#solo dance

Catfish Rolling by Clara Kumagai (YA) Passage to Tokyo by Poppy Kuroki Palaver by Bryan Washington The Night of Baba Yaga by Akiro Otani Solo Dance by Li Kotomi

I ended up reading the majority of Solo Dance by Li Kotomi, translated by Arthur Reiji Morris, sitting in Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden, the same day I stumbled on the Tokyo Pride Parade moving through the Shibuya streets. It felt fitting, even if the book was incredibly sad.

The execution of this novel is not perfect. Some of Kotomi's plot swerves and character turns are implausible, or borderline plot holes. But it has a deep painful queer heart. In this book, Norie experienced a violent sexual assault when she was younger, and her need to escape that secret, which trailed behind her wherever she went, and the shame it made her feel about her sexuality, led her to leave Taiwan for Japan, rename herself, and start a new life. Kotomi's novel is partially autobiographical and a bit despairing, though it has a hopeful core. Norie is immersed in the desire to die by suicide, and this book deals with her decision to die.

It is a tough novel and yet hard to put down—Norie is a convincing character and her issues of acceptance, love, and heartbreak are relatable to queer people everywhere. Some might consider this a spoiler, but as one in a series of seminal Asian queer works where lesbians consider suicide, and a worldwide tradition of tragic queer books, it's important that in this book, much is tragic but Norie survives.

I was glad to read a book that's so important to the Japanese queer community, and the book was engaging throughout. I recommend it to anyone who feels they can face the difficult content.

it's a well-written book, don't get me wrong (all the awards and accolades the author received more than show that), but the main character is so fckn unlikable omFG

WHY IS THE MC LIKE THAT

why do u always run away? why do u keep taking ur anger and hatred out on other people? why do u keep blaming ur sexuality when it's ur CHARACTERS that are the problem?

why do u not work to make urself better when u KNOW that is the thing u need to do???

jesus christ