Beauty and SadnessBeauty and Sadness
Score Classic
What it's about
Oki, a successful writer full of middle-aged regret, returns to Kyoto to find Otoko, with whom he had a terrible affair years ago. She's now a painter living with a younger woman as her lover, and his return unsettles them both.
Why it's worth reading
It's on the Guardian's list of 1,000 novels everyone must read. It's a work of strange beauty and heartbreaking sensitivity.
You'll love it if you liked
The Sound of the Mountain
The Remains of the Day
The VegetarianGood to know
It's quiet and melancholy.
By the numbers
- Readers28 out of 100 · counts 42%
- Critics30 out of 100 · counts 34% (its stronger lane)
- Bestseller5 out of 100 · counts 14%
- Buzz0 out of 100 · counts 10%
Critics and Bestseller are two ways to earn a place: a book's stronger one counts more. Buzz rewards recent bestseller weeks and prizes, so older books start at zero. The parts combine into the Must-Read Score, shown on a scale where the best book we found scores 99 and the last book to make the ranking scores 50.
Where it ranks
Why it made the list
Reads as
Moving
More by Yasunari Kawabata
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Is Beauty and Sadness worth reading?
Yes. It's on the Guardian's list of 1,000 novels everyone must read. It ranks #2,696 of the 3,056 books in our ranking, with a Must-Read Score of 58.2 (the best book we found scores 99).
What is Beauty and Sadness about?
Oki, a successful writer full of middle-aged regret, returns to Kyoto to find Otoko, with whom he had a terrible affair years ago. She's now a painter living with a younger woman as her lover, and his return unsettles them both.
How long does it take to read Beauty and Sadness?
About 5 hours (206 pages), or about 10 days at 30 minutes a day.
What should I read after Beauty and Sadness?
If you liked it, try The Sound of the Mountain by Yasunari Kawabata, The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro or The Vegetarian by Han Kang.