Strange Pictures by Uketsu: Read Now!

Hi Readers! I am back with a book recommendation. Drop everything and read this book now!

~~GOODREADS DESCRIPTION~~

The spine-tingling bestseller that has taken Japan by storm—an eerie fresh take on horror for fans of Hidden Pictures and Junji Ito, in which a series of seemingly innocent pictures draws you into a disturbing web of unsolved mysteries and shattered psyches.

An exploration of the macabre, where the seemingly mundane takes on a terrifying significance. . . .

A pregnant woman’s sketches on a seemingly innocuous blog conceal a chilling warning.

A child’s picture of his home contains a dark secret message.

A sketch made by a murder victim in his final moments leads an amateur sleuth down a rabbithole that will reveal a horrifying reality.

Structured around these nine childlike drawings, each holding a disturbing clue, Uketsu invites readers to piece together the mystery behind each and the over-arching backstory that connects them all. Strange Pictures is the internationally bestselling debut from mystery horror YouTube sensation Uketsu—an enigmatic masked figure who has become one of Japan’s most talked about contemporary authors.

~~TRIGGER WARNINGS~~

Murder, Death, Suicide, Mutilation, Child Abuse, Domestic Abuse, Animal violence, Stalking, Gore.

~~THOUGHTS~~

There is always a book that takes Bookstagram by storm. Everyone is either reading that book or can’t stop talking about that book. It’s always a five-star read. It’s an unputdownable book. It’s so unique that you wouldn’t have read anything like it before. I’m here to tell you that ALL of this is NOT an exaggeration because Strange Pictures by Uketsu falls true on all this hype and more!

Strange Pictures consists of four chapters, all look like an individual story but they’re all connected in a glorious way that unravels to the reader little by little and then all at once. The first chapter is layered because what sounds straight-forward has hidden meanings – both words & pictures. The second chapter has a drawing made by a child – which can mean many different things. The third chapter is intriguing because why would an art teacher draw a landscape of mountains during his final moments? It makes you think and draw your own conclusions, which are very closely related to your own life. So, it works on a personal level as well by making you a part of the book.

It’s a bit of mystery, some drama and good old psychological horror. The writing is masterful because the way the dots are connected is pure genius. It’s like flat needle felting. The front is a perfect landscape, but when you look at the back it’s complicated. That’s how I imagine the author’s writing process must have been like – complicated from his view so that it becomes almost perfect from reader’s view.

All the strange pictures made an otherwise interesting mystery grandiose. Yes, I read the book in one sitting. But, the number of minutes I spent looking at those pictures trying to see if I can figure something out were substantial. In all the cases, it was impossible to understand the psyche of the person unless you are a trained psychologist or an illustration nerd. This is what made the book stand out.

Having recently watched Adolescence, the psychological aspect in this book was even more glaring. It was written with nuance and maturity. I had to be super vague while writing this review because I don’t want to give any spoilers, but you will get what I mean if you have read the book or are planning to read. If you enjoy mysteries, psychological fiction, moderate horror, then you should definitely read this. If you’re stuck in a reading slump, I can guarantee this book will bring you out of it from the first page itself. I have rated Strange Pictures by Uketsu, translated by Jim Rion at 5/5 stars!

Until next time,