The Ark Sakura

by Kōbō Abe

Other authorsJuliet Winters Carpenter (Translator)
Paperback, 2020

Status

Available

Call number

895.635

Publication

London : Penguin Classics, 2020.

Description

Mole has converted a huge underground quarry into an "ark" capable of surviving the coming nuclear holocaust and is now in search of his crew. He falls victim, however, to the wiles of a con-man-cum-insect-dealer. In the surreal drama that ensues, the ark is invaded by a gang of youths and a sinister group of elderly people called the Broom Brigade, lead by Mole's odious father, while Mole becomes trapped in the ark's central piece of equipment, a giant toilet powerful enough to flush almost anything, including chopped-up humans, out to sea--Publisher's description.

User reviews

LibraryThing member figre
One thing I am always looking for is a book that can take weirdness, make me believe it just might be true, and then take me along for the ride. It is part of the reason I am such a fan of Phillip K. Dick. In a similar manner, one of the things I enjoy about Haruki Murakami is his ability to embed
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strangeness into the normal world in such a way that the resulting abnormalities seem to have derived naturally.

It is no coincidence that these two authors would come to mind in the review of this book by Kobo Abe. Just like Murakami, Abe takes what appears to be a normal Japanese life and begins to turn it on its ear. Just like Dick, Abe goes beyond a mere on-ear turning and spins the reader into an alternate reality that seems sane in spite of its insanity.

The protagonist, known only as Mole, is convinced the end of the world is about to occur through nuclear holocaust. He has found an abandoned mine which he has turned into the ultimate bomb shelter. To find the right volunteers, he goes into the marketplace armed with invitations, which he has never used. However, on the day this story begins, he thinks he may have found someone. He provides the invitations, then changes his mind. And yet, that invitation leads to three individuals eventually joining him at the site. They are a couple who act as shills and the salesman for whom they work. Each of the three has their own quirks and weirdness. And yet, we can't even be sure that what we are being told is true. Unreliable narrators abound. (So, does the young man have cancer or not?) But then, as we get to know him, Mole becomes even stranger than we first thought, having lived through a childhood that would drive anyone to a bomb shelter.

Much like the hero of an existential novel, Mole becomes the slave to events rather than being their master. As much as he wants to be captain of the ark, he becomes no more than a passenger. It was Mole's ambition to fill the bomb shelter with a hand-picked group of individuals. As events transpire, it is becoming full, but the types that are filling it are far from those Mole desired. His secret hideaway becomes less and less of a secret and becomes more dangerous than the world from which he is running. It is really more than Mole can take.

Among other things there is a super toilet, a gang of old men called The Broom Brigade, eupcaccia bugs which live off their own waste – basically an eclectic conglomeration of absurdist people and situations.

And it all comes together in a fun and interesting read. In the hands of a poor (or even adequate) writer, this is the type of story that falls under the weight of its own attempts. But Abe is skilled and the weirdness comes in such a logical, normal manner that you will not realize just how strange it has all become until you look back and think to yourself "A super toilet?"

I read a recommendation for Kobo Abe a while ago and this was my first opportunity to see if the recommendation was correct. Suffice to say this will not be the last Abe I read.
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LibraryThing member alexnisnevich
The world that Kobo Abe creates has a twisted and bizarre logic to it - you dismiss certain possibilities immediately while reading (for instance, how could the sakuras have followed Mole's map and entered the ark in the beginning? it's clear to the reader that Mole is simply paranoid) - only to
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find out that this is exactly what happened. The premise is unusual to begin with, and the characters and groups that are introduced become more and more ridiculous, while the main plot occassionally detours into unconnected short stories that are as shocking as they are original, with little explanation given for them. Nevertheless, the idea behind the absurd plot is a powerful one - is the individual entitled to leave society, and more importantly, are any of us willing or able to escape from society entirely? All in all, a weird, gripping, and hilarious book. Highly recommended.
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LibraryThing member Praj05
During my impoverished student years, I used to work at a local grocery store to meet ends. It was about two blocks away from my house. Everyday, my walks to work included terrifying encounters with a raggedy woman brimming with delusional paranoia of the world ending amid armageddon showers; her
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constant yelling was eerie and scared the daylights out of me.

Enter the world of 'Mole'- a middle-aged, stout man who stays true to his nickname; dwelling in an abandon stone-quarry in an obscure landscape away from civilization. He is a poster child for misanthropy and delusional paranoia. A self-confessed "Noah", presumes to build an ark to save mankind from future nuclear holocaust. Unlike Noah, I deem that his celestial prophecies were strictly induced from large amount of caffeine that he guzzled along with cheap beers. So, with the mirage of being "the savior", he goes on a monthly excursion to the malls to recruit the choicest specimens (people) who he finds worth giving a ticket to his futuristic ship. During one of his outings he assembles a trio- an insect seller, and a couple of shills. The group ultimately lands in the stone quarry and an onset of surreal and macabre atmosphere reveals the incongruous circumstances. The rest of the manuscript discusses an array of topics from old age in the form of the Broom Brigade, environmentalism, survival, murder, allegiance, sex, humanity and nuclear devastation.

The vocabulary commences strongly with personalized characterization of every actor, revealing idiosyncrasies with gritty metaphors making the individuals authentic thriving in their recluse milieu. The insect seller-Komono, who trades these paper-like fictitious insects-‘eupcaccia’, find affinity towards Mole; identifying these insects to be a placard of his own misanthropic lifestyle. Lacking friends or family, Mole compares himself to the eupcaccia, a fictional self-contained bug that feeds on its own feces. The concept of alienation shines with every passage giving a deep sense of the hermit life-styles and an acquired misanthropic quality with the fear of being ridiculed.

Abe’s bringing into play of creatures to be a metaphor to human life can be seen in his other book 'Woman in Dunes' correlating the mechanism of creepy-crawly manners to human philosophy.
"Take the anthropoids, which are thought to share a common ancestor with the human race. They exhibit two distinct tendencies: one is to make groups and build societies—the aggrandizing tendency—and the other are for each animal to huddle in its own territory and build its own castle —the settling tendency. For whatever reason, both these contradictory impulses survive in the human psyche. On the one hand, humans have acquired the ability to spread across the earth, thanks to an adaptability superior even to that of rats and cockroaches; on the other, they have acquired a demonic capability for intense mutual hatred and destruction."

Kobo Abe a proficient in surrealism and absurdity lacks lucidity in this particular manuscript. The assembly of classic outcasts and uncanny personality is quiet attention-grabbing with little quirks spilling from every character’s movements through the coherent narration. However, with introduction of new characters and embellishments of senseless jargon, the tale turns into this muddled cauldron of jumbling and irksome recitation.

Through endless yawns and blank stares, I eventually drifted building my own castle in the sky with flying ponies.
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LibraryThing member dbsovereign
A must read for all survivalists. Along with Merle's _Malevil_. Abe's characters also face brutal reality with a relentless resolve. And under stress, they collide with bullet directness.
LibraryThing member SqueakyChu
I thoroughly enjoyed the experience of reading this brilliant book. Kobo Abe wrote the weirdest stuff. This novel is mesmerizing, imaginative, absurd and fun to read. Some parts of this story are hilarious while other parts are deeply disturbing.

This is a story of survival. An introverted
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character called Mole (and later, Captain) hosts three people, first encountered at an outdoor market, within an abandoned quarry (the Ark Sakura), his venue of ultimate survival. It’s worthwhile taking a trip with this author into his surreal labyrinth and learn about the odd interactions between the Captain and the three crew members who decide live with him. Are the four of them alone in the mammoth quarry? Can he trust them? Are there other enemies within? Who are the Broom Brigade? Find out by reading this crazy adventure. Oddly enough, a fictitious insect began it all. So strange and wonderful!
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Language

Original language

Japanese

Original publication date

1984 (original Japanese)
1988 (English translation)

Physical description

19 cm

ISBN

9780241454589
Page: 0.288 seconds