Status Updates From Zeremonie des Lebens

Have I got the stomach for this?

A Magnificent Spread: Idk how I feel about this one. Like on one hand I can see how the overall message is "let people like what they like" but also I do think that sharing foods from other cultures IS important, even if you don't eat them. It almost feels like Muruta-san is venting from a bad experience she had with being forced to eat something she didn't like. Meh.

A clean marriage - To quote my friend whose copy I am reading and who annotated it "okayyyyy? lmao?"

Hatchling - I LIKED THIS A LOTTTT i kinda wish this was longer. Ending really really unsettled me. This has the trappings of a horror story with the husband as the "monster". I love pulling ideas to their extremes to examine them RAHHHH

Puzzle - Reread the end of it and yeah. Its interesting. Clearly a lot of thought into bodies and people
Eating the City - Feels like a really good mirror to Puzzle, but I liked this one more. Great allusions made. Did trigger my literal thinking somewhat when considering the actual implications around food and country side vs city foraging. Really fun ending

After reading A Fine Material: This was an INSANE story to start with, and I'm not 100% sure how to feel about it. There is a point made about how us using animal skin/bone is, in theory, no different than this universe using human skin/bones. The thing is is that it it reminds me of how the skin of slaves were used as leather in some cases. I know this story was written by a Japanese person, but you know.

this is such a weird read!