Status
Available
Collection
Publication
Drawn and Quarterly (2012), 224 pages
Description
Abandon the Old in Tokyocontinues to delve into the urban underbelly of 1960s Tokyo, exposing not only the seedy dealings of the Japanese everyman but Yoshihiro Tatsumi's maturation as a storyteller. Many of the stories deal with the economic hardships of the time and the strained relationships between men and women, but do so by means of dark allegorical twists and turns. A young sewer cleaner's girlfriend has a miscarriage and leaves him when he proves incapable of finding higher-paying work. When a factory worker loses his hand on the job, the parallels between him and his pet monkey prove startling and significant.
User reviews
LibraryThing member catarina1
Re-issue of gekiga (not manga) for the West of the work of one of the pioneers of the genre. Began in the late 60's, prior to the growth of manga-style magazines, during the period of the book lending shops. Stories about alienation, lonliness - typical Japanese themes of the 20th century.
LibraryThing member heterotopic
Soft and yet gritty drawings of everyday life in Japan during the 70's. The sordid reality of the characters is very tangible in Tatsumi's work; however, it is balanced with light humor. This graphic medium has succeeded in bringing together the Japanese of today and yesterday, as well as bringing
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in the readers to experience their reality. Tatsumi's perspective is spot on, and his eye serves as a perfect record of humanity's destruction, as well as occasional glimpses of beauty, as shown in this series of oftentimes-strange stories. He never leaves anything out; the buildings and the walls pop out at you, and they are also characters in the stories. Delving into the deeper characters of people and how they cope, no matter how strange or repulsive, at the end of the day, it shows that it is man's survival that is important. And though the characters may seem to be defeated and weak, the stories' importance lies on the fact that the characters have indeed survived, even if they still live in their "one room castles." For they still recognize freedom and they continue, and this is just enough to save them. Show Less
LibraryThing member cameling
I've been a fan of Tatsumi's GNs that take a bleak and hard look at Japanese society. In this series of short stories, he tells us tales of men and women who feel trapped in bleak lives because of family obligations, hidden desires, thirst for revenge and social expectations. He exposes the
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repression his characters live under. If you want Disney-type GNs, this is not for you. If you want to look under the glossy surface of a culture, dive in. Show Less
LibraryThing member questbird
Bleak stories about despairing, lonely people trapped by society. There are no happy endings in this book of short stories. Despair is the keyword. Artwork is excellent and moody, and the stories are haunting. One is actually a horror story. There is an interesting interview with the author by
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Adrian Tomine at the back. Show Less
LibraryThing member Farree
This consists of a series of stark tales set in a black and white graphic novel style. I find them amazingly good and very informative 'naturalistic' Japanese fiction (very reminiscent of Stephen Crane and James T. Farrell short stories). I also note that the book has an article of its own in
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wikipedia, which I recommend. Show Less
LibraryThing member RandyMetcalfe
The eight graphic short stories collected here were originally published in Japan in 1970. Tatsumi is the originator of the gekiga style of manga, which uses a cinematic style and involves adult themes. Both are in evidence here. Tatsumi’s focus is often on underclass protagonists who are barely
Since the stories were originally published for differing audiences (some for young people, and some aimed solely at the underground adult market), there is a significant variety in tone. Humour is typically a component of the stories, but in some the humour is exceedingly dark.
Recommended, with caution, to anyone interested in the growth of alternative manga in Japan.
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eking out a living. Sometimes they are so set upon by burdens or responsibilities, or just unending back luck, that they despair. And in despair their lives slip across the border of the human. To describe these stories as bleak would be an understatement.Since the stories were originally published for differing audiences (some for young people, and some aimed solely at the underground adult market), there is a significant variety in tone. Humour is typically a component of the stories, but in some the humour is exceedingly dark.
Recommended, with caution, to anyone interested in the growth of alternative manga in Japan.
Show Less
Language
Original language
English