Author(s): Yoko Ogawa

Fiction

'A masterpiece' Guardian

A compelling speculative mystery by one of Japan's greatest writers.

Hat, ribbon, bird, rose. To the people on the island, a disappeared thing no longer has any meaning. It can be burned in the garden, thrown in the river or handed over to the Memory Police. Soon enough, the island forgets it ever existed. When a young novelist discovers that her editor is in danger of being taken away by the Memory Police, she desperately wants to save him. For some reason, he doesn't forget, and it's becoming increasingly difficult for him to hide his memories. Who knows what will vanish next?

The Memory Police is a beautiful, haunting and provocative fable about the power of memory and the trauma of loss, from one of Japan's greatest writers.

'One of Japan's most acclaimed authors explores truth, state surveillance and individual autonomy. Echoes 1984, Fahrenheit 451, and 100 Years of Solitude, but it has a voice and power all its own' Time Magazine

**SHORTLISTED FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FOR TRANSLATED LITERATURE**

CONSTANT READER STAFF REVIEW: KYRIE

In dazed and unsettled fascination, I finished the Memory Police in two sittings.

Like a strange dream, listless yet flowing, the words were introspective and poignant as the concept of meaning, and with it, the physical presence of seemingly ordinary things were removed from everyday existence.

 The words reflected and encapsulated the very sensations experienced by the characters; that of inexplicable, uncontrollable loss and through it an unexpected sense of calm complacency as those who could retain their memories ‘were disappeared’ and those who forgot were simply left to endure.  

I enjoyed the simple writing style as the sentence structure and grammar has been kept true to the original Japanese text while managing to retain the intended effect.

I would recommend this for book clubs as its conceptual ambiguity and mysterious occurrences would make for lengthy analytical debates.