Capsule review: Spring Snow (Yukio Mishima)
A perfect novel. Mishima writes prose with Flaubertian control, detachment, and elegance (a word itself often used in the story) and every element comes together masterfully. Even parts that may seem extraneous to the central story—the visiting princes, Honda’s attendance at a criminal trial, various philosophical digressions—offer their own counterpoints and add meaningfully to the whole.
A striking image, coming after Satoko reflects on her time with Kiyoaki inevitably coming to its end:
Behind him [Honda] heard the sound—so faint that he thought he must be imagining it at first—of Satoko pouring the sand from the shoe she had taken off. To Honda, it sounded like the most enchanting hourglass in the world.
Rating: ★★★★★