Let’s move on to an introduction of the books.
The story turns on the “curse” (though it’s nowhere as simplistic as that. We could swap the word out for “irrational phenomenon” or “superstition.” But in this analysis, the word “curse” will become necessary at the end, and so I use it here) plaguing third-year Class 3 at Yomiyama North Middle, the protagonist, “Koichi Sakakibara,” who transfers into the class, and the mysterious girl in the eye patch, “Mei Misaki.” One after another, people with a connection to the class are pulled into misfortune and the characters struggle to resist it.
What leaves the greatest impression in the early stages of the story is, perhaps, Mei Misaki’s line when the protagonist first encounters her: “Half my body is waiting there, the poor thing.” I read this part in the mind-set of a novelist and thought to myself, “Ah, so this character is the type that won’t act selfishly.” Thinking about it more, the same could be said for all of Mr. Ayatsuji’s novels. I don’t think he ever creates a novel where the characters act selfishly. I believe this is a critical element in creating the optical illusions I discussed earlier. It saves the worlds so meticulously created from destruction. It causes the reader to not empathize overmuch. He draws a clear line. Telling the reader, Please enjoy the show from your seat in the audience. A fitting conclusion is being prepared.
When a murderer has appeared in Mr. Ayatsuji’s past work, answers to the questions of why (the “whydunit”) and how a murder was committed (the “howdunit”) and who the murderer was (the “whodunit”) come out in a logical progression (even to the point of using mathematical equations) to reveal the truth, but the trick to this book is different. No murder with a clear motive ever occurs. There are accidents and suicides, but these occur not because of the will of a third party but due to a curse.
Another shares this aspect, in which “people living in a specific range may become targets of an indiscriminate death,” with Slaughtering Spirit. In that sense, it is possible to identify the book as a work of horror; however, the story also includes an element that resembles the search for the suspect. The origins of the curse become clear in the middle section of the story, but the foreshadowing up until the truth is revealed is intricate, allowing the reader to experience an unabashed sensation of “he got me!” Thus I believe these books must be characterized as “a melding of horror and mystery.” Plus, one can even glimpse an aspect of the tale of adolescence in the perverse and inexplicable nature of the curse. Thus does it become a masterpiece in Mr. Ayatsuji’s catalog, serving a wide range of readers. Those who have yet to read it absolutely must, and join us in our Ayatsuji addiction. I apologize, but of course there is no cure.
I’ve come this far in my analysis before glancing at the clock, and I see it’s almost time for me to go to work. I recall now that I have an appointment with an initiative client all morning…These are the troubled thoughts of a part-time novelist. I’ll try to ride my momentum to close this out.
At the ceremony for the Seishi Yokomizo Grand Prize for Mystery, sponsored by Kadokawa Shoten, there are times when Mr. Ayatsuji, who has long served on the selection committee, will put a genuine curse on the winner. Speaking very frankly and kindly, the man will throw out both hands and present a message implying, “I hope someday you write at least one story that lets you say, ‘This is my definitive mystery.’” Since this occurs in public, in the middle of the reception surrounded by journalists, recipients who are unprepared have hastily thrown their chests out and replied, “I do, too.” For the record, I was one of the recipients he laid this curse on.
Even in a novel, I believe that the creation of a classical mystery in particular is an endeavor without end. I write and I write, but it’s not quite there. Next time, for sure. The difficulty of giving life to a work that could serve as my introduction is something I became starkly aware of after becoming a professional. His curse is one to keep us from losing our taste for the challenge, even after ten or twenty years. It’s a curse I pray is never broken.
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Contents
Title Page
Welcome
Part 2: How?…………Who?
Chapter 10: June V
Chapter 11: July I
Chapter 12: July II
Interlude III
Chapter 13: July III
Interlude IV
Chapter 14: August I
Chapter 15: August II
Outroduction
Afterword to the Paperback Edition
Analysis
Newsletters
Copyright
ANOTHER, Volume 2
YUKITO AYATSUJI
Translation: Karen McGillicuddy
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
Another ©Yukito Ayatsuji 2009.
First published in Japan in 2009 by KADOKAWA SHOTEN Co., Ltd., Tokyo.
English translation rights arranged with KADOKAWA SHOTEN Co., Ltd., Tokyo through TUTTLE-MORI AGENCY, INC., Tokyo.
English translation © 2013 by Hachette Book Group, Inc.
All rights reserved. In accordance with the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, the scanning, uploading, and electronic sharing of any part of this book without the permission of the publisher is unlawful piracy and theft of the author’s intellectual property. If you would like to use material from the book (other than for review purposes), prior written permission must be obtained by contacting the publisher at [email protected]. Thank you for your support of the author’s rights.
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First eBook edition: July 2013
ISBN: 978-0-316-25276-8
Another, Novel 02 Page 23