Name: Cindy Lieberman's review of A Man by Keiichiro Hirano
Item: A Man
Rating: 3
Author: Cindy Lieberman

Keiichiro Hirano

A man follows another man's trail of lies in a compelling psychological story about the search for identity, by Japan's award-winning literary sensation Keiichiro Hirano in his first novel to be translated into English. Akira Kido is a divorce attorney whose own marriage is in danger of being destroyed by emotional disconnect. With a midlife crisis looming, Kido's life is upended by the reemergence of a former client, Rié Takemoto. She wants Kido to investigate a dead man--her recently deceased husband, Daisuké. Upon his death she discovered that he'd been living a lie. His name, his past, his entire identity belonged to someone else, a total stranger. The investigation draws Kido into two intriguing mysteries: finding out who Rié's husband really was and discovering more about the man he pretended to be. Soon, with each new revelation, Kido will come to share the obsession with--and the lure of--erasing one life to create a new one. In A Man, Keiichiro Hirano, winner of Japan's prestigious Yomiuri Prize for Literature, explores the search for identity, the ambiguity of memory, the legacies with which we live and die, and the reconciliation of who you hoped to be with who you've actually become.

A Man

Silvia Franz

Cindy Lieberman

A man spends about 3 1/2 years researching how another man died with the name of a different man on his papers. Who was he? Why did he have a different name? This “mystery” was slow to unravel. 

Parts of it were quite thoughtful — about the meaning of one’s name, the source of reputation, what we inherit and pass on to our family, what it could feel like to get a fresh start, and what you might feel if you learn a close family member is not whom you believe him to be. 

Having visited Japan, I also enjoyed the glimpses and reminders of the trains, the restaurants, the late nights, and all the vending machines. 

But the exhaustive descriptions of the research process into the “mystery man” made for a long book that dragged occasionally.

Amy Grieve

For me this was a story which embodied both loneliness and warmth. No one character in this book had a particularly easy life but each of them appealed to me. I will admit that it felt like a pretty slow read even though I finished in just under two days. I never felt an overwhelming need to rush for the answers because I just knew that I was going to find the truth in the end.

This book had something to say. It talked about xenophobia the faced by the zainichi population, capital punishment in Japan and mentioned some of the issues surrounding the family register system. It did this all without preaching any one opinion as correct. 

Akira Kido, the lawyer who happens to be a third generation zainichi, approaches all of these issues logically but with obvious heart. He is a man who is weary about his own position in life but I’m so glad that he was the central character of this story. I’ll be honest some of the central male characters in other Japanese literature I’ve read have frankly disgusted me. Just despicable human beings who justify things like cheating on their wives with flimsy pleas of loneliness. Not this man. Loyal, human and dedicated to his work. 

The actual mystery of this book was what I would call comfortable in a way. I feel like the synopsis of this book makes it seem like a dark obsession is formed by Akira when in actuality it’s much less intense and is instead framed as a coping mechanism to help him cope with his own loneliness by projecting and dedicating himself to the search for the true identity of this unknown X. It felt like a big mystery with a very human explanation.

I’m glad that we also got glimpses into how Rio was coping with the revelations about her deceased husband. Such a strong woman. It was nice who cyclical the nature of this book was. We start with Rio having all these questions and we end with Rio finally gaining the closure she deserves.

Mario Menti 

Really loved this. A philosophical, quite deep, but very modern detective story. I wish more of his work was translated into English.

Anyaconda

I love reading Japanese fiction and I am big Murakami fan, so I had to request " A Man" when I discovered it on Steve Donoghue's booktube channel.

We follow a lawyer solve a mystery surrounding a swapped identity and while we tag along we're getting to know him and his own thoughts about his identity, relationship and family life. 

I could hardly put it down. The atmosphere is great and the characters are each interesting in their own way. The only reason why I couldn't give this 5 cups of coffee was the ending.

* BIG SPOILER WARNING*

I was actually hoping that he would contact Omiura to sort out his own new identity after the revelation in the restaurant about the text message his wife received from her boss. I felt let down as he wasn't mentioned anymore after we read about Yuto and Rie accepting Kido's story about Daisuke/Makoto.

I will keep an eye out as I'd love to read the author's future work.

Thank you Netgalley and Amazon Crossing for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review. This was right down my alley.

Gordon McLean

What is a life?

I remain intrigued by this story. Whilst none of the characters were particularly absorbing, and the overwrought tendency of the author to delve into repetitive circumspection becomes a little tedious, I found myself returning to read this in the hope it would sweep me along. It never truly did and the myriad of insights is a little overwhelming to be enjoyable.

Silvia Franz &
A Man by Keiichiro Hirano

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Silvia Franz &A Man by Keiichiro Hirano

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Join the club

Silvia Franz &
A Man by Keiichiro Hirano