The Japanese Box: A Memoir of Horror, Trauma, and Survival

The story of a potential serial killer's origin; the Japanese Box is a combination of memoir, creative nonfiction, and the horror of a coming-of-age and middle-age story. Imagine growing up with a reflection that is frequently absent and a Japanese box filled with items that should never have been there. Memories. Violence. The Japanese Box is a tribute to anxiety, trauma, grief, and longing. It is the story of a child growing up and all the ghosts and misfortunes they encounter in order to survive.

The Lithium Simone is an artist by day and an emotionally abused wife at night. She is a successful artist with a long history of schizoid effective disorder with bipolar tendencies. When her marriage deteriorates, she suffers her first miscarriage. The tragedy coincides with a wolf moon, causing trauma and magic to appear to merge in Simone's mind.

This story delves into sadness, illness, hallucinations, full moons, and the creative process. What Stage of Grief is not a poem or a song, but rather a dirge. This poem walks a fine line between nightmares and memories, fantasy and reality, grief stories and love stories, dogs and drama, nightmares, and nevermore.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Thank you NetGalley.

I initially skimmed over this book, because to be honest I wasn't a huge fan of the cover. BUT the horror genre is near and dear to my heart, haha.

This book is a collection of short stories based around grief, anxiety and trauma. It's pretty short in length, so very easy to get through.
And I'm honestly a huge fan of short story collections anyway.

Lithium Moon really ... captured me. Out of everything in that book, that story really struck me. I don't 'want to say too much to give the storyline away, but it features artist Simone who has bpd and skitzo-effective disorder.

If you're a horror fan, check this one out. Worth the read even if it doesn't wow you completely.

This is a detailed and raw account of trauma yet coming through the other side as an adult. Many triggering topics are incorporated in these tales. Very atmospheric and dark in their depiction, this collection was a thought provoking read.

Well, this was really amazing! It's dark, gothic, sad, poetic and extremely beautiful!
I want to read more from this author. Solid five stars!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for a honest review!!

Short story collections usually aren’t my thing, but I LOVED this. The stories were masterfully interwoven and had such an eerie atmosphere hanging over it like a dark miasma. Jennifer Anne Gordon’s writing is so poetic and beautifully crafted. A horrifying (and at times hyperrealistic) take on mental illness, she was able to accomplish so much in such a short amount of pages.

Japanese Box & Other Stories

Author:- Jennifer Ann Gordon

Book :- 140 Pages

Publisher:- Last Waltz Publishing

The Japanese Box is a love letter to anxiety, trauma, grief, and longing. It is a story of a child becoming
an adult, and all the ghosts and misfortunes that happen in order to survive.
The Lithium Moon: Simone is an artist by day, and an emotionally abused wife at night. She is a
successful artist with a long history of schizoid effective disorder with bipolar tendencies.

Review....

The short stories in this book are not light & airy ( ⚠️ Trigger warnings ⚠️ )

* Trauma
* murderous Thoughts
* slight sexual themes
* suicidal thoughts
* miscarriage
* loss
& other issues.

If ur OK with reading any of this then pick up this book... The short stories are only a few pages long but the wording used with a disturbing narrative to each story pulls you in wanting to read the events that unfold before you, each story dealing with growing up & how certain events form us and cause us to grow up too fast, but there are also 1 or 2 stories that deal with adult themed issues like miscarriage & this story hit me quite hard ( I have experienced miscarriage twice in my past).

It's worth a read but do not read if these triggers effect you allot

I really enjoyed reading The Japanese Box and Other Stories. The short stories and poem in this book are dark, creepy, chilling, and scary. You can really related to stories if you have been dealing with grief. Any horror fan will enjoy this book. I like the author's writing style and look forward to reading her other works.

A book of Sadness, Confusion, Bipolar, Lovelorn, Self-Harm and Death.
Unusual tales that succinctly captures the essence of the book, emphasizing it's emotional depth and unconventional themes.

This little collection is short and sweet, consisting of 3 short stories and a poem, but hits the mark with each.

The first story consists of a single part, and features aguy stuck in a relationship that's consuming his soul and when he's finally free, finds the hold she has on him is deeper than he can escape.

The second is a several part story of trauma from which the book takes its title. It's raw and emotional and again features the theme of life trapping you in its grip, with a somewhat preternatural twist.

Lastly, is a classic werewolf story with a twist, from the viewpoint of a wife stuck in an unsupportive relationship and a history of pregnancies gone awry, and by which she's haunted.

All 4 parts to the book feature heavy themes of mental health and mental anguish, all portrayed well in my opinion. They also each shine a light on a variety of relationships that fill readers and protagonists alike with dread and moral questioning, something I enjoy a lot about the horrid genre especially when written by women, I've found.

*I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.*

Recommendation:

There is this one sentence in this book that describes the book actually quite well: ‘I thought a thought. But the thought I thought wasn't the thought I thought I thought.’ So if you like thought-provoking books, read this. If not, definitely not read it. The whole book is complicated written and leaves you to understand it.

There is every trigger you can think of, and it focuses on mental and emotional triggers like eating disorders, schizophrenia and more. Don't read the book if you have such triggers.

Review

Likes:

About the emotional parts; They are really well described (most of the time in a metaphorical way) and it also seems a bit personal as it's not the typical abuse story. Never heard before that one chews their hair when nervous, for example.

Dislikes:

The blurb has a huge issue; Every trigger is mentioned except that it also includes sexual content and r@pe. I am triggered by both and I needed to skip certain parts of the Simulacrum chapter 'cause of it.

In my opinion, that 'service' scene was a bit too long. I know that an Anapher is there to let a word stand out and make it more important but it loses its effect when it's too often used.

I know that the book will be about miscarriage, but I thought that she won't get pregnant again. I usually don't read books where a character is pregnant in the present.

The ending was sudden, but felt really dull. It was excepted. And it ended so soon. I know the book isn't long, but it felt like something was missing. Like detail for the ending.

What to do for a higher rating:

I would advise to change the blurb a bit and mention that the story includes r@pe. That's what mainly put me off and made the story unenjoyable. 'Cause I didn't know that it included this trigger.

End note/Final thoughts:

Thank you for the advanced reader copy of The Japanese Box and Other Stories by Jennifer Anne Gordon.

I was a bit triggered and couldn't imagine what exactly was meant sometimes (complicated writing style) and in general I thought the story would be a bit different. It wasn't my taste, but that doesn't mean it can't be liked by someone else.



Started the book: 09. April 2024
Finished the book: 09. April 2024
Wrote the review: 09. April 2024

While this is a short collection of stories, each tale is dark and disturbingly beautiful in its own way. This author writes with raw emotion, and the JAPANESE BOX drips with it. The author explores the theme of the emptiness inside of us and the different ways that people cope with it in a haunting and lyrical way.

It was easy to get lost in this book, and I wish it was longer. I will definitely seek out more work from this author.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy.

This was a good book. I really love the world building and the characters. The pacing was really good and it kept the story moving and I was engaged the entire time as a reader. I love reading about the culture and all the stories involved in it