Life Ceremony
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- Create Date：2022-08-07 09:51:36
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Sayaka Murata
- ISBN：1783787376
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Summary
From the author of international bestseller Convenience Store Woman comes a collection of short fiction: weird， out of this world and like nothing you’ve read before。
An engaged couple falls out over the husband’s dislike of clothes and objects made from human materials; a young girl finds herself deeply enamoured with the curtain in her childhood bedroom; people honour their dead by eating them and then procreating。 Published in English for the first time， this exclusive edition also includes the story that first brought Sayaka Murata international acclaim: ‘A Clean Marriage’， which tells the story of a happily asexual couple who must submit to some radical medical procedures if they are to conceive a longed-for child。
Mixing taboo-breaking body horror with feminist revenge fables， old ladies who love each other and young women finding empathy and transformation in unlikely places， Life Ceremony is a wild ride to the outer edges of one of the most original minds in contemporary fiction。
An engaged couple falls out over the husband’s dislike of clothes and objects made from human materials; a young girl finds herself deeply enamoured with the curtain in her childhood bedroom; people honour their dead by eating them and then procreating。 Published in English for the first time， this exclusive edition also includes the story that first brought Sayaka Murata international acclaim: ‘A Clean Marriage’， which tells the story of a happily asexual couple who must submit to some radical medical procedures if they are to conceive a longed-for child。
Mixing taboo-breaking body horror with feminist revenge fables， old ladies who love each other and young women finding empathy and transformation in unlikely places， Life Ceremony is a wild ride to the outer edges of one of the most original minds in contemporary fiction。
Reviews
Jess
，
ok defs my favourite of hers is it a 5 idk i loved it tho so maybe but maybe not an all time favelife ceremony: the most romantic one liner about a character then i turn the page and the next line he's dead lolbody magic: love the self exploration are these the same characters as earthlings do all her books link or something or are the short stories just rough drafts before they become fully fleshed out。。 if so i prefer the rough draftslover on the breeze: omg curtain pov i loveeeeeating the cit ok defs my favourite of hers is it a 5 idk i loved it tho so maybe but maybe not an all time favelife ceremony: the most romantic one liner about a character then i turn the page and the next line he's dead lolbody magic: love the self exploration are these the same characters as earthlings do all her books link or something or are the short stories just rough drafts before they become fully fleshed out。。 if so i prefer the rough draftslover on the breeze: omg curtain pov i loveeeeeating the city: i want her to write true horror or fantasy idk her writing could be so cool in these genres 。。。more
Wendy Uchimura
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If you've read Earthlings， while a little of the uncomfortableness is present， this collection of short stories will give a slightly different perspective but more understanding into Earthlings and Murata's world。 All the stories in this collection touch on societal norms and the pushing of boundaries。 Some of the stories go into the bizarre and you may never see some objects or customs the same ever again （weddings and the word 'insemination' in my case）， but they definitely leave you with some If you've read Earthlings， while a little of the uncomfortableness is present， this collection of short stories will give a slightly different perspective but more understanding into Earthlings and Murata's world。 All the stories in this collection touch on societal norms and the pushing of boundaries。 Some of the stories go into the bizarre and you may never see some objects or customs the same ever again （weddings and the word 'insemination' in my case）， but they definitely leave you with something to think about and that's no bad thing。 。。。more
Daniella Miranda
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Definitely Sayaka Murata writing。 Some stories were more compelling than others。 Some made me physically ill while others didn’t quite make me feel… In my opinion the best stories were Life Ceremony and Hatchlings。 Those two were amazing reads that made me sick， intrigued and wanting more， and relate？？ I’m sure this book has a story for everyone so I definitely will be recommending it to everyone！
Till Raether
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4。5The intertextuality is sweet （there's a dialogue between two neighboring stories， there're hints of a happier version of Earthlings）， the corporeality is overwhelming， unflinching， and， I hate to say it， yummy。 4。5The intertextuality is sweet （there's a dialogue between two neighboring stories， there're hints of a happier version of Earthlings）， the corporeality is overwhelming， unflinching， and， I hate to say it， yummy。 。。。more
Debanjana Das
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2。5/5
Sharon Blair Scott
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Sometimes short stories are perfect。 They are quick and satisfying， something that fills a small space of time。 They can be structured to stick with you， making you think on it for days and days。 This book is a little of both。
Alex
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Man this was a wild ride。 This compilation of short stories revealed a parallel dimension of our world。 One where humans are still an intelligent species， but evolved different traditions which were more inclined towards initial animalistic instinct， that other mammals tend to have。 The writing was so convincing， normalising every taboo， each story interlinking with the next， creating a convincing alternate reality that’s not far from our own and therefore entirely believable。 Some stories seeme Man this was a wild ride。 This compilation of short stories revealed a parallel dimension of our world。 One where humans are still an intelligent species， but evolved different traditions which were more inclined towards initial animalistic instinct， that other mammals tend to have。 The writing was so convincing， normalising every taboo， each story interlinking with the next， creating a convincing alternate reality that’s not far from our own and therefore entirely believable。 Some stories seemed so justified I began to question why we didn’t do that， in our own realities。 What a hold tradition has on us that we’re so closed minded to anything else， how we as a species are so sure that our own perspective is the only one that has been and will ever be。 This book was a window into an open mind， and really made me think about our values as humans。 It sent shivers down my spine。 I’m not usually a big fan of short story collections because I often look more for the character development than the plot， and short stories make it difficult for me to connect to the characters。 But this book was an exception， with plot and characters alike in their stature。 ‘Life Ceremony’ is by far the best short story collection I have ever read。 Murata is a literary genius。 Kudos to Takemori for the translation。 Thank you to Granta for sending me a ARC in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Kamila
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Sayaka Murata is a very talented writer。 I love her almost painting-like descriptions of things， they make u hear， they make u smell things， they make u feel squeamish （Life Ceremony short story :））。 She explores themes of allienation， of being looked at as a weirdo， an outcast， someone not conforming to societys rules and standards and that really reminded me of Convience Store Woman。 This was a good short story collection although some of them were forgettable。 My favorites are: Life Ceremony， Sayaka Murata is a very talented writer。 I love her almost painting-like descriptions of things， they make u hear， they make u smell things， they make u feel squeamish （Life Ceremony short story :））。 She explores themes of allienation， of being looked at as a weirdo， an outcast， someone not conforming to societys rules and standards and that really reminded me of Convience Store Woman。 This was a good short story collection although some of them were forgettable。 My favorites are: Life Ceremony， A rate material， Eating the city and Hatchling， probably 。。。more
Kateryna Kateryna
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A collection of stories about what it means to be normal and about how arbitrary normality is。 Most stories felt somewhat unfinished， more like sketches or studies， but I enjoyed reading them nonetheless。
Ally （AllyEmReads）
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2。71 CAWPILE scoreYou know， I think this just showed me that Sayaka Murata is just not the author for me。 I really only enjoyed the last two short stories in this collection， and "enjoy" feels like too strong a word at this point。 Her stories are all fascinating in one way or another， I can't deny that， but they're just a little too out there and disturbing for my taste。 I really did like Convenience Store Woman， but Earthlings was one of the worst books I read last year， and while I liked this 2。71 CAWPILE scoreYou know， I think this just showed me that Sayaka Murata is just not the author for me。 I really only enjoyed the last two short stories in this collection， and "enjoy" feels like too strong a word at this point。 Her stories are all fascinating in one way or another， I can't deny that， but they're just a little too out there and disturbing for my taste。 I really did like Convenience Store Woman， but Earthlings was one of the worst books I read last year， and while I liked this a little better than Earthlings， it still wasn't something I would say I actually liked。 So， I think I'm giving up on Sayaka Murata， sadly。 。。。more
Little_Ember
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You have to read this piece of existential literure。 Murata， keep being you。
Annie
，
it’s really hard to rate short story collections because inevitably you’ll like some more than others。 the title story is my fave by far and alone is ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️。 i think my favourite thing about murata’s writing （which i can only assume is translated from the japanese as she had intended） is the ‘casual horror’ - as in horror aspects discussed casually as though they’re a natural part of every day life。 of course furniture would be made from human remains， sure everyone gathers to eat their frie it’s really hard to rate short story collections because inevitably you’ll like some more than others。 the title story is my fave by far and alone is ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️。 i think my favourite thing about murata’s writing （which i can only assume is translated from the japanese as she had intended） is the ‘casual horror’ - as in horror aspects discussed casually as though they’re a natural part of every day life。 of course furniture would be made from human remains， sure everyone gathers to eat their friends after they die。 i really enjoyed the way japanese cultural norms were brought in by this and then flipped on their head like femininity， the family structure and what a happy marriage makes， and it’s done with a sense of humour as well。 i don’t usually love short story collections and i will always end up skipping one or two but this has convinced me to give them a bit of a chance。 。。。more
S
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A First-Rate Material - 5/5 A Magnificent Spread - 5/5A Summer Night’s Kiss - 5/5Two’s Family - 5/5The Time of the Large Star - 5/5Poochie - 5/5Life Ceremony - 5/5Body Magic - 4/5Lover on the Breeze - 4/5Puzzle - 5/5Eating the City - 5/5Hatchling - 5/5My favorites were Hatchling， A First-Rate Material and Live Ceremony。
Alan
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4。5 or 5 stars。 Review to come。
Kate
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some of these stories are typical murata batshit insane and captivating but others in the collection arent as strong。 still bananas tho will be thinking of some of these for a long time
Rodney
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I love her style and the way she handles issues in society。 However， not all stories of this anthology "wow-ed" me。 Her most remarkable short stories for me were Life Ceremony， A First-Rate Material and Hatchling。 I love her style and the way she handles issues in society。 However， not all stories of this anthology "wow-ed" me。 Her most remarkable short stories for me were Life Ceremony， A First-Rate Material and Hatchling。 。。。more
eline
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what the fuck did I just read why did I like it so much？this book is so shocking that I am at a loss for words， every story is unique in its own way。 the writing is outstanding and I genuinely couldn't not love the book。a first-rate material - very weird but also captivating。 somehow you think "that's gross" and then you end up going forward believing that there is no way it could get worse than that。a magnificent spread - this story made me think so much about so many things。 I loved it and I c what the fuck did I just read why did I like it so much？this book is so shocking that I am at a loss for words， every story is unique in its own way。 the writing is outstanding and I genuinely couldn't not love the book。a first-rate material - very weird but also captivating。 somehow you think "that's gross" and then you end up going forward believing that there is no way it could get worse than that。a magnificent spread - this story made me think so much about so many things。 I loved it and I cherish it with my whole heart！a summer night's kiss - really cute！ i liked this one a lot。two's family - lovely， the relationship doesn't need to be labeled and I loved that about the story！the time of the large star - short and sad。 makes you want to cherish the fact that you can sleep and also， in my part， have dreams。poochie - sweet and short， not that disturbing。 life ceremony - I knew this book contained topics such as cannibalism and breaking the norm。。。 yet I was so shocked to read it。 there were probably way too many detailed scenes and I don't think it's okay for just anyone to read it。。。 however， I can't say I didn't like the story。 it was truly shocking but also captivating。 body image - kind of bizarre， kind of sweet。 somehow it gets disturbing at some point but overall， it was alright。lover on the breeze - the fact that we get to see the point of view of a non-living object is quite fascinating， it made me confused in the beginning but it made sense（？）puzzle - amazing！ actually， this piece of work reminded me of won-pyung sohn's almond and i think it was fantastic in it's own way， although sounding the same。eating the earth - cool！ yes！ it's so well said/written！hatchlings - i don't like how much i can relate to this one but after reading it i wish to change my whole self being。I think some of the stories just don't fit the narrative but is there really such one for sayaka murata？ i don't see it so maybe this collection is perfect。 i am severely disturbed but i would re-read it again and come back to some of the stories。 amazing work！ 。。。more
allie_rambles
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Thank-you NetGalley and publisher for the chance to review this ARC。I'm a big fan of short stories。 So I was beyond excited for this one。 Sayaka Murata has such a distinct voice that reading their work completely transports you to the stories。 I adore this collection it's up there with my favorites from the one and only Haruki Murakami。 Thank-you NetGalley and publisher for the chance to review this ARC。I'm a big fan of short stories。 So I was beyond excited for this one。 Sayaka Murata has such a distinct voice that reading their work completely transports you to the stories。 I adore this collection it's up there with my favorites from the one and only Haruki Murakami。 。。。more
J
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Funny， gross， and sometimes sweet， Sayaka Murata takes us on an exploration of being human。 I felt like Murata was having fun with these stories。 Each was written with easily-understandable themes。 My favorite story was the last one: Hatchling。The source text weighed heavily on the translation， so much so I could almost reverse-translate some lines。 Being direct is a valid method of translating， but in my subjective opinion， I don’t prefer reading it in fiction。 Sometimes I felt lines were a bit Funny， gross， and sometimes sweet， Sayaka Murata takes us on an exploration of being human。 I felt like Murata was having fun with these stories。 Each was written with easily-understandable themes。 My favorite story was the last one: Hatchling。The source text weighed heavily on the translation， so much so I could almost reverse-translate some lines。 Being direct is a valid method of translating， but in my subjective opinion， I don’t prefer reading it in fiction。 Sometimes I felt lines were a bit clunky and I was unsure of the meaning。 In particular， in Body Magic one boy claims the main character has masturbated before:“I bet Seto has。 Maybe her boyfriend taught her or something”“Yeah。 Seto’s really sexy。”Was sexy translated from エッチ？いやらしい？ 色っぽい？ I wish I knew， because I’m not sure what Murata was going for here based on the English。 To me it sounds like Seto has a sexy body so that’s why she masturbates， which doesn’t make sense to me。Other than that and some other lines， I felt the translation job was done well。 I appreciated the choice to leave itadakimasu in the English。 It gave the text Japanese flavor， and also， that’s an impossible line to translate lol。 。。。more
Michelle Dai
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i reallyyyyyy liked the short story "life ceremony"。 overall a great collection。 loved how murata focuses on food in her stories and how our cultures are so affected by food: the food we choose to eat， when we eat food， on what occasions， how we eat food， how we get our food， especially the food we choose not to eat。 i reallyyyyyy liked the short story "life ceremony"。 overall a great collection。 loved how murata focuses on food in her stories and how our cultures are so affected by food: the food we choose to eat， when we eat food， on what occasions， how we eat food， how we get our food， especially the food we choose not to eat。 。。。more
Len 🧟♀️
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The only word that comes to mind about life ceremony is weird， I like weird。 However this is not a book I loved。
هادي النباتي 🌱 Hadi Abbas
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كتاب رائع يحتوي على 13 قصة مختلفة للكاتبة اليابانية ساياكا موراتا。انا جداً مستغرب كيف ان الكاتبة ساياكا موراتا ما تمت ترجمة اي رواية لها إلى العربية لحد الأن ؟؟يسود القصص جو من الغرائبية。 القصص تتكلم عن الناس المختلفين عن مجتمعهم اللي يواجهو صعوبة بحياتهم بسبب إقصائهم من المجتمع。 تتكلم القصص عن الشعور بالوحدة ، و الحاجة الى الشعور بدفئ التواصل الإنساني。القصص تمنحني شعور "ما راح اكون وحيد لو اكلتك و صارت اعضائك الجسدية بداخلي" او شعور مثل "مهما ما عرقت، او تقيأت، او انجرحت و طلع منك دم، الاشياء ا كتاب رائع يحتوي على 13 قصة مختلفة للكاتبة اليابانية ساياكا موراتا。انا جداً مستغرب كيف ان الكاتبة ساياكا موراتا ما تمت ترجمة اي رواية لها إلى العربية لحد الأن ؟؟يسود القصص جو من الغرائبية。 القصص تتكلم عن الناس المختلفين عن مجتمعهم اللي يواجهو صعوبة بحياتهم بسبب إقصائهم من المجتمع。 تتكلم القصص عن الشعور بالوحدة ، و الحاجة الى الشعور بدفئ التواصل الإنساني。القصص تمنحني شعور "ما راح اكون وحيد لو اكلتك و صارت اعضائك الجسدية بداخلي" او شعور مثل "مهما ما عرقت، او تقيأت، او انجرحت و طلع منك دم، الاشياء اللي البشر الآخرين يشوفوها مقرفة، انا اشوفها جميلة و اتقبلها لأنها تحسسني اني مو وحيد و انك انت انسان حيّ。"و تتحدث القصص ان ليش عندنا اشياء رسمية كثيرة بحياتنا، مثل الملابس، و الزواج، و الإنجاب، و التعاملات الرسمية و الضغوطات و الالتزامات؟ ليش ما نكون بس مجرد مخلوقات حيّة بدون رسميات و قوانين رسمية؟مثلاً لو شعرت برغبة اني اريد احضن انسان اخر ليش ما اقدر اسوي هالشي؟ بدون ما يكون هالشي يتعلق بالجنس و بالزواج و بالإنجاب ؟ليش نوضع انفسنا بموضع توتر و ضغوطات و التزامات و ننجب اطفال و مخلوقات اخرين للحياة و احنا كل اللي نحتاجه اننا نوقف شوي و نشعر بأننا احياء و نتصرف بغريزتنا و طبيعتنا الحيّة اللي مو سيئة؟تتكلم القصص عن شعور الإنسان بأنه مخلوق مكبوت بين المدن الصناعية، و الملابس الصناعية، و الأكل الصناعي، و ان الانسان بحاجة انه يتخلص من كل هالأشياء الصناعية مو لأجل انه يتمرد على القوانين او يثير الجدل، و لكن فقط لمجرد انه يكون حيّ。 فقط لمجرد انه يريد يعيش بطبيعة جسده الحيّ بدون。اعتقد الشعور المتبادل بين القصص هو الاحتفال بالحياة؟ الرغبة بالشعور بالحياة بالأشياء المحسوسة اللي تخرج من الجسد الحيواني و من ثم نفرح لأننا اكتشفنا اننا احياء؟جداً حبيت القصص و انسجمت معها。 القصص غريبة و من النوع اللي تخلي الإنسان يفكر 。。。more
Amanda
，
What is normal and who decides it？What if I'm not normal but I don't know why and I don't want to be？Maybe it's the world around me that's abnormal and the only way for me to be true to myself is to cook my dead coworker into meatballs instead of miso hotpot， convince myself that my body is made of concrete or invent a 6th personality。 These short stories were all absurdist， extreme and uncomfortable， but by the end of each I was left wondering whether it's me that's strange and incongruous， not What is normal and who decides it？What if I'm not normal but I don't know why and I don't want to be？Maybe it's the world around me that's abnormal and the only way for me to be true to myself is to cook my dead coworker into meatballs instead of miso hotpot， convince myself that my body is made of concrete or invent a 6th personality。 These short stories were all absurdist， extreme and uncomfortable， but by the end of each I was left wondering whether it's me that's strange and incongruous， not the story。 This collection is unexpectedly sentimental， and of course drenched in Sayaka Murata's characteristic societally-induced claustrophobia。 Way too specific， but 4。75/5 。。。more
ANovellaIdea
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At most 3。25 but probably just 3
teresa
，
☆favorites- a summer nights kiss- twos family- poochie - lover on the breeze- eating the city- hatchling
Alice
，
A surreal and unique collection that speaks for anyone who has ever been made to feel that they don't belong。Within Life Ceremony， Sayaka Murata， author of Convenience Store Woman and Earthlings， serves to us a collection of thirteen short stories， translated from the original Japanese by Ginny Tapley Takemori。Throughout these stories， Murata repeatedly returns to， distorts， and entirely obliterates the idea of social norms and the Other。 In this collection， human remains are turned into fashion A surreal and unique collection that speaks for anyone who has ever been made to feel that they don't belong。Within Life Ceremony， Sayaka Murata， author of Convenience Store Woman and Earthlings， serves to us a collection of thirteen short stories， translated from the original Japanese by Ginny Tapley Takemori。Throughout these stories， Murata repeatedly returns to， distorts， and entirely obliterates the idea of social norms and the Other。 In this collection， human remains are turned into fashionable furniture and desirable clothing items; people are the internal organs of an all-encompassing creature; and the colleague of a dead man helps his family prepare his body into a two-course meal for the customary Life Ceremony ritual。Here， Murata challenges what it means to be 'normal'， and even sometimes human， as the societies and people she imagines engage in behaviour and practices we consider taboo。'It's just that thirty years ago a completely different sense of values was the norm， and I just can't keep up with the changes。 I kind of feel like I've been betrayed by the world。' Murata doesn't pass judgement upon these beliefs， no matter how disturbing， but simply reveals just how fluid and changeable societal norms are。 Thus， she exposes the concept of Othering people who are not 'normal'， who do not conform to societies' expectations， as laughable。 What is the point of ostracizing someone because of who they love or what they look like when， in thirty years time， we could all be engaging in cannibalism as a normative funeral practice？ The absurdity of Murata's societies， and their simultaneous credibility， leads us to examine our own morals， and what it truly means to be normal， or Other。Conceptually， Life Ceremony is an absolute masterpiece; grotesque， absurd， and thought-provoking。 However， I did find the tone and overall narration a little flat and jerky。 Nevertheless， this can often be the case for translated texts， and it does not detract from the quality of the content。Overall， Murata has written an imaginative， visceral， and brilliantly comic collection that will haunt you for days， and nights， after you have read it。 。。。more
Lisa
，
har sådan et love/hate relationship til sayaka murata og deres fucked up tankegang
Vishnu Balamurugan
，
Sayaka Murata is an incredible writer。 Primarily， the life ceremony talks about what is "normal" in society， things that are customary， and what is conventional and acceptable and challenges it。 They are deep， visceral， twisted， challenging， and disgusting， and I love them。 These stories are often of two types。 A society is a strange place where weird， terrifying things are accepted and normalized but the characters do not partake， or a normal society where the characters are doing things that a Sayaka Murata is an incredible writer。 Primarily， the life ceremony talks about what is "normal" in society， things that are customary， and what is conventional and acceptable and challenges it。 They are deep， visceral， twisted， challenging， and disgusting， and I love them。 These stories are often of two types。 A society is a strange place where weird， terrifying things are accepted and normalized but the characters do not partake， or a normal society where the characters are doing things that are taboo and scary。 These stories really challenge what is normal， ethical， and moral。 Murata's imagination is both terrifying and strangely satisfying。 These stories often feel so far off from what is normal， but at the same time， not really， and the scariest thing is that Murata makes one believe this society we live in can do these things。4。5/5Thank you， NetGalley/Granta Publications， for this book in lieu of an honest review。 。。。more
Bruin Mccon
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If you thought the incest and aliens of this author’s prior book were weird， just wait until you read this book！ How do you feel about cannibalism and using human skeletons to make furniture？ Usually， a collection of short stories by a quirky writer would be right up my alley， but this book covered a lot of ground that straddles the line between horror and disturbing。 There were also several stories that were attempting provocativeness but ended up being boring。 The best of the stories was Life If you thought the incest and aliens of this author’s prior book were weird， just wait until you read this book！ How do you feel about cannibalism and using human skeletons to make furniture？ Usually， a collection of short stories by a quirky writer would be right up my alley， but this book covered a lot of ground that straddles the line between horror and disturbing。 There were also several stories that were attempting provocativeness but ended up being boring。 The best of the stories was Life Ceremony and it was also the one that made it hard for me to eat and sleep， all in one fell swoop。 Read at your own risk。 Some interesting stories in the first half of the book that I recommend to those with a strong stomach。 。。。more
Vivian
，
read this in 1。5 hours at a barnes and noble and it was actually quite good although very bizarre at times
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Life Ceremony
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Life Ceremony&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Life Ceremony&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0