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ENTRY

Review: Paprika
April 21, 2013

Paprika
Yasutaka Tsutsui

Japanese literature has a strong vein of surrealistic, hyper-fantastical science fiction. Yasutaka Tsutsui's Paprika falls squarely in that genre. The riotous story takes place mostly in the Institute for Psychiatric Research, where the research focuses on psychotherapy through dreams and technology called PT devices. The combination of the two allows a therapist to enter patients' dreams to directly analyze their subconscious lives. This ability is groundbreaking, as in worthy of a Nobel Prize, but is also dangerous for both patient and therapist.

Atsuko Chiba, one of the Institute's top researchers, is increasingly at odds with the administration and other researchers. She and her close colleague, the corpulent Tokita, have been too successful, and haven't played the politics inherent in an organization of huge egos. But when a wealthy former client, Noda, is having relapses of his anxiety attacks, the Institute's chief administrator, Shima, has to ask for her help. Or rather he asks for the help of Paprika, Atsuko's thinly-disguised alter ego, who is known as the foremost "dream detective" in Japan.

As Paprika works into Noda's subconscious through his dreams, life goes awry at the Institute. Therapists who enter patients' dream are having their own psychotic breakdowns. Several PT devices, including the portable but powerful "DC minis," are missing. And most damaging, Atsuko's chief rival, Osanai, is making power plays to besmirch her reputation.

To help Noda, Paprika/Atsuko must dive deeper into his dreams and his subconscious. One of the missing DC Minis ends up in her possession and she uses that device to interact with him in his dreams. However, her rivals also use the device to further discredit her as well as violate her in the dream state. The line between dream and reality, subconscious and conscious, increasingly blur, and not only her reputation but also her life is increasingly in danger.

When two researchers are found dead, one connected to a DC Mini, Atsuko is a suspect. But did they die in reality or in a dream state? As another researcher explains: "The DC Mini has the function of repeated effect and side effect, effect and side effect. It makes you dream, then dream of waking, and your waking dream is so very true to reality that you think it is reality, then you fall into an ever deeper sleep, dream even deeper dreams, and so on."

Full of irony and hyperbole targeting the destructive side of ego, Paprika moves along at a frantic pace, with many characters, and I found myself having to back up more than a few times to keep the characters and plot straight. But it was well worth the ride in the end.

© 2013

COMMENTS

Number of comments: 3
click here to add a comment

Jo Reed
Thanks! Sounds like a fun read. I like Kobo Abe's literary science fiction.

Gail
I didn't realize there was a book. I saw the animated movie some years ago. The sound track is good too. The theme song is Byakkoya no Musume by Susumu Hirasawa. I love it.

Todd
Thanks Gail, I haven't seen the anime version, but I will if I can find it!

ARCHIVE

date (comments)

Review: Paprika
April 21, 2013 (3)

Review: A Straight Road With 99 Curves
March 30, 2013 (1)

Gripping writing
Feb. 28, 2013 (2)

Review: Salvation of a Saint
January 19, 2013 (2)

2012 in review
December 30, 2012 (2)

Review: Ninja
September 30, 2012 (2)

Review: My Postwar Life
August 21, 2012 (1)

New interview with Colin Marshall
July 15, 2012 (3)

Book events
April 25, 2012 (2)

Subduction
March 14, 2012 (8)

Review: A Room Where the Star Spangled Banner Cannot Be Heard
January 14, 2012 (1)

Review: Plainsong
December 20, 2011 (3)

Review: The Devil's Disciple
November 29, 2011 (2)

Haruki Murakami
October 5, 2011 (2)

Busyness and demons
September 25, 2011 (2)

Characters: The Bully
July 30, 2011 (3)

Review: Manazuru
June 28, 2011 (2)

Deadlines!
June 24, 2011 (2)

Review: Butterfly's Sisters
May 18, 2011 (1)

Review: Isle of Dreams
April 20, 2011 (2)

Cades Award for Literature press release
April 12, 2011 (2)

Japan and other news
March 29, 2011 (1)

Borders bankruptcy
February 17, 2011 (2)

2010 review
December 17, 2010 (6)

Congratulations Mario Vargas Llosa
October 7, 2010 (2)

OH! wins best book award
September 23, 2010 (2)

Review: Kissing the Mask
August 22, 2010 (1)

Jonathan Lethem: Writing at the margins
July 12, 2010 (2)

Review: Love in Translation
June 22, 2010 (3)

Jose Saramago
June 18, 2010 (0)

Marketplace of Ideas interview
June 11, 2010 (2)

Imagining Memory
May 6, 2010 (1)

Upcoming Los Angeles events
April 7, 2010 (2)

Time and energy
March 30, 2010 (2)

Review: Botchan
February 28, 2010 (2)

J.D. Salinger
January 28, 2010 (1)

2009 Reviewed
December 31, 2009 (5)

Review: The Word Book
December 12, 2009 (1)

Chaat and Chat event with OH!
November 6, 2009 (2)

Home at last
November 2, 2009 (2)

Los Angeles events
October 17, 2009 (1)

Poets and poetry
October 7, 2009 (1)

Time + place
September 24, 2009 (1)

The future of books
September 23, 2009 (1)

October book tour
September 6, 2009 (1)

Blogging at Powell's Books
August 28, 2009 (2)

The evolution of an idea
August 3, 2009 (1)

The Poetics of Motoori Norinaga: A Hermeneutical Journey
July 9, 2009 (2)

Tour debrief
July 2, 2009 (3)

Book tour events
May 18, 2009 (3)

Simply in the mood
April 24, 2009 (2)

Book tour
April 8, 2009 (6)

The Necessary Book
March 2, 2009 (2)

"Murder Makes the Magazine"
February 7, 2009 (3)

John Updike
January 27, 2009 (2)

2008 misc. (good news, bad news)
January 1, 2009 (3)

Publishing woes and query letters
December 13, 2008 (4)

Punctuation compunction
November 16, 2008 (3)

The Fountain of Youth (and other Ideas)
October 10, 2008 (2)

David Foster Wallace
September 14, 2008 (2)

Ending it all
September 12, 2008 (2)

The mystery of plotting, the plotting of mysteries
August 29, 2008 (3)

Blocking out the block
August 20, 2008 (3)

"What kind of books do you write?"
August 8, 2008 (2)

Theory of Satisfaction: Part 4
July 21, 2008 (3)

Show and tell
July 14, 2008 (3)

Theory of Satisfaction: Part 3
July 7, 2008 (7)

Advice for first-time writers (Barry Gifford and me)
June 30, 2008 (6)

Theory of Satisfaction: Part 2
June 18, 2008 (3)

To be or not to be
June 10, 2008 (6)

Theory of Satisfaction: Part 1
June 3, 2008 (6)

Virtual unreality
May 31, 2008 (4)

The purpose of this blog
May 21, 2008 (5)

Todd Shimoda's Writer's Blog home \| current \| forthcoming \| past \| contact
ENTRY Review: Paprika April 21, 2013 Paprika Yasutaka Tsutsui Japanese literature has a strong vein of surrealistic, hyper-fantastical science fiction. Yasutaka Tsutsui's Paprika falls squarely in that genre. The riotous story takes place mostly in the Institute for Psychiatric Research, where the research focuses on psychotherapy through dreams and technology called PT devices. The combination of the two allows a therapist to enter patients' dreams to directly analyze their subconscious lives. This ability is groundbreaking, as in worthy of a Nobel Prize, but is also dangerous for both patient and therapist. Atsuko Chiba, one of the Institute's top researchers, is increasingly at odds with the administration and other researchers. She and her close colleague, the corpulent Tokita, have been too successful, and haven't played the politics inherent in an organization of huge egos. But when a wealthy former client, Noda, is having relapses of his anxiety attacks, the Institute's chief administrator, Shima, has to ask for her help. Or rather he asks for the help of Paprika, Atsuko's thinly-disguised alter ego, who is known as the foremost "dream detective" in Japan. As Paprika works into Noda's subconscious through his dreams, life goes awry at the Institute. Therapists who enter patients' dream are having their own psychotic breakdowns. Several PT devices, including the portable but powerful "DC minis," are missing. And most damaging, Atsuko's chief rival, Osanai, is making power plays to besmirch her reputation. To help Noda, Paprika/Atsuko must dive deeper into his dreams and his subconscious. One of the missing DC Minis ends up in her possession and she uses that device to interact with him in his dreams. However, her rivals also use the device to further discredit her as well as violate her in the dream state. The line between dream and reality, subconscious and conscious, increasingly blur, and not only her reputation but also her life is increasingly in danger. When two researchers are found dead, one connected to a DC Mini, Atsuko is a suspect. But did they die in reality or in a dream state? As another researcher explains: "The DC Mini has the function of repeated effect and side effect, effect and side effect. It makes you dream, then dream of waking, and your waking dream is so very true to reality that you think it is reality, then you fall into an ever deeper sleep, dream even deeper dreams, and so on." Full of irony and hyperbole targeting the destructive side of ego, Paprika moves along at a frantic pace, with many characters, and I found myself having to back up more than a few times to keep the characters and plot straight. But it was well worth the ride in the end. © 2013	COMMENTS Number of comments: 3 click here to add a comment Jo Reed Thanks! Sounds like a fun read. I like Kobo Abe's literary science fiction. Gail I didn't realize there was a book. I saw the animated movie some years ago. The sound track is good too. The theme song is Byakkoya no Musume by Susumu Hirasawa. I love it. Todd Thanks Gail, I haven't seen the anime version, but I will if I can find it!	ARCHIVE date (comments) Review: Paprika April 21, 2013 (3) Review: A Straight Road With 99 Curves March 30, 2013 (1) Gripping writing Feb. 28, 2013 (2) Review: Salvation of a Saint January 19, 2013 (2) 2012 in review December 30, 2012 (2) Review: Ninja September 30, 2012 (2) Review: My Postwar Life August 21, 2012 (1) New interview with Colin Marshall July 15, 2012 (3) Book events April 25, 2012 (2) Subduction March 14, 2012 (8) Review: A Room Where the Star Spangled Banner Cannot Be Heard January 14, 2012 (1) Review: Plainsong December 20, 2011 (3) Review: The Devil's Disciple November 29, 2011 (2) Haruki Murakami October 5, 2011 (2) Busyness and demons September 25, 2011 (2) Characters: The Bully July 30, 2011 (3) Review: Manazuru June 28, 2011 (2) Deadlines! June 24, 2011 (2) Review: Butterfly's Sisters May 18, 2011 (1) Review: Isle of Dreams April 20, 2011 (2) Cades Award for Literature press release April 12, 2011 (2) Japan and other news March 29, 2011 (1) Borders bankruptcy February 17, 2011 (2) 2010 review December 17, 2010 (6) Congratulations Mario Vargas Llosa October 7, 2010 (2) OH! wins best book award September 23, 2010 (2) Review: Kissing the Mask August 22, 2010 (1) Jonathan Lethem: Writing at the margins July 12, 2010 (2) Review: Love in Translation June 22, 2010 (3) Jose Saramago June 18, 2010 (0) Marketplace of Ideas interview June 11, 2010 (2) Imagining Memory May 6, 2010 (1) Upcoming Los Angeles events April 7, 2010 (2) Time and energy March 30, 2010 (2) Review: Botchan February 28, 2010 (2) J.D. Salinger January 28, 2010 (1) 2009 Reviewed December 31, 2009 (5) Review: The Word Book December 12, 2009 (1) Chaat and Chat event with OH! November 6, 2009 (2) Home at last November 2, 2009 (2) Los Angeles events October 17, 2009 (1) Poets and poetry October 7, 2009 (1) Time + place September 24, 2009 (1) The future of books September 23, 2009 (1) October book tour September 6, 2009 (1) Blogging at Powell's Books August 28, 2009 (2) The evolution of an idea August 3, 2009 (1) The Poetics of Motoori Norinaga: A Hermeneutical Journey July 9, 2009 (2) Tour debrief July 2, 2009 (3) Book tour events May 18, 2009 (3) Simply in the mood April 24, 2009 (2) Book tour April 8, 2009 (6) The Necessary Book March 2, 2009 (2) "Murder Makes the Magazine" February 7, 2009 (3) John Updike January 27, 2009 (2) 2008 misc. (good news, bad news) January 1, 2009 (3) Publishing woes and query letters December 13, 2008 (4) Punctuation compunction November 16, 2008 (3) The Fountain of Youth (and other Ideas) October 10, 2008 (2) David Foster Wallace September 14, 2008 (2) Ending it all September 12, 2008 (2) The mystery of plotting, the plotting of mysteries August 29, 2008 (3) Blocking out the block August 20, 2008 (3) "What kind of books do you write?" August 8, 2008 (2) Theory of Satisfaction: Part 4 July 21, 2008 (3) Show and tell July 14, 2008 (3) Theory of Satisfaction: Part 3 July 7, 2008 (7) Advice for first-time writers (Barry Gifford and me) June 30, 2008 (6) Theory of Satisfaction: Part 2 June 18, 2008 (3) To be or not to be June 10, 2008 (6) Theory of Satisfaction: Part 1 June 3, 2008 (6) Virtual unreality May 31, 2008 (4) The purpose of this blog May 21, 2008 (5)