‘Instantanés d’Ambre’ by Yoko Ogawa, a Dreamlike, Powerful Novel
In this claustrophobic setting, a mother shuts her three children away to protect them from danger in an ambiance that is sombre but hopeful.
© Ulf Andersen
When Yoko Ogawa arrived in France to promote the release of her novel Instantanés d’Ambre (yet to be translated into in English), she came armed with a suitcase full of green tea. In everyday life as in her novels, Yoko Ogawa leaves nothing to chance.
Sensitivity to sounds
The novel—the story of a quiet mother who protects her children by hiding them away in a villa surrounded by high walls—has an ambiance that’s somewhere between life and death, sombre and yet full of light. The mother asks her children to choose new names (they select Agate, Amber, and Opal), thinking that this will shield them from danger. This rich and subtle world creates a presence that’s sensitive to sounds, murmurs, and also silence. The novelist proves once again that she is a major figure in Japanese literature.
Instantanés d’Ambre (2018), a novel by Yoko Ogawa, is published by Actes Sud (not currently available in English).
© Actes Sud
TRENDING
-
The Tattoos that Marked the Criminals of the Edo Period
Traditional tattoos were strong signifiers; murderers had head tattoos, while theft might result in an arm tattoo.
-
‘Chindogu’, the Genius of Unusable Objects
Ingenious but impractical inventions: this was all that was required for the concept to achieve a resounding success.
-
Modernology, Kon Wajiro's Science of Everyday Observation
Makeup, beard shape, organisation of cupboards and meeting places: all of these details decipher 1920s Tokyoites.
-
Yoshitomo Nara: What Lies Behind Insouciance and Appearances
Yoshitomo Nara's little girls with big eyes unsettle the viewer with the violence they exude and force them to discern the imperceptible.
-
Tokyo's Transgender Community of the 1970s Immortalised by Satomi Nihongi
In her series ‘'70S Tokyo TRANSGENDER’, the photographer presents a culture and an aesthetic that are situated on the margins of social norms.
