My Year of Meats (1998)

by Ruth Ozeki, Ruth Ozeki

Other authors: See the other authors section.

Members	Reviews	Popularity	Average rating	Mentions
2,108	57	8,214	(3.9)	110
Jane, a female Japanese-American filmmaker, hired to produce a television program aimed at Japanese housewives extolling the pleasures of meat consumption, begins to have second thoughts about the dangers of meat and the practices of the meat industry. At the same time, Akiko, the abused wife of Jane's Japanese boss begins to question her role as a docile Japanese housewife when she views some of the "Typical" Americans Jane is using in her television series.… (more)

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The Jungle by Upton Sinclair (TheLittlePhrase)
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Showing 1-5 of 57 (next | show all)

My Year of Meats reads like a dual memoir told by a young Japanese American filmmaker and a Japanese housewife. The filmmaker is working on a TV show about American housewives who cook beef for dinner-- to be aired in Japan. It's an amusing premise but it started off rough. It is Ozeki's first novel and read as such, but it improved about 1/3 way through and started to hang together and find its footing as the filmmaker made discoveries about meat production. I enjoyed the characters and the story was satisfying, if not entirely believable. **Some people won't read this afraid they will be grossed out by meat after reading. This is NOT The Jungle. It's more about drugs used in the meat industry that are now outlawed. There are some unsavory meat factory scenes but I had several steaks while reading this book.** (

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technodiabla | Nov 22, 2023 |

I came upon this in the New Books section of my library, where the title alone made me want to bring it home. This is the first Ozeki novel I read, and it did not disappoint. (

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mykl-s | May 16, 2023 |

A writer friend recommended this book to me, and I’m glad she did! I loved the characters (even the ones we only met for a few pages like Lara and Dyann) and despised the villain. I like books with hot takes on society and enjoyed this one on the meat industry and women’s bodies. The author did a great job slowly unraveling the storylines. Loved this one. (

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jenwelsh | Nov 18, 2022 |

I didn't know what to expect with this, but I ended up liking it a lot. If you were a flesh eater, you would end up finding out a lot of stuff about flesh that you really didn't want to know. I wonder if the author did it that way on purpose, sneaking information in there like that? From the title of the book and the blurb on the back, you still don't really get it until almost right up to the end. Good job! (

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burritapal | Oct 23, 2022 |

I only stuck with this one because of how much I enjoyed A Tale for the Time Being. The first half dragged and the attempt at social commentary was pretty ham-fisted. But about 2/3rds in I found myself invested in almost all of the characters and am glad I took the time to finish it. (

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IVLeafClover | Jun 21, 2022 |

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▾Published reviews

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thingScore 75

Die junge Autorin will viel in ihrem ersten Roman: Sie will kulturelle Stereotypen aufbrechen, die Mechanismen gedankenlosen Konsumverhaltens bewußt machen, eine praktikable Medien-Ethik vorstellen und gelebte Frauen-Emanzipation vorführen. Dieses Themen-Konglomerat verkommt jedoch nicht zur überfrachteten Bekehrungsschrift oder zum platten Thesenroman im Sinne von: 'Fleisch ist unappetitlich und gefährlich - werdet Vegetarierinnen, liebe Leserinnen'. Vielmehr wird der Roman getragen von einer ausgeklügelten Struktur: Intertextuelle Zitate aus dem "Kopfkissenbuch der Hofdame Sei Shonagon" (aus dem Jahr 1000 n. Chr.) und längere Erzählpassagen aus den Perspektiven der amerikanischen und japanischen Hauptfiguren wechseln ab mit Briefen, Faxen, Rezepten und Drehbuch-Entwürfen.

added by Indy133 | editliteraturkritik.de, Ulla Biernat (Oct 1, 1999)

A sexy and funny cross-cultural tale of two seemingly disparate women that is 'a feast that leaves you hungry for whatever Ozeki cooks up next.'

added by GYKM | editNewsweek

There is an ardent passion to the center of this novel... rare and provocative.

added by GYKM | editUSA Today

It's juicy, it's tender, it's bloody, it's sizzling.

added by GYKM | editSt. Louis Post Dispatch

▾Other authors

» Add other authors (6 possible)

Author name	Role	Type of author	Work?	Status
Ruth Ozeki	—	primary author	all editions	calculated
Ozeki, Ruth	—	main author	all editions	confirmed
Rook, Ruud	Translator	secondary author	some editions	confirmed

▾Series and work relationships

Belongs to Publisher Series

Serie Piper (3002)

▾Awards and Honors

Awards

International Dublin Literary Award (Longlist – 2000)

Kiriyama Prize (Winner – 1998)

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▾Common Knowledge

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Canonical title

Original title

My Year of Meats

Alternative titles

Original publication date

1998

People/Characters

Information from the German Common Knowledge. Edit to localize it to your language.

Jane Takagi-Little

Akiko

Important places

Japan

Important events

Related movies

Epigraph

Dedication

To Oliver, for trajectory and ballast

First words

The American Wife sits on the floor in front of a fireplace. The flichering light from an electric yule log, left there all year round, plays across the sweaty sheen of her large, pale face. Legs tucked, toes curling nervously in a brand-new pink shag rug from Wal-Mart, she is leaning forward on one arm, perfectly still. Her lips are pursed. Her husband faces her, his mouth drawn taut, ready, inches from hers. They wait.

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Disambiguation notice

Publisher's editors

Blurbers

Golden, Arthur

Smiley, Jane

Lipman, Maureen

Original language

Information from the Dutch Common Knowledge. Edit to localize it to your language.

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Canonical DDC/MDS

Canonical LCC

▾References

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Wikipedia in English (3)

File:My Year of Meats-cover-1stEd-HC.jpeg

My Year of Meats

Ruth Ozeki

▾Book descriptions

Jane, a female Japanese-American filmmaker, hired to produce a television program aimed at Japanese housewives extolling the pleasures of meat consumption, begins to have second thoughts about the dangers of meat and the practices of the meat industry. At the same time, Akiko, the abused wife of Jane's Japanese boss begins to question her role as a docile Japanese housewife when she views some of the "Typical" Americans Jane is using in her television series.

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