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The Woman in the Purple Skirt cover art

The Woman in the Purple Skirt

By: Natsuko Imamura, Lucy North
Narrated by: Jennifer Ikeda
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Summary

I suppose what I'm trying to say is that I've been wanting to become the friend of the Woman in the Purple Skirt for a very long time....

The woman in the purple skirt seems to live in a world of her own. She appears to glide through crowded streets without acknowledging any reaction her presence elicits. Each afternoon, she sits on the same park bench, eating a pastry and ignoring the local children who make a game of trying to get her attention.

She may not know it, but the woman in the purple skirt being watched. Someone is following her, always perched just out of sight, monitoring which buses she takes, what she eats, whom she speaks to. But this invisible observer isn't a stalker - no, it's much more complicated than that.

©2021 Natsuko Imamura (P)2021 Faber & Faber

What listeners say about The Woman in the Purple Skirt

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Absolutely loved this quirky story

This is the first book to be translated into English by award winning Japanese author Natsuko Imamura. It is an intriguing and unusual tale of envy and obsession in which you never quite know what is going on until right at the end. We have all seen distinctive strangers and wondered about their lives but we know very little about them. This is a story of what happens when someone follows through on this and are lured into their world. I loved the style of writing and the strange plot development and it made me smile listening to this. Simply wonderful. Five stars.

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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Didn’t work for me

Nothing really happens, which makes it hard to buy into. Some nice moments, but I’ve already forgotten it as I writer this review

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Good short listen with a major twist

This was a slice of life story with a twist. I would recommend it but the ending was a bit strange

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

sort of interesting story but abrupt end

this was recommended as being a story with a crazy twist. I didn't feel it was so, and the ending was too abrupt. It felt rushed and I didn't get it. The narrator was good but could be stilted in tone. I wouldn't recommend it but it was short so didn't feel like a bad read.

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  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

No twists no turns just a plain story

I don’t know what all the hype is about this book. I thought it was average at most. The narrator was good though and kept the story going.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Slow start but Wow

Thought it was a a bit meh at first, I didn’t see what all the fuss was about but reading further along in the story I understood the tension it was trying to build that it was building and the ultimate lead to. Brilliant quick read.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Different

This book was definitely different than what I usually listen to but it was good. It had some interesting twists and turns that kept my attention

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