Hauntingly Beautiful
There have always been disappearances on the island, objects come and go, people disappear, concepts vanish in a single night. But when this process starts to speed up - what else do the Memory Police want forgotten?
The Memory Police was originally written in Japanese in 1994 and was translated for this copy by Stephen Snyder. The translation is lovingly done, there is a lot of very quotable extracts from this book and the writing flows very well and doesn't really feel like it has been translated. The story itself is beautiful and haunting. It reminded me a lot of books such as 1984, Equilibrium and Ella Minnow Pea. Although written a while ago the themes feel very prevalent within today's society.
I enjoyed the short story of the typist which is told throughout the book and mirrors the main plot well. The whole book is chilling and lovely to read and asks some really important questions about how much the government has control of it's citizens and how far this can be pushed. Although it starts out quite plausible, with self- fulfilling prophecies of things that 'disappear' - such as objects that are willingly burnt by the citizens, things amp up to its conclusion with more abstract things disappearing or being forgotten. The tension is kept up throughout and the book held my interest and stayed with me long after I put it down.
Overall The Memory Police is a beautifully haunting tale with a powerful message - highly recommended! Thank you to NetGalley & Random House UK - Vintage Publishing and Harvill Secker for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.