Name: Breasts and Eggs
ISBN: 9781529054224

Mieko Kawakami

So amazing it took my breath away' Haruki Murakami, international bestselling author of The Wind-Up Bird ChroniclesBreasts and Eggs explores the inner conflicts of an adolescent girl who refuses to communicate with her mother except through writing. Through the story of these women, Kawakami paints a portrait of womanhood in contemporary Japan, probing questions of gender and beauty norms and how time works on the female body. Breast and Eggs is a thrilling English language debut from Japan's brightest young talent, Mieko Kawakami.

Breasts and Eggs

Natsu monogatari

Donny

Abigail Stainthorpe

Klara Hansen 

How old is too old to make friends? Recently I’ve learned there’s no limit but you can still be a loser 

“No one reads my work (my blog, collecting dust in a corner of the internet, gets one or two visitors on a good day), and none of it has made it into print. Forget about readers, I barely have friends.” 

“It feels like I’m trapped inside my body. It decides when I get hungry, and when I’ll get my period. From birth to death, you have to keep eating and making money just to stay alive.” 

“People like pretty things. When you’re pretty, everybody wants to look at you, they want to touch you. I wanted that for myself. Prettiness means value. But some people never experience that personally.” 

audrey 🪐

Writing makes me happy. But it goes beyond that. Writing is my life's work. I am absolutely positive that this is what I’m here to do. Even if it turns out that I don't have the ability, and no one out there wants to read a single word of it, there's nothing I can do about this feeling. I can't make it go away. I recognize that luck, effort, and ability are often indistinguishable. And I know that, in the end, I'm just another human being, who's born only to die. I know that in reality, it makes no difference whether I write novels, and it makes no difference if anyone cares. With all the countless books already out there, the world won't notice if I fail to publish even one book with my name on it. That's no tragedy. I know that. I get that.

chantelle beattie

 Maybe you poor now. Maybe you were poor in the past. I'm both. I was born poor, and Im still poor.

roro

And doesn't a woman without a partner have the right to meet her child? Or is it her fault? This isn't the same about everyone's critical families or looks. It's not that I want a child. I don't want them, I dont want to have them. I want to meet them. My child. I want to meet my child and live with them. But who is it I want to meet? We've never met before.

"Parents want to hear their kids say ‘I'm happy I was born,‘ to hear their beliefs reinforced. That's why parents and doctors are always making new life, even though no one asked for it. And in the process, those tiny bodies are sometimes cut up, stitched back together, hooked up to tubes and machines, or bled dry. Lots of them die in overwhelming pain. When that happens, everyone's hearts go out to the parents. There's no greater sadness, they say. The parents break down and cry, do what they can to overcome their grief. They thank the child. They're grateful to have had the chance to know them. They're truly thankful that the child was born, too. But what is that? Who exactly are they thanking? The child who knew nothing of life but excruciating pain? What gave them the right to have these kids, when they could easily wind up spending their whole lives in horrible pain, thinking of nothing but dying, every single second of the day?”

Kawakami, who exploded into the cultural space first as a musician, then as a poet and popular blogger, is perhaps best known as one of Japan's most important and best-selling literary voices. Challenging every preconception about storytelling and prose style, she is currently one of Japan's most widely read and critically acclaimed authors, heralded by Haruki Murakami as his favorite new writer. Breasts and Eggs focuses on the female body, telling the story of three women: the thirty-year-old unmarried narrator, her older sister Makiko, and Makiko's daughter Midoriko. In the book's first part, set over three stiflingly hot days in Tokyo, Makiko, who is unable to come to terms with her changed body after giving birth, becomes obsessed with the prospect of getting breast enhancement surgery. Meanwhile, her twelve-year-old daughter Midoriko is paralyzed by the fear of puberty and finds herself unable to voice the vague, yet overwhelming pressures associated with growing up. The narrator struggles with her own indeterminable identity of being neither a "daughter" nor a "mother." In the book's second part, set on another hot summer day ten years later, the narrator, having reconciled herself with the idea of never marrying, nonetheless feels increasing anxiety about growing old alone and childless. In episodes that are as comical as they are revealing, she seeks direction from other women in her life--her mother, her grandmother, friends, as well as her sister--and only after dramatic and frequent changes of heart, decides in favor of artificial insemination. However, as the narrative confronts reproduction rights issues, both universal and specific, it becomes clear that a decision made is not always met. Breasts and Eggs looks at the ongoing repression of women in Japan and the possibility of liberation, poverty, domestic violence, and reproductive ethics. Mixing comedy and realism,Breasts and Eggs tells of an epic life-affirming journey about finding inner strength and peace. "I'm sure that in the pages of this novel, readers will find something that echoes in their own life-- the randomness, suddenness, and strangeness--and at the same time something fundamental to the human experience."--Mieko Kawakami

its honesty and intention to be a breathing, living dialogue captivates me every time! Upon re-read, the characters seem even more fleshed out and the conflicting stances on societal issues are so meticulously dissected for the reader to internalize. sophisticated and contemplative, the climaxes and the conclusions the author chooses are merited and fitting. 

kate 

Love the tension between asking nothing and asking “too much”. 

Puhyu

i will absolutely LOVE everything mieko puts out she’s incredible just such a talented author she’s so unique 

nina 

Loved the way the book tackled progressive themes all throughout, especially regarding child bearing. Approached the concepts and struggles of womanhood in a way that is still relatable and not too high-handed. A very important read :)

gishelle

Um livro sublime, delicado até na sua crueza. Palavras que chocam, que fazem pensar - o que é ser mulher? O que leva a mulher a desejar uma criança? E a 

Saio deste livro com uma nova perspetiva na dádida da vida, na responsabilidade de colocar um outro ser neste mundo. Na mulher. Que experiência que foi este livro - não consegui pousá-lo por um segundo! Belíssimo. Uma verdadeira ode de amor no feminino, para o feminino.

dyonisos.

Um livro sublime, delicado até na sua crueza. Palavras que chocam, que fazem pensar - o que é ser mulher? O que leva a mulher a desejar uma criança? E a não desejar? 

Saio deste livro com uma nova perspetiva na dádida da vida, na responsabilidade de colocar um outro ser neste mundo. Na mulher. Que experiência que foi este livro - não consegui pousá-lo por um segundo! Belíssimo. Uma verdadeira ode de amor no feminino, para o feminino.

One thing I know about Mieko Kawakami is that her books are always depressing, and I love her for that. 

I was really drawn to the themes in this book. It doesn't just explore womanhood but also delves into sisterhood and motherhood, portraying the complexities of female relationships with such honesty. This book examines societal pressures, particularly beauty standards and the relentless pursuit of perfection.

She captures the quiet despair of women defined by their appearance, fertility, or societal roles, exploring these struggles through three women facing body image, financial hardship, and personal agency. This book reflects on what it means to exist as a woman in a society that constantly imposes expectations. 

One thing that really stood out to me was the slow pacing. Kawakami often describes things in painstaking detail, making some scenes feel incredibly long. I appreciate her ability to create immersive atmospheres, there were moments when I found it quite boring and wished the story would move along faster. She lingers on mundane details, turning small interactions or inner thoughts into drawn-out passages. While this style enhances the introspective nature of her work, it sometimes made the reading experience feel tedious. 

That being said, what stands out most in her writing is how beautifully she captures the loneliness that comes with adulthood. The isolation, the yearning for something more, and the quiet pain of feeling disconnected even in the presence of others. Her characters often feel adrift, searching for meaning in a world that refuses to give them easy answers.

One thing I know about Mieko Kawakami is that her books are always depressing, and I love her for that. 

I was really drawn to the themes in this book. It doesn't just explore womanhood but also delves into sisterhood and motherhood, portraying the complexities of female relationships with such honesty. This book examines societal pressures, particularly beauty standards and the relentless pursuit of perfection.

She captures the quiet despair of women defined by their appearance, fertility, or societal roles, exploring these struggles through three women facing body image, financial hardship, and personal agency. This book reflects on what it means to exist as a woman in a society that constantly imposes expectations. 

One thing that really stood out to me was the slow pacing. Kawakami often describes things in painstaking detail, making some scenes feel incredibly long. I appreciate her ability to create immersive atmospheres, there were moments when I found it quite boring and wished the story would move along faster. She lingers on mundane details, turning small interactions or inner thoughts into drawn-out passages. While this style enhances the introspective nature of her work, it sometimes made the reading experience feel tedious. 

That being said, what stands out most in her writing is how beautifully she captures the loneliness that comes with adulthood. The isolation, the yearning for something more, and the quiet pain of feeling disconnected even in the presence of others. Her characters often feel adrift, searching for meaning in a world that refuses to give them easy answers.

I couldn't put the book down since the opening of chapter 1, the starting lines. it took me back to my childhood and to puberty, how lonely and awful it felt to see my body changing, it was frustrating but what was unbearable was everyone around me telling me how i should carry that changing being ,how i should react. 

the beauty standards, our mothers, men of this society how mieko conveyed everything really blew my mind. natsuko saying, "I don't want to have a child, I want to know them." will stay with me forever but so will the thought that having a child is selfish and cruel. 

yuriko saying, "maybe i am just weak. but I cannot accept life. not if I want to go on living." it shattered my heart to realise once again how our life experiences shape us and sometimes we don't get over the pain. pain is pain, loss is loss. nothing greater comes from them. 

walna

I couldn't put the book down since the opening of chapter 1, the starting lines. it took me back to my childhood and to puberty, how lonely and awful it felt to see my body changing, it was frustrating but what was unbearable was everyone around me telling me how i should carry that changing being ,how i should react. 

the beauty standards, our mothers, men of this society how mieko conveyed everything really blew my mind. natsuko saying, "I don't want to have a child, I want to know them." will stay with me forever but so will the thought that having a child is selfish and cruel. 

yuriko saying, "maybe i am just weak. but I cannot accept life. not if I want to go on living." it shattered my heart to realise once again how our life experiences shape us and sometimes we don't get over the pain. pain is pain, loss is loss. nothing greater comes from them. 

i looooved this book but not so much because the last half of the book is pretty boring and i found myself snoozing but the overall story that it brings up is good and it hits too close to home but i think i can understand it better that way. overall it’s an enjoyable read and i felt seen. i had a great time🤍

alifia

i found myself encaptured by this book and unable to put it down once i started.

overall, this book is a beautiful reflection/commentary on the external (breasts) and internal (& eggs) pressures of being a woman. the first part of the book starts with our character, and her niece as we read in diary entries throughout the first part, exploring themes such as beauty standards, the objectification of the female body, and capitalism -- all outward/external pressures we face from society to look a certain way, behave a certain way, feeling as though our bodies are on display for everyone else's consumption. the second part of the book explores the internal pressures women face -- success in careers and what that looks like, to have children or not, friendship, parenthood, etc. this section focused most on whether or not to have children, with the main character exploring if it's ethical to do so/is it actually cruel to bring a child into the world.

i appreciate this book for its rawness in exploring modern feminism in Japan through the lens of a very normal character. ultimately, i knocked it down a point because it felt a bit like "let's get this book done" by the end with the main character just deciding, despite all of her contemplation, that she wants a kid and that was that. but i can also appreciate that she wasn't so against having them, rather she did reflect on the topic and spoke to people about it, but still stuck to what she wanted. it's inspiring, in a way. feminism isn't black and white, right vs wrong, feminism is all about choice, at the end of the day. 

Lilo

i found myself encaptured by this book and unable to put it down once i started.

overall, this book is a beautiful reflection/commentary on the external (breasts) and internal (& eggs) pressures of being a woman. the first part of the book starts with our character, and her niece as we read in diary entries throughout the first part, exploring themes such as beauty standards, the objectification of the female body, and capitalism -- all outward/external pressures we face from society to look a certain way, behave a certain way, feeling as though our bodies are on display for everyone else's consumption. the second part of the book explores the internal pressures women face -- success in careers and what that looks like, to have children or not, friendship, parenthood, etc. this section focused most on whether or not to have children, with the main character exploring if it's ethical to do so/is it actually cruel to bring a child into the world.

i appreciate this book for its rawness in exploring modern feminism in Japan through the lens of a very normal character. ultimately, i knocked it down a point because it felt a bit like "let's get this book done" by the end with the main character just deciding, despite all of her contemplation, that she wants a kid and that was that. but i can also appreciate that she wasn't so against having them, rather she did reflect on the topic and spoke to people about it, but still stuck to what she wanted. it's inspiring, in a way. feminism isn't black and white, right vs wrong, feminism is all about choice, at the end of the day. 

The way the author writes is very detailed and beautiful, as someone with aphantasia, I could almost actually picture what was happening. 

There’s so much to unpack in this book and took me way longer to get through than I expected. Very interesting book to discuss and reflect on womanhood and just self confidence in your body in different stages of life. 

lily

The way the author writes is very detailed and beautiful, as someone with aphantasia, I could almost actually picture what was happening. 

There’s so much to unpack in this book and took me way longer to get through than I expected. Very interesting book to discuss and reflect on womanhood and just self confidence in your body in different stages of life. 

Such a good conversation on womanhood, it was really really insightful 

Irene

I love it! I could relate to bits of it, the desire to raise a kid without a husband, the conundrum of artificial insemination. 

Sakinah Safiee

i'll have breasts and eggs whenever I am questioning having kids and telling how I feel in my body

Alena

this book is an intimate dive into the complexities of womanhood, identity, and body autonomy. it captures raw, unfiltered emotions, tackling everything from beauty standards to motherhood with a vulnerability that feels so real. it's a poetic and painfully honest exploration of what it means to exist in a body that the world often tries to define for you. the prose cuts deep, blending sharp social commentary with a quiet but powerful reflection on personal agency and the quiet rebellion of self-acceptance.

Crazy how good this book was. Seriously. I’ve never felt more grateful than having had read this. I wish i could make every woman read this at least once in their life!

forever cherishing books on women’s insights and experiences in life through different stages. the early 20s me couldn’t wholeheartedly understand and appreciate the motherly instincts and insemination story. but i hope to get back to it a few years later. loved how the author incorporated different views based on personal experiences on birth from yuriko, rike and the author’s perspective itself.

manya

Read more review on: http://www.raidaufaa.com/2023/01/brea...

The “Breast and Eggs” book is divided into two parts with different translators which tell about the essence of womanhood. The main character, Natsuko, is a writer from Osaka but lives in Tokyo. The story of Natsuko and the people around her about fertility, menstruation, beauty standards, and gender norms. It also tells about how they strive against poverty in Japan.

Book One tells about Natsuko’s older sister, Makiko, who is obsessed with a breast implant, and Midoriko, Makiko’s daughter, who doesn’t talk to her mother for a long time. It’s also told through Midoriko’s journal, how she experienced puberty and her first menstruation. Natsuko’s presence in Book One isn’t highlighted much, but I like the mother-daughter intricate dynamic between Makiko and Midoriko, especially the climax part.

Natsuko’s story is then thoroughly discussed in the second book with a different time setting. The issues are more complex. Natsuko badly wanted to have a child but she said that having sex makes her “want to die”. So, she observed another option to have a child by a sperm donor. In this second book, a lot of new characters appear in Natsuko’s life, one of which is Aizawa.

“Family matters. It matters more than anything. Children need to be raised by real families, in real homes, in an atmosphere full of love and responsibility. Every child brought into this world, by artificial insemination or any other means, is an example of the gift of life, and I believe their life deserves to be cherished.”

armoni mayes

Breasts and Eggs By Meiko 

Wow. What a waste of days of my life. The book blurb does not even give a slight insight into what this book is actually about. I feel….bamboozled. I feel like i’m genuinely being kind by giving it 2 stars but i honestly may change it to 1 star. There is literally nothing redeemable about this novel. 

Breasts and Eggs allegedly was, i suppose due to the blurb that really gives no information, about Natsuku and her sister/her sisters child & reflecting a lot on her youth. The actual story is about occasionally her sister and the kid, but mostly about how Natsuku was insufferably asking almost anyone who made eye contact with her if she should get a sperm donor to have a kid. I really don’t even think she really explains why she wants a kid? The real crime is how long this book was, 450 pages and a 15 hour audio book. I never listened to books on 3X speed but even that did feel fast enough.

before i even started this book, i knew i was going to love it. kawakami's writing style is one of my favorite styles when it comes to contemporary fiction - it is poetic, descriptive and i love the way it flows. 

breasts and eggs is an intricate story deconstructing contemporary womanhood, but from the working class women's point of view. it talks about a lot of issues, and thought, a modern woman faces. kawakami talks about what is it to feel like you are a woman (natsuko, the main character, often ponders on this), what it means to carry and raise a child, and other on the first glance tiny things that she describes in the ways it feels real. and it hits close to home. 

i loved reading every part, every page of this book. i loved the characters, i could see myself in natsuko - aspiring to be something (a writer) and not getting there, until later, but even then she often feels stuck, she struggles with what her purpose here on earth is and she often questions what is it that makes her feel like a woman in her mind, not just body. i loved natsuko's thoughts, and i loved how she interacted with every character. she is definitely one of my favorite characters in contemporary works, and literature in general. i know that she, as well as this entire book, will stick with me, forever.

i don't have much smart commentary to add to this, i feel like this review isn't one of my best, but no matter how i write it, it won't represent how much this book means to me and how much i love it. 

every feminist - every woman, should read this.

before i even started this book, i knew i was going to love it. kawakami's writing style is one of my favorite styles when it comes to contemporary fiction - it is poetic, descriptive and i love the way it flows. 

breasts and eggs is an intricate story deconstructing contemporary womanhood, but from the working class women's point of view. it talks about a lot of issues, and thought, a modern woman faces. kawakami talks about what is it to feel like you are a woman (natsuko, the main character, often ponders on this), what it means to carry and raise a child, and other on the first glance tiny things that she describes in the ways it feels real. and it hits close to home. 

i loved reading every part, every page of this book. i loved the characters, i could see myself in natsuko - aspiring to be something (a writer) and not getting there, until later, but even then she often feels stuck, she struggles with what her purpose here on earth is and she often questions what is it that makes her feel like a woman in her mind, not just body. i loved natsuko's thoughts, and i loved how she interacted with every character. she is definitely one of my favorite characters in contemporary works, and literature in general. i know that she, as well as this entire book, will stick with me, forever.

i don't have much smart commentary to add to this, i feel like this review isn't one of my best, but no matter how i write it, it won't represent how much this book means to me and how much i love it. 

every feminist - every woman, should read this.

5/5

sani

this is one of those books that you can't help but recommend to everyone. a book about womanhood and the way it was uncomfortably realistic. my second Kawakami book and i am in love with the writing style and the dialogues. she did change the trajectory of my brain and my thinking on a few points.

“When you’re pretty, everybody wants to look at you, they want to touch you. I wanted that for myself. Prettiness means value. But some people never experience that personally.”

Natsu's mind was a whirlwind. i wholeheartedly love the way Kawakami crafts her characters because the internal conflict keeps me hooked. i am so glad that she gets her ending, albeit not perfect, but exactly the way she wanted it to be. 

Breasts and Eggs is absolutely phenomenal.

"Breasts and Eggs" behandelt viele Themen, konzentriert sich jedoch definitiv auf die Geschichte der Frauen. Mieko Kawakami konnte durch ihrer Geschichte, den inneren Kampf und die Unsicherheiten der Frauen betohnen, während sie auch darauf hinweist, wie Frauen durch die Charaktere um die Hauptfigur herum Selbstbewusstsein und Unabhängigkeit zeigen können. Es wird auch auf den Umgang Erwachsener mit Trauma, existenzielle Krisen, Trauer, Sehnsucht, Familie und loslassen eingegangen.

Dieses Buch zeigt auch durch Dialoge und Geschichten, wie Frauen in der Gesellschaft, insbesondere in der japanischen Gesellschaft, gegen die von Männern auf einen Sockel gestellten Normalisierungen und die Frauen, die herablassend behandelt werden, leben müssen, nicht nur von einigen Männern, sondern auch von anderen Frauen. Obwohl es mehr auf die Kämpfe der Frauen eingeht, ist es schön zu sehen, wie dies auch in der Geschichte erwähnt oder angedeutet 

 ist interessant zu sehen, wie die Gefühle der Menschen zur künstlichen Befruchtung sind und aus welchen Gründen Menschen dies tun und welche Konsequenzen andere Menschen dagegen einnehmen. Einige in diesem Buch behandelte Themen haben mich zum Nachdenken angeregt und viel reflektieren lassen. Aber es gibt auch einige andere, denen ich nicht zustimmen konnte und die ich gerne anders gesehen hätte.

Die Charaktere waren so kompliziert, roh und verwundbar in ihren eigenen Veranlagungen, dass sie uns mehr in sie hineingezogen haben, Mitgefühl und Empathie mit ihnen zeigen konnten.

Fatima

"Breasts and Eggs" behandelt viele Themen, konzentriert sich jedoch definitiv auf die Geschichte der Frauen. Mieko Kawakami konnte durch ihrer Geschichte, den inneren Kampf und die Unsicherheiten der Frauen betohnen, während sie auch darauf hinweist, wie Frauen durch die Charaktere um die Hauptfigur herum Selbstbewusstsein und Unabhängigkeit zeigen können. Es wird auch auf den Umgang Erwachsener mit Trauma, existenzielle Krisen, Trauer, Sehnsucht, Familie und loslassen eingegangen.

Dieses Buch zeigt auch durch Dialoge und Geschichten, wie Frauen in der Gesellschaft, insbesondere in der japanischen Gesellschaft, gegen die von Männern auf einen Sockel gestellten Normalisierungen und die Frauen, die herablassend behandelt werden, leben müssen, nicht nur von einigen Männern, sondern auch von anderen Frauen. Obwohl es mehr auf die Kämpfe der Frauen eingeht, ist es schön zu sehen, wie dies auch in der Geschichte erwähnt oder angedeutet wird.Es ist interessant zu sehen, wie die Gefühle der Menschen zur künstlichen Befruchtung sind und aus welchen Gründen Menschen dies tun und welche Konsequenzen andere Menschen dagegen einnehmen. Einige in diesem Buch behandelte Themen haben mich zum Nachdenken angeregt und viel reflektieren lassen. Aber es gibt auch einige andere, denen ich nicht zustimmen konnte und die ich gerne anders gesehen hätte.

Die Charaktere waren so kompliziert, roh und verwundbar in ihren eigenen Veranlagungen, dass sie uns mehr in sie hineingezogen haben, Mitgefühl und Empathie mit ihnen zeigen konnten.

amelo

A strange and beguiling novel about three women struggling to determine their own lives in contemporary Tokyo, from Japan's most exciting young writer, Mieko Kawakami

Alla Dumnych

Чесно кажучи, поставила би оцінку 3.5. Історія сама собі хороша, але я, напевно, чекала чогось іншого, виходячи із перших 100-150 сторінок. Також книга доволі затягнута, як на мене, вже на останніх 50 сторінках я пропускала певні описи, оскільки вони не становили жодної цінності для мене. 
В цілому, книгу прочитати раджу, вона цікава і неординарна.

John Manoogian III

Abandoned reading this one after completing a grueling 35%; DNF. What a dull, depressing, goes-seemingly-nowhere grind. Every female in the story is a self-obsessed daydreamer stuck in a rut; every man is a rapist, a drunk, or a deadbeat. I persevered through 70 pages of navel gazing before chucking this book. 

In case you miss signifiers so obvious i mistook them for a smoke screen — the “millennial pink” cover art, the title, the female protagonist — men like me are absolutely NOT the target audience for this book. LOL at myself for trying to transcend that, but, nope, not for me. Good luck to the author — my most cherished experience with this book was returning it to the beautiful woman from whom I borrowed it.

Breasts and Eggs

Reviews

Highlights