Beautiful Shining People by Michael Grothaus
| Beautiful Shining People by Michael Grothaus | |
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| Category: Literary Fiction | |
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Reviewer: Olivia Tierney
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| Summary: A fascinating novel that revolves around identity and belonging. Part science fiction, part love story, part coming-of-age story, part dystopian, part thriller, Beautiful Shining People is a novel like no other with something for each and every reader. | |
| Buy? Maybe | Borrow? Yes |
| Pages: 384 | Date: March 2023 |
| Publisher: Orenda Books | |
| External links: Author's website | |
| ISBN: 978-1914585647 | |
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But fearing something and having it come to pass are two different things. And I'm willing to bet most of what we fear will never happen, or we can take steps to change it.
Beautiful Shining People revolves around the question of identity and acceptance. Of what it means to be human. Of what is real and what is artificial, and whether the development of technology is exciting or frightening.
Told from the perspective of John, a seventeen-year-old American who has been labelled technology's newest prodigy, the story begins with him landing in Japan in preparation for a business meeting with Sony. Through his first wanderings around Tokyo we become acquainted with a novel world, one where cars drive themselves, drones circle across the sky and robots are around every corner, but one that is built upon the foundations of the past and the present – the neon-lit streets, the temples and shrines. It is a Tokyo that is futuristic yet so very close to the one we know. Unable to sleep, John happens upon a hidden café, which alongside its inhabitants – the owner, Goeido, a disgraced ex sumo wrestler, the beautiful waitress, Neotnia and a peculiar eye-catching dog – transpires not to be as ordinary as it appears. Just like John, each of them holds a secret, and in delving deeper to discover Neotnia's, John will find everything he has ever known turn upside down and inside out. And it is one that will steer them from the bustling streets of Tokyo to the haunting ones of Hiroshima to the snowy mountains of Nagano. A secret that has the power to change the world forever…
The crafting of the novel is masterful, with each revelation Grothaus gives us the words and the time to settle into this change or that, whether it is a different setting or concept or character, before turning everything we know on its head, introducing layers of depth to the story that enrich our reading experience. This feeling of being settled, subsequently unsettled, and then settled once more, happens recurring, and though Beautiful Shining People is startling and unexpected, it is never once jarring. Sprinkled with some truly breath-taking, achingly beautiful passages of writing – from internal reflection to vivid descriptions of the surroundings - Grothaus' second novel moves for the most part relatively slowly, ebbing and flowing smoothly as it builds anticipation and suspense before coming together in a thrilling, captivating conclusion.
The central characters, alongside those connected to their stories, were wonderfully textured with mysterious pasts and their depth made it very easy and enjoyable to be invested in their story arcs. So too was the setting of the scene, there was no better location than Tokyo – which even today to Western minds seems advanced and otherworldly yet steeped in tradition at the same time. Grothaus' captures the electricity of the city streets perfectly whilst also describing rural Japan in lovely detail.
At times the story suffered from losing its way and at times there was a distance to the characters. But these scenes and moments were always very brief and followed by scenes and moments where the story and the characters moved on.
A striking, surreal novel which blends genre, Beautiful Shining People is a thought-provoking story which will leave you quietly musing its meanings for a long time after you've finished. At its core it is a story of friendship and having the ability to see the world around us in different lights. And it is a novel that I would strongly suggest reading next.
Many thanks to the publishers for providing The Bookbag with a copy for review!
In terms of further reading, if you aren't ready to leave Japan, 1Q84: The Complete Trilogy by Haruki Murakami is a tour de force. It's clever, intricate and one that will you will think about long after you have turned the last page. Alternatively, if you are craving a more dystopian literary masterpiece The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood is an important and alarming novel that everyone should read at least once.
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You can read more book reviews or buy Beautiful Shining People by Michael Grothaus at Amazon.co.uk Amazon currently charges £2.99 for standard delivery for orders under £20, over which delivery is free.
You can read more book reviews or buy Beautiful Shining People by Michael Grothaus at Amazon.com.
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