GO by 金城 一紀 Kazuki Kaneshiro

 

I guess you can never tell a book by it's summary. This is the type of book I was expecting to be a serious look at discrimination, something like Touson Shimazaki's 破戒/The Broken Commandment, and yet it surprised me by being a light-hearted, fun read, which only touches on discrimination.

Summary: Zainichi Korean guy decides to go to a regular Japanese (non-ethic Korean) high school, and faces discrimination.

Plot & Characters: I'll just say it. The main character's amusing narration made the book. It sort of reminded me of the narration at the opening scenes of the movie Fight Club.  That said, this is a guy novel, which takes every chance it gets to get the main character involved in a fight, and the women play more of a supporting role. I don't mind that. The action was part of what made it fun for me, but if you like strong female characters, look elsewhere. The humor was really funny, and the characters where pretty believable (despite all the macho-ness). There are a couple sad parts, and a few serious moments, but this book is mostly a comedy/action novel. It's a shame it has no English translation, as I think this book would do really well with an English speaking audience.

Prose & Readability: The prose was pretty straightforward, yet amusing. I would say that if you liked the opening scene of Fight Club (the movie, and maybe the novel, though I haven't read it), then you will love this book. The book is pretty easy to read if you are familiar with "tough guy" speech, like the type found in shounen manga.

Who I would recommend this to: Those looking for a light, easy read that touches on darker issues, Fight Club fans, action/comedy movie fans.
  
First Paragraph: 

「ハワイか……」
オヤジが初めて僕の前で『ハワイ』という言葉を口にしたのは、僕が十四歳のお正月のことで、その時、テレビの画面では、美人女優三人がハワイに行き、ただひたすら「きれい！　おいしい！　きもちいい！」を連呼(れんこ)するお正月特番が映し出されていた。ちなみに、それまで、我が家ではハワイは『堕落 (だらく0した資本主義の象徴』と呼ばれていた。
当時、オヤジは五十四歳で、朝鮮籍を持つ、いわゆる≪在日朝鮮人≫で、マルクスを信奉する共産主義者だった――。
ここでまず断っておきたいのだけれど、これは僕の恋愛に関する物語だ。その恋愛に、共産主義やら民主主義やら資本主義やら平和主義やら一点豪華主義やら菜食主義やら、とにかく、一切の『主義』は関わってこない。念のため。
さて、オヤジが『ハワイ』を口にした時、小さくガッツポーズをしたオフクロ（朝鮮籍）は、のちに僕にこう言った。


The first paragraph  is provided for readers to help judge for themselves whether a book is a good fit for their current level, and is presented with all furigana shown in the actual book.