Record of a Night Too Brief

I received a galley of this book from NetGalley; that has not influenced my opinions or thoughts about this book.

Record of a Night Too Brief is presented as a volume of three novellas, but it read much more like three lengthier short stories. Kawakami's stories are presented with very little context, bringing together mystical and fantastical elements to normal-seeming situations. There are some passages that are clearly obvious – women struggling to gain power, to possess their own identities, and how women interact with one another – but many of the stories have an absurdist quality that verges on entirely metaphorical.

Unfortunately, these stories were not for me and I had a hard time connecting with the narration or the subject matter. I suspect that these would be interesting to read with some greater context about Japanese culture.