{"id":2752,"date":"2024-06-17T09:42:54","date_gmt":"2024-06-17T09:42:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/josephrauch.com\/therauchreview\/?p=2752"},"modified":"2025-11-10T21:06:34","modified_gmt":"2025-11-10T21:06:34","slug":"memory-police-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/josephrauch.com\/therauchreview\/reviews\/memory-police-review\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018The Memory Police\u2019 Explained: Loss of Memories, Characters and Story"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><div class=\"fusion-fullwidth fullwidth-box fusion-builder-row-1 fusion-flex-container nonhundred-percent-fullwidth non-hundred-percent-height-scrolling\" style=\"--awb-border-radius-top-left:0px;--awb-border-radius-top-right:0px;--awb-border-radius-bottom-right:0px;--awb-border-radius-bottom-left:0px;--awb-flex-wrap:wrap;\" ><div class=\"fusion-builder-row fusion-row fusion-flex-align-items-flex-start fusion-flex-content-wrap\" style=\"max-width:1123.2px;margin-left: calc(-4% \/ 2 );margin-right: calc(-4% \/ 2 );\"><div class=\"fusion-layout-column fusion_builder_column fusion-builder-column-0 fusion_builder_column_1_1 1_1 fusion-flex-column\" style=\"--awb-bg-blend:overlay;--awb-bg-size:cover;--awb-width-large:100%;--awb-margin-top-large:0px;--awb-spacing-right-large:1.92%;--awb-margin-bottom-large:0px;--awb-spacing-left-large:1.92%;--awb-width-medium:100%;--awb-spacing-right-medium:1.92%;--awb-spacing-left-medium:1.92%;--awb-width-small:100%;--awb-spacing-right-small:1.92%;--awb-spacing-left-small:1.92%;\"><div class=\"fusion-column-wrapper fusion-flex-justify-content-flex-start fusion-content-layout-column\"><div class=\"fusion-text fusion-text-1\"><p>\u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Memory-Police-Novel-Yoko-Ogawa\/dp\/1101911816?&amp;linkCode=ll1&amp;tag=josephrauch-20&amp;linkId=6cedf772dc4073f2e452884074ec3c89&amp;language=en_US&amp;ref_=as_li_ss_tl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener sponsored\">The Memory Police<\/a>,\u201d by acclaimed author Yoko Ogawa, offers a unique first-person narrative where objects, ideas and words disappear both from the unnamed narrator\u2019s world and the prose we read. This literary element injects a subtle but palpable dose of originality into a 1990s novel that could have been buried under the mountain of commercially and critically successful speculative authoritarian regime stories that have since been released.<\/p>\n<p>If the interplay of memory alteration, speculative fiction (some would argue <a href=\"https:\/\/culturalanalytics.org\/article\/73249-an-ever-expanding-world-literary-genre-defining-magic-realism-on-wikipedia\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">magical realism<\/a>) and clever first-person prose does not sufficiently intrigue you, we recommend you disappear \u201cThe Memory Police\u201d from your reading list. Every other aspect of the novel is weak and might be unappealing to readers who like typical story payoffs. Characters are as forgettable as the ideas removed from their unnamed island. The world is left largely unexplained, and the behavior of the eponymous authoritarians becomes increasingly nonsensical. Rhetorical messaging fails to deepen beyond the obvious impact of state control, censorship and loss.<\/p>\n<p>Does a first-person narrative with memory holes justify plot holes? Can we fairly evaluate a 2019 English translation of a Japanese text originally published in 1994? Read our review to decide if our critique is fair and whether Yoko Ogawa\u2019s novel deserves its accolades.<\/p>\n<h2>\u2018The Memory Police\u2019 Summary: Objects and Memories Gradually Disappear, and Only One Man Can Remember<\/h2>\n<p>On a mysterious unnamed island, the Memory Police are gradually removing people\u2019s memories of anything from birds and rose petals to photographs and fruit. When the memory disappears, residents are compelled to discard or burn every trace of the item, as well as any evidence of its existence. The Memory Police search and confiscate all remnants. Soon after, most citizens forget the word and ideas associated with the disappeared item. Even when they see the lost object, it\u2019s difficult for their five senses to process it.<\/p>\n<p>Rare individuals \u2014 perhaps because of a genetic trait \u2014 are able to remember everything that has disappeared. To maintain control, the Memory Police prioritize the capture of these people. When our nameless narrator, a young writer, realizes her beloved editor is one of these gifted few, she risks her life to hide him.<\/p>\n<p>Dozens of critics and consumer reviewers have presented \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/1984-George-Orwell\/dp\/9388318560?&amp;linkCode=ll1&amp;tag=josephrauch-20&amp;linkId=78a90098ddc7141ef7b544aae9b6dea1&amp;language=en_US&amp;ref_=as_li_ss_tl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener sponsored\">1984<\/a>\u201d as a comp title for this book because both stories deal with authoritarian regimes and powerless protagonists who (spoiler alert) do not triumph in this haunting Orwellian novel. Later in our review, we will explain the differences between Orwell\u2019s classic and this modern mainstream critic pick.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Editorial note<\/em><\/strong><strong>:\u00a0<\/strong><em>Deep love for literary fiction? Read our <a href=\"https:\/\/josephrauch.com\/therauchreview\/reviews\/never-let-me-go-review\/\">&#8220;Never Let Me Go&#8221; review<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"fusion-fullwidth fullwidth-box fusion-builder-row-2 fusion-flex-container has-pattern-background has-mask-background nonhundred-percent-fullwidth non-hundred-percent-height-scrolling\" style=\"--awb-border-radius-top-left:0px;--awb-border-radius-top-right:0px;--awb-border-radius-bottom-right:0px;--awb-border-radius-bottom-left:0px;--awb-flex-wrap:wrap;\" ><div class=\"fusion-builder-row fusion-row fusion-flex-align-items-flex-start fusion-flex-content-wrap\" style=\"max-width:1123.2px;margin-left: calc(-4% \/ 2 );margin-right: calc(-4% \/ 2 );\"><div class=\"fusion-layout-column fusion_builder_column fusion-builder-column-1 fusion_builder_column_1_1 1_1 fusion-flex-column\" style=\"--awb-padding-top:42px;--awb-padding-right:60px;--awb-padding-bottom:22px;--awb-padding-left:70px;--awb-padding-left-small:45px;--awb-bg-color:#ececeb;--awb-bg-color-hover:#ececeb;--awb-bg-size:cover;--awb-width-large:100%;--awb-margin-top-large:25px;--awb-spacing-right-large:1.92%;--awb-margin-bottom-large:25px;--awb-spacing-left-large:1.92%;--awb-width-medium:100%;--awb-order-medium:0;--awb-spacing-right-medium:1.92%;--awb-spacing-left-medium:1.92%;--awb-width-small:100%;--awb-order-small:0;--awb-spacing-right-small:1.92%;--awb-spacing-left-small:1.92%;\"><div class=\"fusion-column-wrapper fusion-column-has-shadow fusion-flex-justify-content-flex-start fusion-content-layout-column\"><div class=\"fusion-builder-row fusion-builder-row-inner fusion-row fusion-flex-align-items-flex-start fusion-flex-content-wrap\" style=\"--awb-flex-grow:0;--awb-flex-grow-medium:0;--awb-flex-grow-small:0;--awb-flex-shrink:0;--awb-flex-shrink-medium:0;--awb-flex-shrink-small:0;width:104% !important;max-width:104% !important;margin-left: calc(-4% \/ 2 );margin-right: calc(-4% \/ 2 );\"><div class=\"fusion-layout-column fusion_builder_column_inner fusion-builder-nested-column-0 fusion_builder_column_inner_1_1 1_1 fusion-flex-column trust-review-nest-block\" style=\"--awb-padding-left:20px;--awb-padding-left-small:20px;--awb-bg-size:cover;--awb-width-large:100%;--awb-margin-top-large:0px;--awb-spacing-right-large:1.92%;--awb-margin-bottom-large:20px;--awb-spacing-left-large:1.92%;--awb-width-medium:100%;--awb-order-medium:0;--awb-spacing-right-medium:1.92%;--awb-spacing-left-medium:1.92%;--awb-width-small:100%;--awb-order-small:0;--awb-spacing-right-small:1.92%;--awb-spacing-left-small:1.92%;\"><div class=\"fusion-column-wrapper fusion-column-has-shadow fusion-flex-justify-content-flex-start fusion-content-layout-column\"><div class=\"fusion-title title fusion-title-1 fusion-sep-none fusion-title-text fusion-title-size-div\" style=\"--awb-text-color:#282827;--awb-margin-top:0px;--awb-margin-top-small:10px;--awb-margin-right-small:0px;--awb-margin-bottom-small:10px;--awb-margin-left-small:0px;--awb-font-size:22px;\"><div class=\"fusion-title-heading title-heading-left title-heading-tag\" style=\"font-family:&quot;ABCGaisyrSemi-Mono-Medium&quot;;font-style:normal;font-weight:400;margin:0;font-size:1em;line-height:34px;\">Why You Can Trust Our Review Format<\/div><\/div><div class=\"fusion-separator fusion-full-width-sep\" style=\"align-self: center;margin-left: auto;margin-right: auto;margin-top:14px;margin-bottom:14px;width:100%;\"><\/div><div class=\"fusion-text fusion-text-2\" style=\"--awb-font-size:19px;--awb-line-height:33px;--awb-text-color:#282827;--awb-text-font-family:&quot;Source Serif 4&quot;;--awb-text-font-style:normal;--awb-text-font-weight:400;\"><p>At <a href=\"https:\/\/josephrauch.com\/therauchreview\/\">The Rauch Review<\/a>, we care deeply about being transparent and earning your trust. These articles explain why and how we created our unique methodology for reviewing books and other storytelling mediums.<\/p>\n<\/div><div class=\"fusion-text fusion-text-3 fusion-text-no-margin\" style=\"--awb-font-size:19px;--awb-line-height:33px;--awb-text-color:#282827;--awb-margin-bottom:0px;--awb-text-font-family:&quot;Source Serif 4&quot;;--awb-text-font-style:normal;--awb-text-font-weight:400;\"><ul>\n<li>\u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/josephrauch.com\/therauchreview\/articles\/philosophy-book-star-ratings\/\">Our Philosophy on Star Ratings<\/a>\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/josephrauch.com\/therauchreview\/articles\/addressing-failure-critic-consumer-book-reviews\/\">How We Address the Failures of Critic and Consumer Book Reviews<\/a>\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<div class=\"fusion-fullwidth fullwidth-box fusion-builder-row-3 fusion-flex-container nonhundred-percent-fullwidth non-hundred-percent-height-scrolling\" style=\"--awb-border-radius-top-left:0px;--awb-border-radius-top-right:0px;--awb-border-radius-bottom-right:0px;--awb-border-radius-bottom-left:0px;--awb-flex-wrap:wrap;\" ><div class=\"fusion-builder-row fusion-row fusion-flex-align-items-flex-start fusion-flex-content-wrap\" style=\"max-width:1123.2px;margin-left: calc(-4% \/ 2 );margin-right: calc(-4% \/ 2 );\"><div class=\"fusion-layout-column fusion_builder_column fusion-builder-column-2 fusion_builder_column_1_1 1_1 fusion-flex-column\" style=\"--awb-bg-blend:overlay;--awb-bg-size:cover;--awb-width-large:100%;--awb-margin-top-large:0px;--awb-spacing-right-large:1.92%;--awb-margin-bottom-large:0px;--awb-spacing-left-large:1.92%;--awb-width-medium:100%;--awb-spacing-right-medium:1.92%;--awb-spacing-left-medium:1.92%;--awb-width-small:100%;--awb-spacing-right-small:1.92%;--awb-spacing-left-small:1.92%;\"><div class=\"fusion-column-wrapper fusion-flex-justify-content-flex-start fusion-content-layout-column\"><div class=\"fusion-text fusion-text-4\"><h2>&#8216;The Memory Police&#8217; Audience and Genre: Speculative Literary Science Fiction for Experiential Prose Appreciators, But Especially Asian and White Women<\/h2>\n<p>Critics and booksellers categorize \u201cThe Memory Police\u201d as speculative literary fiction because its world is like what Ogawa experienced in the 80s and 90s, but with the \u201cwhat if\u201d twist of mysterious memory removal practices and a nameless authoritarian regime. The prose, despite being translated from Japanese, is what we tend to associate with native English literary fiction. There is beauty, melancholy and cleverness in Ogawa\u2019s writing, similar to what you might find in a novel by Zadie Smith, one of the most exciting contemporary authors of our time.<\/p>\n<p>Anyone with an appreciation for literary prose and discussions of loss \u2014 as well as an ability to forgive or ignore the book\u2019s weaknesses and holes \u2014 is likely to enjoy \u201cThe Memory Police.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The most common book cover has a picture of an Asian woman on it, and the main character is a young woman who dedicates a noticeable amount of thought to her mother. Nonetheless, there\u2019s no reason why people of other gender identities and ethnic backgrounds would have an inferior reading experience. The book does not explore specific rhetoric about being a woman, and race is not mentioned in the world.<\/p>\n<p>If profile pictures and engagement data on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/37004370-the-memory-police\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Goodreads reviews<\/a> are any indication of demographics who tend to read and enjoy this dystopian novel, the title might be most popular with white and Asian women in their 20s and 30s. Speaking anecdotally, my wife, who is Asian, first told me of this thought-provoking book, and she learned about it from her Asian female friends.<\/p>\n<h2>Perspective and Prose Style<\/h2>\n<p><em>Editorial Note: For this review, I combined the Perspective and Prose Style sections in our usual format because these two aspects of the novel are inextricably linked.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>The nameless female narrator provides a first-person perspective for the entirety of the story. When she is still able to write her novels, we read pieces of her manuscript, marked by a change in font. Other than the focus on flashbacks and backstory in the first chapter, the vast majority of the narrative is the standard past tense usage that covers the story\u2019s present moment.<\/p>\n<p>It was fun to analyze her novel excerpts and draw parallels to her life. Some connections are intentionally obvious, a fact the narrator admits. Other details are more open to our interpretation.<\/p>\n<h3>Little Prose Puzzles That Change With Memory: The Only Reason to Read This Book<\/h3>\n<p>Whenever I read a book, whether for review or purely for pleasure, I think about degrees of uniqueness. Why would you read <em>this<\/em> book over others? In the case of \u201cThe Memory Police,\u201d there are dozens of other acclaimed speculative and\/or literary titles that offer better characters, a more engaging world and a comparable level of prose that is pleasing in the stereotypically literary fashion. Some of these books even deal with authoritarian regimes and memory.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Memory Police\u201d is the only novel I\u2019ve read where the story\u2019s events constantly change its parameters of vocabulary and challenge our understanding of the prose. The first time I pondered this dynamic was on page nine. Describing an interaction with the narrator\u2019s father, translator Stephen Snyder wrote, \u201cHe waved good-bye so vigorously that he nearly lost the red pencil \u2014 or the compass or highlighter or ruler or tweezers \u2014 stuffed in his breast pocket.\u201d Because of the memory loss narrative element, I wondered if she was saying her father could have had any of those items in his pocket, or if she couldn\u2019t remember what the item was.<\/p>\n<p>On page 93 I became more sure of this dynamic, and I was overjoyed feeling like I had discovered a little hidden treat. She says, \u201cIt\u2019s an excellent idea, killing two creatures with one stone,\u201d while talking about how she and R can do two chores at once. \u201cCreatures\u201d instead of \u201cbirds\u201d \u2014 At first I thought it was a translation issue or typo. Then I remembered: The Memory Police disappeared all birds from the remote island, and its population forgot the word.<\/p>\n<p>I believe there are several more of these instances, but I won\u2019t spoil them for you. If you\u2019re interested in seeking and debating them, make a list of the disappeared objects as you\u2019re reading. Look for unusual uses of italics or words that seem off. Among the disappearing objects we find that first hats disappear, then roses disappear, then calendars disappear.<\/p>\n<p>If I ever reread the book, I\u2019d like to search for more of these instances. Whether you like or hate the other aspects of the book, \u201cThe Memory Police\u201d is a work of science fiction that must be read to be fully experienced, or rather to experience the unique aspect of it. Right now I can\u2019t imagine this prose dynamic translating to a possible film or illustrated adaptation. As an author myself, I see value in a book that makes me appreciate my beloved medium of prose.<\/p>\n<h2>Three Cs: Compelling, Clear, Concise<\/h2>\n<p><em>Editorial Note: We believe these three factors are important for evaluating general writing quality across every aspect of the book. Before you get into further analysis, here\u2019s a quick breakdown to clarify how we\u2019re using these words:<\/em><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>Compelling: Does the author consistently write in a way that would make most readers emotionally invested in the book\u2019s content?<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>Clear: Are most sentences and parts of the book easy enough to read and understand?<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>Concise: Are there sections or many sentences that could be cut? Does the book have pacing problems?<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Compelling: If the Prose and Concept Don\u2019t Compel You, Nothing Else Will<\/h3>\n<p>It is difficult to become emotionally invested in this book. The three main characters \u2014 the narrator, R and the old man \u2014 aren\u2019t particularly interesting or entertaining. Ogawa does not reveal anything significant about the worldbuilding mysteries presented in the beginning. The ending is whimpering. There\u2019s no resolution to any of the larger problems our protagonists grapple with.<\/p>\n<h3>Clear: Always Readable, Perfectly Translated<\/h3>\n<p>Translator Stephen Snyder did an excellent job. Every sentence was clear. Everything flowed smoothly. Ogawa\u2019s talent for prose shone brightly. You won\u2019t feel like you\u2019re reading a translation.<\/p>\n<h3>Concise: Near Perfect Pacing, But With Some Filler and Typos<\/h3>\n<p>With near perfect timing, Ogawa switches between scenes of thought\/dialogue vs. action. The moment I felt like something hadn\u2019t happened for a while, boom. After the action, there was time to reflect at a slow pace.<\/p>\n<p>Some readers might have less patience for the excerpts of the narrator\u2019s novel. They could have been shorter, and such shortening probably would have made them better. Because they mirror the real life story, readers may not feel the experience is sufficiently nuanced.<\/p>\n<p>The paperback edition I bought at a bookstore is 274 pages (only counting the actual story). My edition of \u201c1984\u201d is more than 100 pages longer.<\/p>\n<p>As an experienced editor, I noticed many instances of \u201cin order to\u201d that could have been cut down to \u201cto.\u201d \u201cIn order to\u201d is one of those superfluous phrases I learned to cut early in my career. It\u2019s disappointing to see this type of mistake in a critically acclaimed book that must have been edited several times before release.<\/p>\n<h2>Character Development: Do Lost Memories Excuse Forgettable Characters?<\/h2>\n<p>There are three main characters: the narrator, her editor, R, and the nameless \u201cold man.\u201d These characters feel like mere products of their situation and mechanics of the plot, not fully fleshed out people.<\/p>\n<p>To be fair to Ogawa, perhaps it\u2019s impossible to richly develop the island&#8217;s inhabitants when they are constantly losing their freedoms and capabilities. R is the only one who can directly resist the Memory Police, but he spends most of his time cooped up in a bunker. The moment he is able to venture out and potentially grow as a person experiencing a different world, (spoiler alert) the story ends.<\/p>\n<p>The narrator is the only character who changes in any noticeable way. R\u2019s potential persecution galvanizes her to become more courageous and assertive. She visits the Memory Police headquarters to search for the old man, a risk she would not have taken at the beginning of the story.<\/p>\n<p>R and the old man have simple, static personalities and thoughts. R is relentlessly optimistic because he retains his memories. The old man is the most passive in this quiet drama. He easily copes with loss.<\/p>\n<p>There are several major missed opportunities for character development. R, who is married and whose wife gives birth while he is hidden away in the narrator\u2019s home, (spoiler, although a very obvious and predictable one) initiates a romantic and sexual affair with the narrator. They don\u2019t forget about the existence of R\u2019s wife and child, yet they don\u2019t discuss the context of their affair. There aren\u2019t any consequences for their affair.<\/p>\n<h2>Story: We Don\u2019t Learn Anything About the Eponymous Memory Police<\/h2>\n<p>If you prefer typical stories where the good guys win, read a different novel.<\/p>\n<p>Stories where the good guys lose can be very well-written. \u201c1984,\u201d the most commonly mentioned comp title for this book, is a perfect example.<\/p>\n<p>The problem with \u201cThe Memory Police\u201d is that Ogawa whets our appetite to learn about the world, then doesn\u2019t serve us anything. The narrator marches into Memory Police headquarters when she believes they have disappeared the old man, and then nothing more happens.<\/p>\n<p>By the end, you won\u2019t know anything more about the Memory Police\u2019s operations than you did during the first dozen or so pages. How do they erase the memories? Why? Why those memories? I have no idea. If you figure it out, please tell me.<\/p>\n<p>In the beginning of the story, the draconian Memory Police\u2019s behavior seems at least somewhat logical. I thought, \u201cMaybe they disappeared birds because birds symbolize freedom and flight, and the rulers of the island don\u2019t want people to leave.\u201d Then the disappearances escalate to the point of physically crippling and erasing everyone on the unnamed island. Don\u2019t the Memory Police need people to do their farming? Are they trying to wipe out society? If so, why not simply massacre everyone? Their actions become increasingly nonsensical because we don\u2019t know anything about their motivations.<\/p>\n<h3>&#8216;The Memory Police&#8217; Ending Explained<\/h3>\n<p>All of the perceivable characters, except R, are erased from the island. R is finally able to alight from the basement, leave the house and walk the open air. The end.<\/p>\n<p>It&#8217;s one of those ambiguous endings where interpretation is left almost entirely to the reader. Were Memory Police officers behind the final erasures? Or were the Memory Police officers disappeared as well? Did their memory erasure practices spiral out of their control? Is R actually the only person left, or are there others Do these questions even matter? It&#8217;s all up to you.<\/p>\n<p>Depending on your perspective, the ending may feel hopeful. R survived, after all. There is at least one non-Memory Police person left on the island. R is free.<\/p>\n<p>If you&#8217;re more like me, you&#8217;ll find the ending dissatisfying. Again, I wouldn&#8217;t have wanted a fleshed out conclusion if Ogawa hadn&#8217;t focused so much on the eponymous authoritarian force. Normally I don\u2019t advocate for sequels or series, but I could have accepted the ending if I knew there was subsequent material about R\u2019s journey.<\/p>\n<h2>&#8216;The Memory Police&#8217; Setting: Mysterious Island With No Sense of Race, Maybe During the 80s or 90s<\/h2>\n<p>Most scenes take place around the island and in the narrator\u2019s home. Ogawa\u2019s setting descriptions are rich; they demonstrate her skill. On page 177 she describes a metal tower as a \u201cgreat iron mummy of a corpse that had died of exhaustion.\u201d Expect this kind of literary device usage for descriptions of many places and items.<\/p>\n<p>Ogawa reveals little about the layout of the island, because the characters don\u2019t know themselves. There are abandoned buildings, cliffs, a massive rusted boat where the old man lives for a time.<\/p>\n<p>We don\u2019t know if the island is supposed to be in Japan or colonized by Japan. The prose mentions Japanese items and uses their Japanese names in some cases. There are kimonos, tatami mats and ramune, a Japanese sweet. \u201cChinese cabbage\u201d appears on page 271, but it\u2019s unclear if island residents have any understanding of what countries are.<\/p>\n<p>In terms of when the story is set, my guess is it\u2019s in a speculative fiction version of the 80s or 90s when Ogawa was mentally brewing this book. Page 199 briefly mentions television. On page 240 the narrator thinks of getting a taxi. There are landline phones, but no cell phones or internet.<\/p>\n<h2>&#8216;The Memory Police&#8217; Rhetoric: Generic Authoritarianism<\/h2>\n<p>The rhetoric in \u201cThe Memory Police\u201d is disappointingly shallow. At The Rauch Review, one of our frequent criticisms is that many acclaimed books have rhetoric that can be summed up as \u201c[insert bad thing] is bad.\u201d With this novel, it\u2019s \u201cauthoritarianism is bad,\u201d \u201ccensorship is bad\u201d and \u201closs is bad.\u201d There\u2019s nothing deeper.<\/p>\n<p>If we\u2019re being generous, maybe \u201cbelongings are important because they help define who we are\u201d is another message, albeit an obvious one we didn\u2019t need a book to learn.<\/p>\n<p>One of the reasons \u201c1984\u201d is a better book is because it explores the intricacies of an authoritarian regime\u2019s capacity for propaganda, punishment, subjugation, exploitation, censorship and endless war. There are specific details such as \u201cdoublethink.\u201d Because we understand the world, readers can extract many lessons, including less obvious ones.<\/p>\n<h2>Cultural and Political Significance: English Translations of Old Novels by Asian Women + Anne Frank, Censorship and the In-Development Movie<\/h2>\n<p>For the past decade, there has been a trend of American publishing professionals translating novels written by Asian women in other languages and published in their country of origin. With most of these novels, the original text is more than a decade older than the English translation, sometimes multiple decades older. Prime examples include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>&#8220;The Vegetarian&#8221; by Han Kang (from Korea, based on a 1997 short story, expanded into a novel, then translated to English and published in 2015 and 2016)<\/li>\n<li>&#8220;Breasts and Eggs&#8221; by Meiko Kawakami (from Japan, based on a 2008 novella, expanded into a full novel 10 years later, then translated into English and published in 2021)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Back to &#8220;The Memory Police&#8221; specifically, Yoko Ogawa has extensively studied <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Diary-Young-Girl-Definitive\/dp\/0553577123?&amp;linkCode=ll1&amp;tag=josephrauch-20&amp;linkId=4dbd033cd56bc21ca034cbc39eb03fa8&amp;language=en_US&amp;ref_=as_li_ss_tl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener sponsored\">Anne Frank\u2019s diary<\/a>.\u201d She <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/08\/12\/books\/yoko-ogawa-memory-police.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">said<\/a>, \u201cHer diary proved that people can grow even in such a confined situation. And writing could give people freedom. I wanted to digest Anne\u2019s experience in my own way and then recompose it into my work.\u201d R\u2019s experience hiding in his secret room is a reference to Anne Frank and her family hiding from the Nazis in the secret section of an old office building.<\/p>\n<p>The Japanese edition was published in 1994. Anna Stein, Ogawa\u2019s English language agent, told The New York Times she selected the novel for translation in 2014. By the time of publication in 2019, consumer interest in authoritarian stories had spiked because of anxiety over political figures such as Trump and Duterte.<\/p>\n<p>When The New York Times asked Yoko Ogawa whether she was trying to write a political allegory, she said, \u201cI am just trying to depict each individual character and how those characters are living in their current time.\u201d Later she added, \u201cI myself like to keep a certain distance from my native culture or environment.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s a shame. Specific references to Japanese government censorship would have deepened the story\u2019s rhetoric and made it politically courageous.<\/p>\n<p>According to Osaka-born writer <a href=\"https:\/\/juliashiota.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Julia Shiota<\/a>, the original Japanese title of the novel translates roughly to \u201csecret or quiet crystallization.\u201d \u201cUnlike the English title, the original Japanese title does not focus on a specific group of bad actors but on a surreptitious, societal process underpinning the entire novel,\u201d Shiota wrote in an <a href=\"https:\/\/sites.lsa.umich.edu\/mqr\/2021\/07\/yoko-ogawas-the-memory-police-and-the-dangers-of-forgetting\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">article for Michigan Quarterly Review<\/a>. A novel called \u201cThe Secret Crystallization\u201d certainly wouldn\u2019t have sold as well in the U.S. during 2019. From an editorial quality perspective, however, less focus on the Memory Police would have lessened our criticisms of Ogawa\u2019s story writing.<\/p>\n<h3>What Cultural Significance Will the Movie Have?<\/h3>\n<p>An eponymous film adaptation of &#8220;The Memory Police&#8221; is in the works. At the time of updating this book review, the only significant project details available are:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/name\/nm4291409\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Lily Gladstone<\/a>, of &#8220;Killers of the Flower Moon&#8221; fame, will be the star<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/name\/nm1543747\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Reed Morano<\/a>, who directed several episodes of &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Handmaids-Tale-Margaret-Atwood-ebook\/dp\/B003JFJHTS?crid=NV113LWASW4N&amp;dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.QhXY_Z8MTaMpJ0eQbOj_tPOx8UjjWcngfOW6uNGvHQe260hyOT0somMQPJuUIFvj-aU61tmXecN_zBSsTYMdQQfubX2nKlEG96yRdJE7PwJ2teO4r95nUEaihPoFQO0F1kCpvfy2RLhyB0h6wO5SM7GeoJOw5hqGHFbvbkZ0JOKbmiBQAVPxDqXmbYNPwWEN-vd1yZv0IGTxPGYY6LUqlZHe2Vtww3Idt4gpJ81CrxY.GZLYVFqN3o5f1oJcy4tARQiMfe2bcC0gSix18G0bS4g&amp;dib_tag=se&amp;keywords=the+handmaid%27s+tale+by+margaret+atwood&amp;qid=1717621903&amp;s=digital-text&amp;sprefix=the+handm%2Cdigital-text%2C170&amp;sr=1-1&amp;linkCode=ll1&amp;tag=josephrauch-20&amp;linkId=27b22735ffc4812ed615e20fe658164d&amp;language=en_US&amp;ref_=as_li_ss_tl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener sponsored\">The Handmaid&#8217;s Tale<\/a>&#8221; TV adaptation, will be the director<\/li>\n<li>Martin Scorsese will be the executive producer<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/name\/nm0442109\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Charlie Kaufman<\/a>, who worked on &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Eternal-Sunshine-Spotless-Mind-Carrey\/dp\/B001TAFCBC?&amp;linkCode=ll2&amp;tag=josephrauch-20&amp;linkId=a2d9591eff65865141b282e47820b0db&amp;language=en_US&amp;ref_=as_li_ss_tl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener sponsored\">Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind<\/a>&#8221; and &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Synecdoche-New-York-Blu-ray\/dp\/B001PMR2MG?&amp;linkCode=ll1&amp;tag=josephrauch-20&amp;linkId=66b99c05b1560b10bd841b01648a5a56&amp;language=en_US&amp;ref_=as_li_ss_tl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener sponsored\">Synecdoche, New York<\/a>,&#8221; wrote the script<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>While <a href=\"https:\/\/deadline.com\/2024\/02\/lily-gladstone-killers-of-the-flower-moon-the-memory-police-news-interview-1235830551\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">answering questions about the project<\/a>, Gladstone said, &#8220;I think anybody who comes from a world culture or a history where there\u2019s been a systemic effort to erase your sense of who you are, your memories, your language, your culture- in this film, birds are disappeared because they\u2019re deemed unnecessary.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I was surprised to see Gladstone, an Indigenous American woman, cast as the lead. Many readers were expecting an Asian woman.<\/p>\n<p>In the context of her quote and background, perhaps Gladstone is a good fit who could meet the moment we&#8217;re in. With the accelerated genocide in Palestine constantly livestreamed, consumers are more mindful of erasing cultures. There are many parallels between the history of Indigenous American genocide and Israel&#8217;s conquest.<\/p>\n<h2>Critiquing the Critics: Undeserved Institutional Acclaim and Identity Politics Ratings Boosts from White Reviewers<\/h2>\n<p>As is the case with many critically-elevated literary novels, there is a significant gap between critic and consumer sentiment, a theme we will be exploring frequently in The Rauch Review. Whether it\u2019s The New York Times, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.newyorker.com\/books\/under-review\/how-the-memory-police-makes-you-see\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The New Yorker<\/a>, The Chicago Tribune, The Wall Street Journal or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/books\/2019\/aug\/23\/the-memory-police-yoko-ogawa-review\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Guardian<\/a>, I have yet to find a single critical opinion of Ogawa\u2019s work on any mainstream or legacy publication.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Memory Police\u201d is a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalbook.org\/books\/the-memory-police\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">national book award finalist<\/a> and was <a href=\"https:\/\/thebookerprizes.com\/the-booker-library\/books\/the-memory-police\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">shortlisted for the 2020 International Booker Prize<\/a>. These facts emphasize the trend of critics overvaluing prose while excusing mediocre story and character writing.<\/p>\n<p>Consumers, however, tend to see the book\u2019s flaws. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/user\/show\/6677659-marchpane\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">top reviewer on its Goodreads page<\/a> uses a quote from one of Ogawa\u2019s other books to describe \u201cThe Memory Police\u201d: \u201c&#8221;The prose was unremarkable, as were the plot and characters, but there was an icy current running under her words, and I found myself wanting to plunge into it again and again.&#8221; Ouch. This is harsher than my critique. I at least think the prose is good.<\/p>\n<p>Without looking, how many stars do you think that reviewer gave? It sounds like a two-star rating to me. Nope, she gave it four stars.<\/p>\n<p>When I was looking through similar Goodreads reviews that pointed out huge shortcomings while awarding at least four stars, I realized I was once again seeing a troubling trend: white reviewers, especially white women, treating female POC authors with kid gloves. One review featured a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/review\/list\/32879029?shelf=3-and-a-half-stars\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">\u201cthree-and-a-half-stars\u201d tag<\/a>, yet the reviewer gave four. In her review, she admitted she nearly forgot the characters, while emphasizing how translated work by women is such a great genre.<\/p>\n<p>At The Rauch Review we are strongly opposed to treating authors differently based on their identity politics. Boosting ratings and omitting critiques doesn\u2019t help authors, it doesn\u2019t help readers and it doesn\u2019t make the world of books a better place.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Up<\/em><\/strong><em><strong> next<\/strong>: Read our <a href=\"https:\/\/josephrauch.com\/therauchreview\/reviews\/great-circle-review\/\">&#8220;Great Circle&#8221; review<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<h2>Book Aesthetic: Excellent, But Is the Badge Wrong?<\/h2>\n<p>The cover is effective and appropriate for the book. At a glance, you can glean that the main character is an Asian woman and that the novel is literary, but probably not straight realistic fiction. The drawn patches reference both memory loss and the fact that she writes her manuscripts in pencil. I don\u2019t think she uses a red pencil. Red pops and draws our eyes, so choosing red for the cover was most likely a marketing tactic. The red on the cover also matches the red that dominates the spine and back.<\/p>\n<p>I only have one problem with the cover: the Memory Police badge illustration doesn\u2019t match the descriptions in the book. I took detailed notes of every Memory Police badge description. Here are the shapes Snyder mentions: diamond, bean, trapezoid, wedge, hexagon, letter T, concentric circles, rectangle, teardrop. Officers have different badges that seem to represent their duties, although Ogawa doesn\u2019t explain anything in significant detail. I didn\u2019t catch any description of a general badge every state surveillance officer has.<\/p>\n<p>Take my opinion with a grain of salt. I was terrible at those shape-based puzzle tests in school. Do you see any of the shapes I mentioned clearly represented on the cover\u2019s badge? I suppose the circle in the middle could be a bean. Please let me know.<\/p>\n<h2>&#8216;The Memory Police&#8217; Reviewer\u2019s Personal Opinion: Deeply Disappointing, But I\u2019m Glad I Read It<\/h2>\n<p>My wife told me about this book in 2019. When my second novel, \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Last-Mentally-Ill-Joseph-Rauch\/dp\/B09PVTQNGJ?_encoding=UTF8&amp;qid=&amp;sr=&amp;linkCode=ll1&amp;tag=josephrauch-20&amp;linkId=f91c4c6de9101f47ec24f8680b7e6f51&amp;language=en_US&amp;ref_=as_li_ss_tl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener sponsored\">The Last of the Mentally Ill<\/a>,\u201d published in 2022, one of my editors listed &#8220;The Memory Police&#8221; on a shared spreadsheet of comp titles. Other than sharing the speculative literary genre, I don\u2019t see any similarities. Maybe you do!<\/p>\n<p>I try so hard to separate personal feelings from an attempt at objective analysis, but by now you\u2019ve probably figured out that I don\u2019t like this book. It makes me think of how much I would have hated \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Attack-Titan-Season-Part-Manga\/dp\/1632366991?crid=XELFWEY5LAAR&amp;dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.p3YT4c_RjG58kgRo1gpylERzADHhTKlISGFxF2N1rS1SujmHazRyIECP_kHQcB0OD_iGhr3XtrmbglRGd477QmnixWntWnY57GGZA8KA7SiQSZ9jfHaBfEY_JBkRbrnILseeg6X1Hw6eeCzYoyVjPdxWxYncEltIrtO8i1mShPVv8tdLtx9qrGMU1ko4Pf6YAeCTOy6vwQA7jYyQMZVblbWAxYemFOBI-cS3esQ6ikhcxtpEGoZWVqJObSCwO4OIF9ss6j_ynoN4nNpkyxXGjodj7twkllJE02fofGkrxBM.BL5U6XWfwJdjs_-ItYyrmorxPjOFSKmHy7nQ3zQWOOY&amp;dib_tag=se&amp;keywords=attack+on+titan+manga&amp;qid=1716872416&amp;s=books&amp;sprefix=attack+on+titan+manga%2Cstripbooks%2C118&amp;sr=1-1&amp;linkCode=ll1&amp;tag=josephrauch-20&amp;linkId=291b33249906f70fb903b5a56fb2625b&amp;language=en_US&amp;ref_=as_li_ss_tl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener sponsored\">Attack on Titan<\/a>\u201d if the main characters never figured out what titans are or what lies beyond their walls. Still, I\u2019m happy I read it. It\u2019s an apt first book for me to review for my publication. Ogawa\u2019s unique prose techniques have inspired me. My next novel has a unique perspective, so maybe I\u2019ll be able to use these review notes for my own writing.<\/p>\n<p>Also, it\u2019s always wonderful when my wife and I read the same book. Suddenly there\u2019s more topic diversity in our pillow talk.<\/p>\n<h2>\u2018The Memory Police\u2019 Review: Can Interesting Prose and Premises Carry Bad Character and Story Writing?<\/h2>\n<p>If you see value in the experience of prose in this novel, and the themes resonate with you, there\u2019s a good chance you\u2019ll enjoy \u201cThe Memory Police.\u201d You\u2019ll either be one of those people who forgive its flaws, or the flaws will ruin it. Do you want to spend between $6 (the e-book price) and $27 (the hard cover price) on a coin flip, or do you want to try the comp titles below?<\/p>\n<h2>Books Like \u2018The Memory Police\u2019<\/h2>\n<p>Here are some comp titles both critic and consumer reviewers of \u201cThe Memory Police\u201d have mentioned several times. We regard them as superior books. If you only want to spend money on one book right now, buy one of these instead of \u201cThe Memory Police.\u201d<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\u201c1984\u201d by George Orwell<\/li>\n<li>\u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Never-Let-Me-Kazuo-Ishiguro\/dp\/1400078776?_encoding=UTF8&amp;dib_tag=se&amp;dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.q7Rwc4FLE1OTDYcRQfWwcupensafeQDDciT2jLQGl5D0eJikThUsJuN75osRJzRXLerWyR0tb7l0NC7qSmvh_QTn1a9R-5W0ncIxzIyYnbTozu8Zxjd_S8rg7Vvlxt38yEzcjgeZRV-XvvUHkP2NCCNckF07Lt98ERbNB71xz9xAT6nfoRVy-Z63AAB-94uVWS4w3CZ-mLNZ0QD8nPcpJIocgKyQrF1KlxgaeMlEa3I.Bsxbz4UyWVmv7HY1MiFZdsb-0vmlgy_Caa2cSjxJEfM&amp;qid=1716872803&amp;sr=1-1&amp;linkCode=ll1&amp;tag=josephrauch-20&amp;linkId=241c669ec241a432335da33d978bbf52&amp;language=en_US&amp;ref_=as_li_ss_tl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener sponsored\">Never Let Me Go<\/a>\u201d by Kazuo Ishiguro<\/li>\n<li>\u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Blindness-Harvest-Book-Jose-Saramago\/dp\/0156007754?crid=2LXXFE166H9RN&amp;dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.Qk1buWJvXB3Tf9U5U6Hs124kFCapfhCUHRzQAB-CcNLQyK5CyKDBld4UUw3kLVKqa3AZxffqkgTXP3gtRD0V_Q7ImSP0txY6oKH875fyxQsU8fQBsPUi5_jznEHUM7wdYgacfV9ZCbNJWHCDL3ODp2ZBiOx0P6qkuvwDn90g88bDFLFRyRFcgSc3ENPiilWvHZJUR8zJjNQyIxbol6bLKH04hP6E-ZWz67JoZTl_Rzg.u72IKlYY7y8PMpn2KCttaj00cgRA1O8bUgPJ_AlmoQU&amp;dib_tag=se&amp;keywords=blindness&amp;qid=1716872853&amp;s=books&amp;sprefix=blindness%2Cstripbooks%2C82&amp;sr=1-1&amp;linkCode=ll1&amp;tag=josephrauch-20&amp;linkId=69b39b30b183015f3578e576bef9643e&amp;language=en_US&amp;ref_=as_li_ss_tl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener sponsored\">Blindness<\/a>\u201d by Jose Saramago<\/li>\n<li>\u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Exit-West-Novel-Mohsin-Hamid\/dp\/0735212201?crid=QSET7DQC2R49&amp;dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.W1V1FhvOnek24GxE6q0EYPZP6Oj9RNAZjNX56cfeRSqvMNOgBy59AfgYGlLIfFDyTinAjW2XfeVgf-Fr2gLsAzMJBu39gpxltRSPwE68BeHV3B_ZchontuleNny8LTncfp7n5Z4VJyRwWkhpCL18o4j4BIxgv8lfMFPl3Io4EbxdjWKKlnUOyBZ83Z4Xn4p1tC27npqUPftWEnD74vPi6V4OgcZw5r8rqy-zQ-kowDE.VwEkAxvJYtXZaSEA7HN_5sikotE0NajU5uwiMZ1x14Q&amp;dib_tag=se&amp;keywords=exit+west&amp;qid=1716872910&amp;s=books&amp;sprefix=exit+west%2Cstripbooks%2C82&amp;sr=1-1&amp;linkCode=ll1&amp;tag=josephrauch-20&amp;linkId=d094ea0590be51d2bb91e95abbd84b49&amp;language=en_US&amp;ref_=as_li_ss_tl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener sponsored\">Exit West<\/a>\u201d by Mohsin Hamid<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>&#8216;The Memory Police&#8217; FAQs<\/h2>\n<p>For those of you who decide to scan this review, I wrote this convenient section with answers to many frequently asked questions I&#8217;ve seen online.<\/p>\n<div class=\"schema-faq-code\">\n<div class=\"faq-question\">\n<h3 class=\"faq-q\">What is the meaning of \u2018The Memory Police\u2019?<\/h3>\n<div>\n<p class=\"faq-a\">Yoko Ogawa uses \u201cThe Memory Police\u201d to illustrate how most people quietly accept common authoritarian practices such as confiscating objects that have cultural or sentimental value. The work of speculative fiction emphasizes the meaning of physical objects, especially those passed down generations from mothers to daughters.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"faq-question\">\n<h3 class=\"faq-q\">What is \u2018The Memory Police\u2019 an allegory for?<\/h3>\n<div>\n<p class=\"faq-a\">The overall science fiction novel is an allegory for state control. A minority of reviewers believe the book is an allegory for the impact of neurological disorders, such as dementia and Alzheimer\u2019s, on families. If our elders lose their memories before they can explain the meaning of inherited objects, is that meaning lost?<\/p>\n<p>In terms of characters, R is an allegory for Anne Frank, as well as the general idea of keeping revolutionary hope alive under authoritarianism. The nameless narrator symbolizes the allies of victims of ethnic cleansing, such as Europeans who hid Jewish refugees from Nazi Germany.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"faq-question\">\n<h3 class=\"faq-q\">Is \u2018The Memory Police\u2019 a romance?<\/h3>\n<div>\n<p class=\"faq-a\">Overall, it is not a romance novel. Nonetheless, the affair between the nameless narrator and R is a significant part of the story. There are also romantic elements in excerpts we see from the nameless narrator\u2019s novel.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"faq-question\">\n<h3 class=\"faq-q\">What is the purpose of the Memory Police?<\/h3>\n<div>\n<p class=\"faq-a\">Initially, it seems like the Memory Police\u2019s duties are to subjugate inhabitants of the unnamed island by removing empowering objects and disappearing people who can remember those objects. As the story progresses, however, the Memory Police\u2019s purpose becomes increasingly unclear. They allow nearly every island inhabitant to disappear, regardless of whether they can remember removed objects.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2>Buying and Rental Options<\/h2>\n<p>As always, let us know if we\u2019re missing an option here. Send us the link, and we\u2019ll include it if we can.<\/p>\n<h3>E-Commerce Text and Audio Purchases<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Memory-Police-Novel-Yoko-Ogawa-ebook\/dp\/B077RG9JFX?_encoding=UTF8&amp;dib_tag=se&amp;dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.hbj0-ECKqHuA2AxDP0MF2FpOTZh2B58ZPn-hnb9xlKLbImLOCQnGgMu0ePNW8bnqnICMSxe1VnuhxqDiEkT3e4YzVPml-DNxprVkQq6wsMRJ1co2mjF7Ar9Jr2B_mV1cVzF8osYcCel3cAZk6hK_Eo3UE5GD_-fGM5-0wNCHoWqQj_B1D4_rnYXeJc3BKBGj4bLhxvIfBqczjtXzBWjTGwAeQoSnDTsrFXXLRXHkiTg.WEUQQruM5Bc2CsHDcZ4WwAZnBtojWL4w2Uy_QEbU0Gc&amp;qid=1724816669&amp;sr=8-1&amp;linkCode=ll1&amp;tag=josephrauch-20&amp;linkId=14d112d682876d176ae5a9650c179f92&amp;language=en_US&amp;ref_=as_li_ss_tl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener sponsored\">Amazon<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/bookshop.org\/p\/books\/the-memory-police-yoko-ogawa\/8569609?ean=9781101911815\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Bookshop.org<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.barnesandnoble.com\/w\/the-memory-police-yoko-ogawa\/1127541288\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Barnes &amp; Noble<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/books.apple.com\/us\/book\/the-memory-police\/id1317547307\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Apple Books<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/play.google.com\/store\/books\/details\/The_Memory_Police_A_Novel?id=t1dADwAAQBAJ&amp;hl=en_US&amp;gl=US&amp;pli=1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Google Play Books<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.kobo.com\/us\/en\/ebook\/the-memory-police-1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Kobo<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>E-Commerce Audio Only<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/The-Memory-Police-audiobook\/dp\/B07VH2NPXC?crid=3CFOQJN6QIT3U&amp;dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.ZR3iN9HcxfugQTNCdd_eOOwyL-XRNnefgrdOGjf2sWPGjHj071QN20LucGBJIEps.-0XCMVQW9uLHqxLmdxtQuuSBx_bw0T9BwBGLWWySGOc&amp;dib_tag=se&amp;keywords=the+memory+police&amp;qid=1716873657&amp;s=audible&amp;sprefix=the+memory+police%2Caudible%2C99&amp;sr=1-1&amp;linkCode=ll1&amp;tag=josephrauch-20&amp;linkId=b786595a1c664278f8db60543a5093b3&amp;language=en_US&amp;ref_=as_li_ss_tl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener sponsored\">Audible<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/libro.fm\/audiobooks\/9780525634270-the-memory-police\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Libro.fm<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Physical Location Purchase and Rental Options<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Most Barnes &amp; Noble locations and large independent bookstores sell this book<\/li>\n<li>Most public libraries stock this book<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Digital Rental Options<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Libby, the library reading app<\/li>\n<li>Your local library might have a rental app<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div><script type=\"application\/ld+json\">\n{\n  \"@context\": \"https:\/\/schema.org\",\n  \"@type\": \"Review\",\n  \"itemReviewed\": {\n    \"@type\": \"Book\",\n    \"name\": \"The Memory Police\",\n    \"author\": {\n      \"@type\": \"Person\",\n      \"name\": \"Yoko Ogawa\"\n    },\n    \"datePublished\": \"1994-10-15\",\n    \"isbn\": \"978-1101911815\",\n    \"publisher\": {\n      \"@type\": \"Organization\",\n      \"name\": \"Pantheon Books\"\n    }\n  },\n  \"reviewRating\": {\n    \"@type\": \"Rating\",\n    \"ratingValue\": \"3\",\n    \"bestRating\": \"5\",\n    \"worstRating\": \"1\"\n  },\n  \"name\": \"The Memory Police Review\",\n  \"author\": {\n    \"@type\": \"Person\",\n    \"name\": \"Joseph Rauch\"\n  },\n  \"reviewBody\": \"A thought-provoking novel that delves into themes of memory and identity, but may not resonate with every reader due to its slower pace and surreal narrative.\",\n  \"publisher\": {\n    \"@type\": \"Organization\",\n    \"name\": \"The Rauch Review\"\n  },\n  \"datePublished\": \"2024-06-17\",\n  \"inLanguage\": \"en\"\n}\n<\/script>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\">\n{\n  \"@context\": \"https:\/\/schema.org\",\n  \"@type\": \"FAQPage\",\n  \"mainEntity\": [\n    {\n      \"@type\": \"Question\",\n      \"name\": \"What is the meaning of \u2018The Memory Police\u2019?\",\n      \"acceptedAnswer\": {\n        \"@type\": \"Answer\",\n        \"text\": \"Yoko Ogawa uses 'The Memory Police' to illustrate how most people quietly accept common authoritarian practices such as confiscating objects that have cultural or sentimental value. The work of speculative fiction emphasizes the meaning of physical objects, especially those passed down generations from mothers to daughters.\"\n      }\n    },\n    {\n      \"@type\": \"Question\",\n      \"name\": \"What is \u2018The Memory Police\u2019 an allegory for?\",\n      \"acceptedAnswer\": {\n        \"@type\": \"Answer\",\n        \"text\": \"'The Memory Police' is an allegory for state control. A minority of reviewers believe the book is an allegory for the impact of neurological disorders, such as dementia and Alzheimer\u2019s, on families. If our elders lose their memories before they can explain the meaning of inherited objects, is that meaning lost? In terms of characters, R is an allegory for Anne Frank and the general idea of keeping revolutionary hope alive under authoritarianism. The nameless narrator symbolizes the allies of victims of ethnic cleansing, such as Europeans who hid Jewish refugees from Nazi Germany.\"\n      }\n    },\n    {\n      \"@type\": \"Question\",\n      \"name\": \"Is \u2018The Memory Police\u2019 a romance?\",\n      \"acceptedAnswer\": {\n        \"@type\": \"Answer\",\n        \"text\": \"Overall, it is not a romance novel. Nonetheless, the affair between the nameless narrator and R is a significant part of the story. There are also romantic elements in excerpts from the nameless narrator\u2019s novel.\"\n      }\n    },\n    {\n      \"@type\": \"Question\",\n      \"name\": \"What is the purpose of the Memory Police?\",\n      \"acceptedAnswer\": {\n        \"@type\": \"Answer\",\n        \"text\": \"Initially, it seems like the Memory Police\u2019s duties are to subjugate inhabitants of the unnamed island by removing empowering objects and disappearing people who can remember those objects. As the story progresses, however, the Memory Police\u2019s purpose becomes increasingly unclear. They allow nearly every island inhabitant to disappear, regardless of whether they can remember removed objects.\"\n      }\n    }\n  ]\n}\n<\/script><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;The Memory Police&#8221; offers a unique first-person narrative where objects, ideas and words disappear both from the narrator\u2019s world and the prose we read.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":3993,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[41],"class_list":["post-2752","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-reviews","tag-novel-reviews"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.5 (Yoast SEO v27.5) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>&#039;The Memory Police&#039; Review: Fighting to Remember - The Rauch Review<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Ogawa\u2019s chilling dystopia decoded: key symbols, character arcs, and why memory itself becomes the boldest act of rebellion.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/josephrauch.com\/therauchreview\/reviews\/memory-police-review\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"\u2018The Memory Police\u2019 Explained: Loss of Memories, Characters and Story\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"&quot;The Memory Police&quot; offers a unique first-person narrative where objects, ideas and words disappear both from the narrator\u2019s world and the prose we read.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" 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