Welcome to the ハンチバック Informal Reading Club
ハンチバック | L31 (learnnatively.com)
Note: The book will receive 50% coins back on Bookwalker if purchased before March 14.
You can still get 50% coins back on Bookwalker until March 25, as long as the book is part of a purchase that totals at least 1500 yen.
Japanese blurb
私の身体は、生き抜いた時間の証として破壊されていく 「本を読むたび背骨は曲がり肺を潰し喉に孔を穿ち歩いては頭をぶつけ、私の身体は生きるために壊れてきた。」 圧倒的迫力&ユーモアで選考会に衝撃を与えた、第128回文學界新人賞受賞作。 打たれ、刻まれ、いつまでも自分の中から消えない言葉たちでした。この小説が本になって存在する世界に行きたい、と強く望みました。 ――村田沙耶香 小説に込められた強大な熱量にねじ伏せられたかのようで、 読後しばらく生きた心地がしなかった。 ――金原ひとみ 文字に刻まれた肉体を通して、 書くという行為への怨嗟と快楽、 その特権性と欺瞞が鮮明に浮かび上がる。 ――青山七恵 井沢釈華の背骨は、右肺を押し潰すかたちで極度に湾曲している。 両親が遺したグループホームの十畳の自室から釈華は、あらゆる言葉を送りだす――。
Automatically translated English blurb
My body is being destroyed as a testament to the time I have lived through. Every time I read a book, my spine bends, my lungs collapse, my throat is punctured, I walk and bump my head, my body has been broken in order to live." The 128th Bungakukai New Writers Award winner, which shocked the selection committee with its overwhelming power and humor. They were words that were struck, engraved, and will never be erased from my mind. I strongly wished to go to the world where this novel exists as a book. --Sayaka Murata I felt as if I had been twisted down by the mighty heat contained in the novel, I didn’t feel alive for a while after reading it. --Hitomi Kanehara Through the body carved in letters, The vindictiveness and pleasure of the act of writing, The privilege and deception of the act of writing come vividly to the surface. --Nanae Aoyama Shuka Izawa’s spine is extremely curved, crushing her right lung. From her 10-mat room in the group home left by her parents, Shakuka begins to launch every word she has to say.
(Translated with DeepL)
ハンチバック is 市川沙央’s first full-length novel. It has received the 128th 文學界新人賞 (Literary World New Face Award) and the 169th Akutagawa Ryunosuke Award. The author herself suffers from symptomatic scoliosis due to muscle disease congenital myopathy, and regularly uses a ventilator and an electric wheelchair like the novel’s protagonist.
The book is only 96 pages long, and as an Akutagawa winner, reading it gives you the chance to tick a box in the Akutagawa Prize Reading Challenge.
Start date: March 18
We will be reading this informally, which means you can join any time and read at whatever pace suits you. When you comment, make sure to use spoilers and to always mention up to where you’ve read , so that other readers know when it’s safe to open spoilers.
There are no chapters in this book, but there are blank lines between sections. I list
the sections below for easy reference. I’m reading the ebook so I don’t have the page numbers. If someone wants to provide them I’ll add them to the table.
| Section # | ends on | end % | end page |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | </div> | 11% | |
| 2 | 夢です＞ | 21% | |
| 3 | ぼっきり折った。 | 26% | |
| 4 | 追い付きたっかた。 | 30% | |
| 5 | 付けられているのに… | 38% | |
| 6 | 違いがあるだろう。 | 48% | |
| 7 | 局部を洗った。 | 50% | |
| 8 | 頷くかもですね」 | 57% | |
| 9 | ように来ます」 | 63% | |
| 10 | じゃあるまいし。 | 67% | |
| 11 | 私でもできた。 | 75% | |
| 12 | 言った日である。 | 80% | |
| 13 | end of book | 92% |
Discussion Rules
- Please mention which chapter your comment is meant for.
- Please use spoiler tags liberally, both for referring to the book’s contents and for speculation of your own. Label your spoilers accordingly so that people know when it’s safe to view them.
- When asking for help, please mention the chapter and page number. Also mention what version of the book you are reading.
- Don’t be afraid of asking questions, even if they seem embarrassing at first. All of us are here to learn.
- To you lurkers out there: Join the conversation, it’s fun!
Member List
Are you planning to read ハンチバック with the book club?
- Yes
- Not sure
- No
- I’ve already read the book but I’ll join the discussion
oh the temptation… 
「レッツゴー 
」
(Edit: I think I 
I do hope it gets easier. So far, the way the narration jumps around and the casual references to things that I have 0 understanding of reminds me of 
