Kanae minatos confessions deals with the calculating, maniacal revenge a teacher takes on the two yearold students who murdered her daughter. Japanese author minato follows up her successful u. A recipient of the radio drama award, the detective novel prize for new writers, and the national booksellers award, minato lives in japan. Kanae minato is a former home economics teacher and housewife who wrote confessions, her first novel, between household chores. It kept me entertained and it kept me glued to the book until the end. Confessions kindle edition by minato, kanae, snyder, stephen. The first nine books or chapters of the work trace the story of augustines life, from his birth 354 a. The audience is not one you would normally associate murder with, and, the continuing themes are also something interesting to apply to the murder thriller genre. Jun 02, 2018 confessions by kanae minato, translated by stephen snyder published august 19, 2014 when i read kanae minato s second novel to be translated into english, penance, this winter, i found it an engaging thriller, but one that relied too heavily on coincidence to be truly believable. The most delightfully evil book youll read this year. Confessions by kanae minato pdf free download ebook. Starring some of japans finest working actors tanimura mitsuki, inoue mao, ayano go, the snow white murder case is right now one of the most hyped 2014 films in the country. Confessions by kanae minato, translated by stephen snyder.
Kanae minato is a japanese fiction writer dealing in the subjects of crime, mystery, andor thriller. Aug 06, 2014 confessions, a 2008 japanese thriller that will appear in english translation for the first time this august, has the captivating quality of a gruesome car crash. This revenge tale, set in a middle school in a small town, explores issues relating to morality, justice and child crime. Confessions by kanae minato, translated by stephen snyder oh. Minato has crafted an unnerving tale of tragedy, guilt, and penance. Kanae minato s debut novel, confessions, is no exception. At the expense of sounding crude, this was a fun read. Summary summary augustines confessions is a diverse blend of autobiography, philosophy, theology, and critical exegesis of the christian bible. It was a compelling read, but incredibly dark and it didnt exactly chime well with my moral compass. Kanae minatos first novel, confessions, adopts a somewhat similar approach, with its six chapters providing firstperson accounts of a crime in the words of different characters. Confessions, kokuhaku is a 2010 japanese drama film directed by tetsuya nakashima, based on housewifeturnedauthor kanae minatos 2008 debut mystery novel that won the 2009 honya taisho award japan booksellers award. She is a member of the mystery writers of japan and the honkaku mystery writers club of japan.
Confessions by minato kanae world literature today. Review of kanae minatos novel confessions matt lynn. Like confessions, kanae minatos awardwinning, internationally bestselling debut, penance is a dark and voicedriven tale of revenge and psychological trauma that will leave readers breathless. Its short and i was thinking before i started this book that, that might become a reason why i wont enjoy it. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. Aug 05, 2008 confessions is a standalone novel written by author kanae minato. Aug 12, 2014 confessions by kanae minato i read and respond to each and every comment, so please let me know what you are thinking. Confessions kindle edition by minato, kanae, snyder. Dare i say this is one of the most horrifyingly gripping novels ive read in many years. Confessions by kanae minato jhorror barefootmegz bookishness october 7, 2014 october 11, 2014 3 minutes.
Stream and download audiobooks to your computer, tablet or mobile phone. Perhaps formulating my distinction between mystery and thriller is the fodder for a future post at matt lynn digital, though my focus today is on minatos first novel, confessions. Jul 07, 2018 confessions, by kanae minato posted on july 7, 2018 by canadamatt eight stars needing a quick book to fill my time before ending a holiday, i turned to kanae minatos debut thriller that spins a murderous tale from many perspectives. News corp is a network of leading companies in the worlds of diversified media, news, education, and information services. Kanae minatos debut novel, confessions, is no exception. Kanae minatos debut novel and only novel translated into english, confessions. A gutwrenching thrillride with clean, highimpact language. Dec 23, 2014 translated from the japanese by stephen snyder. Sep 11, 2014 when it comes to crime, kanae minatos characters are not the forgiving sort. If you havent sensed it yet, i really enjoyed this book. Her first novel confessions, kokuhaku became a bestseller and won the japanese booksellers award. Too often heavyhanded, and with rather too many implausible elements, minato undermines the clever ideas in confessions. Kanae minato is a writer, known for kokuhaku 2010, bokyo 2017 and shojo 2016. Supersummary, a modern alternative to sparknotes and cliffsnotes, offers highquality study guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics.
Apr 11, 2017 a grieving parent and four guiltstricken friends struggle to cope with the rape and strangulation of a 10yearold girl. The book has sold more than three million copies in japan, where it won several literary awards, including the radio drama award, the detective novel prize for new writers, and the national booksellers award, and. Movie plot ending explained confessions kokuhaku,a japanese film, is the story of yuko moriguchi, a teacher, a mother, who has lost her young daughter. But apparently it was published in japan in 2008, and is a widely popular and successful novel. Aug 22, 2014 kanae minato s confessions deals with the calculating, maniacal revenge a teacher takes on the two yearold students who murdered her daughter. I had never heard of this novel before seeing the audiobook available as a new release at my local library. Sep 24, 2017 a few years ago i read kanae minatos debut novel confessions about a teacher who accuses two of her pupils of a terrible crime, then seeks vengeance on them. This onepage guide includes a plot summary and brief analysis of confessions of a mask by yukio mishima. Confessions, a 2008 japanese thriller that will appear in english translation for the first time this august, has the captivating quality of a gruesome car crash.
When she wrote confessions, the japanese author might well have been channeling friedrich nietzsche. Like any complex revenge tale, confessions comes with a healthy dose of moral ambiguity. None of the narrators families are whole in any meaningful sense, which minato seems to suggest is part of the problem, but interactions both at school and outside it suggest an entire society in complete disarray. Confessions by kanae minato books hachette australia. Augustines confessions is a diverse blend of autobiography, philosophy, theology, and critical exegesis of the christian bible. Jul, 2015 confessions by kanae minato, translated by stephen snyder oh. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. The japanese do a nice line in dark fiction, whether crime or otherwise think keigo higashino, shuichi yoshida, fuminori nakamura, natsuo kirino and yoko ogawa, to name just a handful. Kanae minato was a housewife before her debut novel confessions skyrocketed to the top of the japanese charts and turned her into the years bestselling novelist. The film is based on kanae minato s the author of the famous confessions 2012 novel shiro yumi hime satsujin jiken. From a general summary to chapter summaries to explanations of famous quotes, the sparknotes confessions study guide has everything you need to ace quizzes, tests, and essays. Buy confessions by minato, kanae, snyder, stephen isbn. I think we regular people may have forgotten a basic truthwe dont really have the right to judge anyone else. When it comes to crime, kanae minatos characters are not the forgiving sort.
Oct 20, 2015 kanae minato was a housewife before her debut novel confessions skyrocketed to the top of the japanese charts and turned her into the years bestselling novelist. Kanae minato s debut novel and only novel translated into english, confessions. If the place in which you find yourself is too painful, i say you should be free to seek another, less painful place of refuge. After calling off her engagement in wake of a tragic revelation, yuko moriguchi had nothing to live for except her only child, fouryearold manami. Now, following an accident on the grounds of the middle school where she teaches, yuko has given up and tendered her resignation. Yuko is positioned as the hero, but as the plot unfolds, taking turn after sickening turn, her actions start looking maniacal, disproportionate, perhaps outandout unforgivable. Confessions was the official film chosen to represent japan for the oscars foreign film qualifiers and even made it to the shortlist right before the 5 nominees were chosen, but im not. Kanae minato has an amazing ability to keep you hooked to the end of every chapter to find out the twist.
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