fuck the (memory) police

Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa is, oh dear. Another novel that is highly recommended but was unconvincing (to me), like it was grabbing connections to Nazi Germany! Forced Disappearances! State Media! The blurb also pulled at literary greats — George Orwell's 1984, Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451, Gabriel García Márquez's One Hundred Years of Solitude. The book felt like it relied on those connections to create the narrative force without going through the effort of exploring it well.

( brief haterisms and a reflection on how memory works  )