Set in Taitung City, Taiwan. Reviewed on 2018/11: https://www.instagram.com/p/BqchmnNHe5R/
So many things I can say in this post because there are rightly so many elements in this wondrous book. But I want you to spend time reading the actual book and not yet on another mega long review. So I’m going to talk about what impressed me the most. And that is the so-called #pacificocean is not so pacific after all. #wumingyi masterfully employs his prowess as a storyteller to talk about identity specifically #taiwaneseidentity and its relationship vis-a-vis nature and an ocean which it’s perceived as dangerous, beautiful, deadly, endless and vengeful. #themanwiththecompoundeyes is impregnated with the idea that the ocean is quietly plotting against us and because of our own #environmental stupidity we are lastly responsible for its fury. Again there are a lot of very specific, almost #scifi , #utopian and philosophical arguments which render this book definitely one of a kind. #Wu has written a must-read book for anyone interested in the canon of #environmentalliterature . However my point in this mini review and something which relates deeply to yesterday’s post on #shunmedoruma in Okinawa is the idea that the ocean surrounding these islands is a deceivingly serene monster which brings nothing but isolation, foreign invasions and devastating natural disasters. Given the nature of this IG account, I can’t help but to compare these books with Caribbean literature and even from Mediterranean Sea countries. Next year, I will spend three entire months: February, March and April reading books only set in both countries bordering the Pacific Ocean but more importantly every single country/territory inside the ocean: #pasifikalit . I want to hold on to this thought and marinate it again next year. In the meantime, of course I #highlyrecommend this book. #taiwaneseliterature #taipei #taiwan#taitung #taitungcity #吳明益#environmentalactivist #wayowayo #英譯本 #secondson
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