Myra Beatrice > Recent Status Updates

“He went outside, and there were the hills lined up beneath a bright blue sky, rising as fresh and clean as though they’d just been made.”

“From a gap in the ragged, gleaming clouds to the west, the red rays of the setting sun slanted down on the mossy plain, and the swaying fronds of pampas grass shone like white fire.”

“Prayers were also composed in this style in order that the mystic feeling embodied in the manner of addressing the kami…might be transmitted intact to future generations. This was especially necessary because the new, short and, to Japanese ears, somewhat harsh Chinese words without melody, which had been introduced from the mainland and had modified the Japanese language, were not deemed suitable…”

At about halfway through, my first impression from the start of the book seems to be holding true: the main character is unlikeable and the writing is just okay, but the story gives you an idea of what everyday like was like for people trying to just live their lives in Iran in the 1980s, which is interesting.