Life Ceremony
Creative
Dark
Gross

Life Ceremony Stories

Sayaka Murata2022
The long-awaited first short story-collection by the author of the cult sensation Convenience Store Woman, tales of weird love, heartfelt friendships, and the unsettling nature of human existence With Life Ceremony, the incomparable Sayaka Murata is back with her first collection of short stories ever to be translated into English. In Japan, Murata is particularly admired for her short stories, which are sometimes sweet, sometimes shocking, and always imbued with an otherworldly imagination and uncanniness. In these twelve stories, Murata mixes an unusual cocktail of humor and horror to portray both the loners and outcasts as well as turning the norms and traditions of society on their head to better question them. Whether the stories take place in modern-day Japan, the future, or an alternate reality is left to the reader's interpretation, as the characters often seem strange in their normality in a frighteningly abnormal world. In "A First-Rate Material," Nana and Naoki are happily engaged, but Naoki can't stand the conventional use of deceased people's bodies for clothing, accessories, and furniture, and a disagreement around this threatens to derail their perfect wedding day. "Lovers on the Breeze" is told from the perspective of a curtain in a child's bedroom that jealously watches the young girl Naoko as she has her first kiss with a boy from her class and does its best to stop her. "Eating the City" explores the strange norms around food and foraging, while "Hatchling" closes the collection with an extraordinary depiction of the fractured personality of someone who tries too hard to fit in. In these strange and wonderful stories of family and friendship, sex and intimacy, belonging and individuality, Murata asks above all what it means to be a human in our world and offers answers that surprise and linger.
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Reviews

Photo of Aspen Moor
Aspen Moor@solmisol
4.5 stars
Nov 12, 2024
This review contains a spoiler
Surprising
Photo of Eva Ströberg
Eva Ströberg@cphbirdlady
3 stars
Jul 19, 2024
Photo of lily lily
lily lily @lilyanyways
4 stars
Jun 23, 2024
Photo of alice
alice@aliceinwords
4 stars
Apr 30, 2024
Photo of Lis Amorelli
Lis Amorelli@lisbuns
3 stars
Apr 23, 2024
Photo of E
E@pyschoes
4 stars
Apr 9, 2024
Photo of 𓆨
𓆨@viridiantre
4 stars
Mar 14, 2024
Photo of 傑恩
傑恩@antoinettelsp
3.5 stars
Jan 23, 2024
Gross
Easy read
Contemplative
Photo of fatru tamzil
fatru tamzil@fatrutamzil
5 stars
Jan 10, 2024
Photo of dae
dae@daedalost
4 stars
Jan 9, 2024
Photo of Athiyya adristi
Athiyya adristi@aadrst
3 stars
Jan 8, 2024
Photo of valentine
valentine@fwn
4 stars
Jan 7, 2024
Photo of Grace M
Grace M@thecoupdegrace
4 stars
Nov 13, 2023
Photo of akshita
akshita@akuuzky
4 stars
Nov 11, 2023
Unique
Surreal
Photo of Klara Hansen
Klara Hansen @klaraaaaa
4.5 stars
Aug 13, 2023
Gross
Unique
Fast paced
Photo of Jeremy Wang
Jeremy Wang@stratified_jeremy
4 stars
May 15, 2023
Photo of charisa
charisa@charisa
3.5 stars
May 15, 2023
Edgy
Vivid
Gross
Inventive
Photo of Anyaconda
Anyaconda@kaffeeklatschandbooks
4 stars
Apr 7, 2023
Photo of Leisha Chadwick
Leisha Chadwick@leishakim
4 stars
Feb 1, 2023
Photo of Ceren
Ceren@ceroshka
5 stars
Jan 26, 2023
Dark
Playful
Shallow
Powerful
Original
Photo of ibe
ibe@sph_inx
5 stars
Jan 22, 2023
Photo of lucy lou
lucy lou@louhardy
3.5 stars
Jan 20, 2023
Creative
Fascinating
Photo of Stef
Stef@faninos
4 stars
Jan 2, 2023
Photo of Lindsay
Lindsay@schnurln
2.5 stars
Nov 2, 2022
Gross
Creative
Avant-garde

Highlights

Photo of Karola
Karola@karoladenis
Page 117
Photo of Karola
Karola@karoladenis
Page 85
Photo of 傑恩
傑恩@antoinettelsp
Photo of 傑恩
傑恩@antoinettelsp
Photo of 傑恩
傑恩@antoinettelsp
Photo of 傑恩
傑恩@antoinettelsp
Photo of 傑恩
傑恩@antoinettelsp
Photo of 傑恩
傑恩@antoinettelsp
Photo of 傑恩
傑恩@antoinettelsp
Photo of 傑恩
傑恩@antoinettelsp
Photo of 傑恩
傑恩@antoinettelsp
Photo of akshita
akshita@akuuzky
Photo of akshita
akshita@akuuzky
Photo of Klara Hansen
Klara Hansen @klaraaaaa
Page 106
Photo of Klara Hansen
Klara Hansen @klaraaaaa
Page 8
This highlight contains a spoiler
Photo of Ceren
Ceren@ceroshka
Page 132
This highlight contains a spoiler
Photo of Ceren
Ceren@ceroshka
Page 134
This highlight contains a spoiler
Photo of Lindsay
Lindsay@schnurln
Photo of Lindsay
Lindsay@schnurln
Photo of Klara Hansen
Klara Hansen @klaraaaaa
Page 2
Photo of Air
Air@airhorn
Page 47
Photo of Air
Air@airhorn
Page 38