Harare Review of Books

160 pages.

Expected publication date: Sept 19, 2023 (Stone Bridge Press)

Fiction anthology.

I confess to struggling through this book, as I’m not a fan of the grotesque. The ghosts were fine, as were the shapeshifters, gods and near-immortals, and ancestors. Even the octopus man right at the beginning was fascinating at first. What I couldn’t deal with was the abuse of women, and (cw) sexual assault. These themes are by no means all the collection’s about, but they recur enough to have put me off.

This is not to say I didn’t like the book at all; Japanese surrealism is a genre I enjoy, and I enjoyed those elements here. Mole, about a mole that rescues people who appear to have lost the will to live, is my favourite story from the collection. The Sea Horse and The Kitchen God are tied for second place; but, again, unfortunately, those themes rear their (ugly) heads in those stories too.

While I can appreciate the use of shocking imagery for effect, this collection is unfortunately not for me for the reasons stated above. However, perhaps other readers may find it appealing.

Thank you very much to NetGalley and to Stone Bridge Press for access.