政と源

by Shion Miura

東京都墨田区Ｙ町。つまみ簪（かんざし）職人・源二郎の弟子である徹平（元ヤン）の様子がおかしい。どうやら、昔の不良仲間に強請られたためらしい。それを知った源二郎は、幼なじみの国政とともにひと肌脱ぐことにするが――。弟子の徹平と賑やかに暮らす源。妻子と別居し、ひとり寂しく暮らす国政。ソリが合わないはずなのに、なぜか良いコンビ。そんなふたりが巻き起こす、ハチャメチャで痛快だけど、どこか心温まる人情譚！

Genres: Japanese Literature, Fiction

246 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 1, 2013

About the author

Shion Miura (三浦しをん) (1976–) , daughter of a well-known Japanese classics scholar, acquired her love of reading at a very young age. When, as a senior in the Faculty of Letters at Waseda University, she began her job hunt looking for an editorial position, a literary agent recognized her writing talent and hired her to begin writing an online book review column even before she graduated. Miura made her fiction debut a year after finishing college, in 2000, when she published the novel Kakuto suru mono ni maru (A Passing Grade for Those Who Fight), based in part on her own experiences during the job hunt. When she won the Naoki Prize in 2006 for her linked-story collection Mahoro ekimae Tada Benriken (The Handymen in Mahoro Town), she had not yet reached her 30th birthday—an unusually young age for this prize; in fact it was her second nomination. Her novels since then include the 2006 Kaze ga tsuyoku fuiteiru (The Wind Blows Hard), about the annual Ekiden long-distance relay race in which universities compete, and the 2010 Kogure-so monogatari (The Kogure Apartments), depicting the lives of people dwelling in an old rundown wooden-frame apartment house. In 2012 she received the Booksellers Award for the novel Fune o amu (The Great Passage), a tale about compiling a dictionary. A manga aficionado, Miura has declared herself a particular fan of the "boys' love" subgenre about young homosexual encounters.

Source: http://www.booksfromjapan.jp/authors/...

Reviews

[Angel 一匹狼 · Rating 3 out of 5]

After my first two reads by Shion Miura, I was starting to think she could do no wrong. Well, "政と源" doesn't really prove me wrong, but shows the difficulty in keeping a top-class level when it comes to writing.

And that is not because "政と源" is a bad book, but because, compared with the previous two I had read, it feels like an afterthought. The book goes around a couple of old male friends (again, it seem Miura is obsessed with male friendship) that pass their days in a little town close to Tokyo. And, as with her other previous stories, the characters are well developed and interesting. But in this case they kind of feel repetitive (like an extension of the other books, in particular, "月魚") and stereotypical (the old grumpy, Clint Eastwood-movie roles type and the free spirit one). That Miura's writing and the situation she puts them in keep them interesting shows how good of a writer Miura is. But it still feels like the book is for a rainy afternoon in winter when you really just want to have a light read.

The best: Miura's writing; some very funny moments; the characters are relatable

The worst: the characters are stereotypical and their actions and reactions too; it pales compared with "月魚" or "神去なあなあ日常".

Other options: the two books I just wrote on 'the worst' section; Kenzaburo Oe, even if very different, would be recommended too, or Margaret Atwood

7/10

(Original Japanese)

[宅女阿reen · Rating 4 out of 5]

第一次看三浦绫苑的书，一本让我一边读一边噗叽噗叽掉眼泪的书。小说主角是两位发小关系的银发族，引发的一些既捏心又暖心的故事。古语说人生七十古来稀，但是现今人类的寿命已经延长许多了，只要依然对生活抱有热忱，老年不再是一个终点，而是让自己重新出发的起点。人生每个阶段都有让自己过愉快的能力，关键是需常常怀着谦卑的心态自省，才能够让自己的智慧随年月变得越来越洗练。

[Liyuan Zhang · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a typical Japanese narrative just like a breath of fresh air. In view of such a warm and touching story, company is the longest confession of love after all.

[沊 沊 · Rating 4 out of 5]

政與源的好交情猶如爺爺版的多田和行天，簡單的故事堆疊出人情的溫暖，希望還能看到他們的故事。

[Eileen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A heart warming book which the author was good in letting the readers understands the depth of the friendship through the mundane daily interactions.

[Nujkin Tsai · Rating 5 out of 5]

兩個加起來146的老頭的生活 還不錯看

[Sannma · Rating 4 out of 5]

面白かったです

[Yoshimi · Rating 3 out of 5]

三浦さんお得意のほっこりするストーリーでよかったんだけど、ちょっと水戸黄門的な単純さと、アニメっぽいキャラクターに入りにくかった。私、性格がひねくれてきたのかなあ…

[ツバキ · Rating 4 out of 5]

在圖書館看到這本書的時候，我腦中浮現的公式是：這個書名+三浦紫苑……不就是BL嗎？擅自地認為一定又是包裝成一般小說的BL風小說（？）

不過翻到後面看了書背介紹，主角是兩個老爺爺，不符合我這個圈外人心中美型×美型的偏見，所以又下了不是BL小說的結論。可是實際上翻了，BL匂いがプンプンするｗｗ

當然，內容其實是很正經的故事。從小一起長大，直到七十幾算仍是朋友，性格南轅北轍的兩個老爺爺的故事，我個人覺得這是三浦本身非常擅長處理的題材。

突然想到的事情。老實說三浦筆下的男人，我個人覺得比起一般女性作家筆下的男性更具有真實感，比較不具有夢的感覺（當然我不知道實際上男性在讀三浦的小說會不會有違和感）有時候覺得不錯，但也是有覺得怎麼這麼沒夢～～的時候。

[Shu Xiao · Rating 5 out of 5]

超级喜欢！总觉得中文书名有点恶俗，差一点就没有买，万幸万幸！最后清子没有直接回到政的身边，虽然有点遗憾，但非常合理。唯一的问题是，书里的政看起来无论如何都不像是会把妻子逼得离家出走好几年、并养育出毫不客气的女儿的人啊……即便如此，仍然是一本非常生动和有趣的书。