Quotes
Of course she would have wanted to save the lamp! But when she had been asked what she wanted to save, she had forgotten everything. If everything else had also been ruined, perhaps she wouldn’t be so upset, but that her lamp was the only thing, made it the best thing. Now she longed for its former condition. Why had she not unpacked it first, with the utmost reverence and care? Because as soon as she had arrived in Annie’s town, she had immediately gone to see Annie. How could she have been so stupid? She had given no thought to this precious thing. How could she have ever forgotten that the lamp was better than anything?
Impressions
4/5 stars.
A while ago, I added this book to my future reading list and completely forgot any premise that I might've read about it. Needless to say, I was positively surprised by it. I really enjoyed this novel, especially the way in which the story is told - in very short vignettes. Every single word on the page felt extremely well-thought-out and planned, and I honestly liked the metaphors.
This definitely isn't a book that everyone will like, since it can come off as pseudo philosophy, but there are still people who will get a lot out of it. If you like odd books, I recommend this one.
But, I did find some odd things about it. A few odd lines, that is. I'll just leave them below, since there weren't that many. Out of context, they sound awful, but I think that the author was intentionally going for a shocking and vivid type of language. These are all about her father:
-“She had felt his spirit ejaculate into her, like it was the entire universe coming into her body, then spreading all the way through her, the way cum feels spreading inside, that warm and tangy feeling.”
-“But she did not always return with presents, for she was afraid of becoming his wife.”
-“Mira felt that her father would have liked her to marry him.”
-“Perhaps now that he is dead, she can marry her father.”
There are also a few more ‘out there’ plot points - if I can call them that. Specifically about Mira turning into a leaf, family traditions good and fixers bad, Mira in the leaf costume...
I think that the whole thing where Mira turned into a leaf would've worked better as a metaphor, of sorts? If she perhaps zoned out, instead of actually becoming a leaf. As for the part about traditions and fixers, I don't think that we, readers, were supposed to read that and agree with it, or Mira. I think that it's an analogy regarding close-mindedness and blind faith, or at least that's how I interpreted it. As for Mira's leaf costume... I don't know what to say, really. These elements are odd but didn't make me hate the book.
