Grotesque -
Natsuo Kirino
A psychological look into the darker side of the human psyche told
through the eyes of 4 women who were part of the elite schooling
system in Japan where it is a pressure-cooker perverted microcosm
of the uglier side of Japanese society.
The narrator, a "half" woman of Japanese and Swiss parents, doesn't
look very out of the ordinary. However, within her was a malice and
viciousness which can only be described as "Grotesque". Scarred
from young by a dysfunctional family and the shadow of jealousy of
her breathtakingly pretty sister.
Yuriko is born so physically perfect she was monstrous. The darker
side of her nature came to being as she was so physically perfect,
everyone doted over her as they lusted for her. Eventually her
physical perfection drove her into the extreme dark side of life
and prostitution.
Kazue Sato, self-delusional and obsessed, her psyche was first
perverted by her overbearing father, then later scarred by the
beauty of Yuriko. In her life, her delusional obsessive nature
drove her to the degradation which was her murder.
Mitsuru, a brilliant student who tried her very best at being the
best. However, when she was swept into this maelstrom of hatred,
maliciousness and anger, her psychology was bent and she fell into
a surprisingly dark fate.
The murder of Yuriko and Kazue reveals the grotesque nature of the
darker side of society. Some of which is so dark and terrible, the
title is apt.
What is read, cannot be un-read. Not for the faint hearted. 4 1/2
out of 5
