The Sound of Waves

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### Yukio Mishima's 'The Sound of Waves'. In Review.

My nervousness upon opening the book was dictated by a message scrawled in my copies front cover:

"To Andy, from Chris.

I was told that this is Mishima's best book - reading the 'blurb' "A novel of young love" etc, I'm not so sure! Hope it's O.K. anyway."

Young love. I felt indifferent - neither for or against the premise. I hoped that the 'young love' of ‘The Sound of Waves’ would be very different to the romcoms of today - and it is, though, it treads a worn path. The synopsis on the rear of the front cover says it best:

"Nevertheless, like the tales of Daphnis and Chloe and of Aucassin and Nicolette, it is a universal story that might have happened anywhere."

Indeed, it could have happened anywhere. The structure of the tale would be familiar to anyone so it wins no points for originality - but Mishima makes up for the simple and somewhat predictable structure with his delicious style of writing.

#### On Style

In ‘The Sound of Waves’ Mishima combines fast moving prose with strong descriptive brush strokes. Everything is definite. Characters are infused with one or two specific peculiarities, which are repeated and reinforced throughout the 180 page novella.

These characteristics have been beautifully selected and always highlight the humanity and 'everyday-ness' of the characters in the scene. Mishima's main character, Shinji, when entering the Young Men's Association, always sits on the floor against the wall, clasping his knees, in silence. It has become routine for him, and in every scene in the Young Men's Association we see Shinji adopt his position in the hall - albeit, described slightly differently every time.

Mishima takes time out of the events of the story to describe side characters as well, such as Shinji's boss, Jukichi, and how he 'took great pleasure in tobacco and had the odd habit of alternating between a pipe one day and cigarettes the next [...] on pipe days he was forever knocking his tiny, old-fashioned brass pipe against the side of the boat, a habit that had worn a small trough in a certain spot in the gunwale.' It is these small efforts at describing the world that really helps to bring both the people, and the locations, of Song Island to life.

Though archetypal within their roles, the characters consequently felt real, and I sympathised with them throughout. Mishima has done a great job of capturing the social environment of a small village. Everyone knows everyone else. Rumour spreads like wildfire. And this familiarity is somehow capture in the essence of the writing. It is remarkably well done.

#### A Note on Narrative

The narrative is comfortable. It's a simple romance, the pace is strong, and I think we all know where it's going as soon as we open the front cover. Once again, it was mostly the style of writing and the definition given through descriptions that carried the book for me. Otherwise it would be just another boy-meets-girl-they-fall-in-love-but-an-obstacle-blocks-their-way etc etc story.

#### My Copy

I had to place a special section here to gush about how beautiful my copy of ‘The Sound of Waves’ is. It's the perfect size to be carried in a small bag or in hand, and there's wonderful attention to detail throughout - from the delicate illustrations on the front cover, to the artwork featured throughout. Even the printing of the synopsis on the rear of the front and rear covers is artfully placed.

For those curious, my copy is a photo-offset reproduction of the first American edition, and is published by Charles E. Tuttle Company.

#### Recommendation

I highly recommend ‘The Sound of Waves’ to all readers. I'm a self confessed science fiction and fantasy nut - the kind of guy who would turn his nose up at romance - and I ‘loved’ this book. Really enjoyed it. A light, smooth narrative with glorious descriptions. Something to enjoy on a bright summers day.