A woman goes into a bakery to buy a strawberry cream tart. The place is immaculate but there is no one serving so she waits. Another customer comes in. The woman tells the new arrival that she is buying her son a treat for his birthday. Every year she buys him his favourite cake; even though he died in an accident when he was six years old.
From this beginning Yoko Ogawa weaves a dark and beautiful narrative that pulls together a seemingly disconnected cast of characters. In the tradition of classical Japanese poetic collections, the stories in Revenge are linked through recurring images and motifs, as each story follows on from the one before while simultaneously introducing new characters and themes. Filled with breathtaking images, Ogawa provides us with a slice of life that is resplendent in its chaos, enthralling in its passion and chilling in its cruelty.
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Yoko Ogawa writes a range of thrilling shorts in this collection called “Revenge.” Each story takes a short look into the lives of seemingly interconnected characters. However, once you get to know the characters, their tendencies, and their innermost thoughts, each thread sort of winds its way together.
The dark narratives always include some sort of macabre undertone and subtly that really gets under the skin. For instance, in “Sewing for the Heart” (my absolute favorite of the bunch), we are introduced to a singer who literally has her heart attached to the outside of her body. She is self-conscious of it, and as you can imagine, she wants it covered up so nobody can see it when she performs. She enlists the help of a handbag designer to develop something that fits over it. He has some interesting inner thoughts (to say the least) and develops a unique solution. This story really captures the feel of Japanese horror in a way that excites, nauseates, and makes you think. Sadly, not all of the shorts are as good as this one.
To me, most of the stories are a bit too heavy-handed. Yes, the universe being built between the stories is interesting, but it meanders quite a bit throughout, leaving some of the ah-ha moments to fall flat. I really did not have the inkling to review some of the past stories to really connect each and every thread together.
So, who is this for? Well, that is a tricky question to answer. It is effective enough to give you genuine goosebumps if you are a seasoned horror fan while also stimulating the brain with some extra sensory imaginative underpinnings if you are looking for something a bit more challenging. It just does not hit any trope with a wide brush.
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A reaction to each story and a separate review for each:
Story 1 of 11: “Afternoon at the Bakery” - This one was on the creepy side. Especially the refrigerator scene. (⭐⭐⭐)
Story 2 of 11: “Fruit Juice” - this story had an eerie feel to it. A weird date, some fruit eating, and a melancholy follow up later in life. (⭐⭐)
Story 3 of 11 - “Old Mrs. J” - This was the best one so far! A drunk husband, fingerling vegetables, and massages gone wrong.
