Anyhow, setting aside my obsession for the time being, let’s now talk about the book I finished reading last week-ish. Out by Natsuo Kirino, translated from Japanese by Stephen Snyder, is the latest addition to my favorite crime/thriller, contemporary fictions. I love a bad-ass, not so innocent, female protagonist, and Masako Katori is just that. She is smart, she appears to be just a normal, average, flawed being, unhappily married with a troubled, teenage boy at home, works a mindless job, and even at the age of 43, she has yet to fully figure herself out. Despite the choices she made and the things she’d done, I couldn’t help liking her. She has a strange charm about her, and Natsuo Kirino did a wonderful job of bringing out her charm. It’s like, I could totally see why everyone around her either depended on her or trusted her, or simple fell in love with her.
Masako works night shifts at a Bento factory; basically, all night long, she, along with other workers, make bento boxes (lunch boxes) that get sold in convenience stores and some other places. It’s boring but hard work. Masako usually works with three other women closely during her shifts — beautiful and somewhat naive Yayoi, older and good natured Yoshie, and vain Kuniko. They are not exactly friends, but not simple acquaintances either. It’s almost as if the other three have somehow decided that Masako is the go to person for all their troubles. They do not necessarily like her, but they rely on her none the less. Someone needs money? Ask Masako! Someone needs a hand disposing a dead body? Go to Masako! Yeah.
This all may have made Masako sound like a pushover, but she is anything but, and her companions know that very well themselves. They trust Masako, rely on her, and at the same time, are also a bit wary of her. As for Masako, she may be quick on her feet when it comes to helping her colleagues, but she also does not shy from manipulating them if and when need be. You see, she is not someone you mess with. There is just something in her personality that exudes strength and wisdom. But of course, all that makes her sound very cool. And yes, she is! But at the same time, she is also the kind of person who can cut up a cold dead body into little pieces, and manipulate her companions at work into giving her a helping hand in the process.
As for the story, Yayoi, the prettiest of the four ladies from the night shift, ends up killing her husband in a fit of angry outburst. Not knowing what to do, she calls Masako and asks for help. Masako comes to the rescue. She, with a little help from the other two in their little team, manage to cut up the dead body and then scatter the pieces all over the town. Things do not go all according to plan and otherwise unlikely characters get involved in the whole mess. Eventually, someone has to pay the price, and therefore, ensues a cat-and-mouse game.
Masako’s character is one of the most complicated characters I have come across in literature. Natsuo Kirino, now having read two of her books (right after I finished reading Out, I picked up Real World which I loved just as much; review coming soon!), I can tell that she is a keen observant of people and their characters. Some people only see the cheery side of others, the happy faces so to speak. Kirino sees beyond the made up, smiley faces, and can discern true nature of the human psyche. In Out, all the characters are damaged, screwed up, and the reader is well aware of the bottomless pit that is the mind of Masako and some of the other characters in this book.
Out was by no means an easy read (haah, I seem to keep repeating myself… I must really love disturbing books, huh! Strange how you find out little things about yourself just from reading books!) But I love a psychological crime/mystery/thriller, and Out was an excellent read that kept me on the edge of the seat for all its 350-something pages. The ending, I have to say, felt a little rushed. The emotions Kirino was trying to portray, I understood them, however, I also felt a lack of proper execution. It felt like a lot of things happened between two people, but somehow the readers did not get to understand the depth of the feelings they experienced. Somehow though, I was able to discern, from reading the rest of the book I assume, what could have happened. It was an understandable ending, even expected, one may say, but only if you have a knack for the twisted…
Like I said, not an easy read, and definitely not for all, but if you like twisted, psychological, crime drama, then give Out a go. I enjoyed this book a lot, and have, as of now, become a Natsuo Kirino fan!
Title: Out
Author: Natsuo Kirino, Stephen Snyder (Translator)
Publisher: Kodansha, July 11, 2003.
Format: Hardcover, 359 pages.
Genre: Literary Fiction, Japanese, Crime
Source: University of Denver Library