February: The Ruined Map by Kōbō Abe

Often described as a Japanese Kafka, Abe is a classic of surrealist Japanese literature with several celebrated films made from his bizarre novels. Jason has only read a couple of his books and has been waiting to read more with friends (he highly recommends The Woman in the Dunes, but selfishly chose one of his less notorious titles). To his amateur judgment, Abe's atmospheric stories seem to be an obvious and long-lasting influence on the strange, dark, and ethereal themes that run through so much Japanese literature, including many contemporary authors like Haruki Murakami, Yoko Ogawa, and Sayaka Murata. From the publisher: "With The Ruined Map, [Abe] crafted a mesmerizing literary crime novel that combines the narrative suspense of Chandler with the psychological depth of Dostoevsky."

March: Ryder by Djuna Barnes

November: Água Viva by Clarice Lispector

What we thought: a strange and somewhat difficult read for its lack of a cohesive through line, which we mostly agreed seemed to be Lispector's intention. The book is quite repetitive as it tries to create through written words the same spontaneous emotional moments of both experiencing and creating more visceral arts, particularly painting and music. It reads like a writer's intimate journal, but also a sort of manifesto directed at readers, trying to get them to experience the same epiphanies about art, life, and death. It feels like spontaneous thought, but was in fact carefully crafted over years. Some of us found it very frustrating, a bit boring, and self-indulgent. Others found it a worthwhile read for its poetic language and the difficult artistic purpose it tried to achieve. Frankly, there were not a lot of rave reviews, but we enjoyed our conversation immensely. There was much discussion about Lispector herself and her publishing process for this book she released just a few years before her death. It's a very thought provoking book for those interested in such literary oddities!