married and has one son. Down-to-earth, and more experienced than her colleagues, her three friends seem to rely on her in particular. The book opens and closes with her and, after Yayoi's confession, it is Masako who makes many of the key decisions.

Although Yayoi knew Kenji had blown a fortune, and suspected he'd been in a fight the night she killed him, she didn't know the full story. The clubs he'd been visiting were owned by Mitsuyoshi Satake who, in recent weeks, had come to view Kenji as a nuisance. Kenji was stalking his top hostess and was behind in his bill at 'Playground' (his illegal, after-hours, baccarat club). Eventually, Satake 'deals' with him, using a method that involved Kenji bouncing down a flight of stairs. Unfortunately for Satake, Yayoi's subsequent actions see him under investigation. With a past he'd rather hide, and in illegal club to protect, this is something he is far form pleased about.

A little grim in places, a bit depressing in others - although I found it a touch implausible at times. In particular, I couldn't understand Masako. I found it hard to believe, for example, she could be so detached with what was not only happening around her, but also to her. Nevertheless, "Out" is a very-well-written book and is easily read. Definitely recommended.

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Most recent customer reviews

2.0 out of 5 stars Just an old trick
The book is well-translated but the story is predictably boring.
It's so obvious to me that the author is just trying to shock the readers by writing something unusually... Read more

Published on May 20 2004

5.0 out of 5 stars Dark and highly inventive thriller
Having read my way through the currently available translations of the Japanese classics of the mystery genre I came across Kirino's "Out": a dark, but very satisfying... Read more

Published on May 3 2004 by B. Gone

3.0 out of 5 stars Good book, but is this a Mystery Novel ?
No need for me to give the short summary of the book again, others have done a great job doing that for me. Read more

Published on April 9 2004 by johndoe2412