Books: “Scattered All Over the Earth” by Yoko Tawada
Yoko Tawada’s “Scattered All Over the Earth” had an intriguing premise: some time in the near future, due to climate change, the archipelago of Japan has ceased to exist. The nation’s inhabitants scatter the earth, in search of others from the “land of sushi.”
One of these refugees is Hiruko, who winds up in Denmark where she teaches children in a language called Panska (short for pan-Scandinavian), an amalgam of all the Nordic languages. While searching for fellow Japanese speakers in Copenhagen, she meets an Eskimo from Greenland who attempts to pass himself off as a Japanese sushi chef; a South Asian male who is transitioning to female; and a tall blond Dane named Knut and his domineering mother. With me so far? I thought so.
The novel purports to convey the significance of language as a unifier. I couldn’t agree more so let my language here be clear: this novel is uniformly dreadful. The narrative is confusing, the characters are laughable, the plot (what there is of it) is a nightmare—all of which is frustrating because the original idea is so intriguing.
The NYT calls Tawada’s writing “magnificently strange.” NPR says her writing “jumps off the page and practically sings.” Hopefully, my review will serve as a counterpoint to such praise—and perhaps be thought of like a warning label on a bleach bottle.
Highly toxic. Do not consume.” You’re welcome.