After the quake blind willow, sleeping woman dance dance dance

CHAPTER 19 
Aomame 
WHEN THE DOHTA WAKES UP 
Air Chrysalis
was a fantastical story, but it took the form of a very readable novella 
narrated from beginning to end in a simple, colloquial style, by a ten-year-old girl. It 
was not overly complex in terms of its vocabulary or logic, and it did not contain 
long-winded explanations or wordy expressions. The words and style of the young 
narrator were universally appealing—concise and, in most cases, pleasant—but they 
explained almost nothing about the events that unfolded. Rather, the girl simply let 
the narrative flow as she recounted what she had seen with her own eyes, never 
stopping to consider “What is going on here?” or “What could this mean?” The book 
moved forward at an easy pace appropriate to the story she was telling. Her readers 
followed along, very naturally adopting her point of view, and before they knew it, 
they were in another world—a world that was 
not this world
, a world in which the 
Little People made air chrysalises. 
Reading the first ten pages, Aomame felt herself responding strongly to the novel’s 
style. If indeed this was Tengo’s creation, he was certainly a talented writer. The 
Tengo that Aomame knew was primarily a mathematical genius. He was said to be a 
prodigy, easily able to solve mathematical problems that were too difficult for most 
adults. His grades had been outstanding in other subjects, too, if not quite up to his 
work in mathematics. He was also physically big and an all-around athlete, but 
Aomame did not recall anything about his being an especially good writer. Probably 
that talent was obscured at the time in the shadow of his mathematics. 
On the other hand, Tengo might have done nothing more than transfer the author’s 
narrative voice to the page just as he had initially read it. His own originality might 
not have contributed much of anything to the style. She felt, though, that this was not 
the case. While the writing was deceptively simple, a closer read revealed that it was 
in fact calculated and arranged with great care. No part of it was overwritten, but at 
the same time it had everything it needed. Figurative expressions were kept to a 
minimum, but the descriptions were still vivid and richly colored. Above all, the style 
had a wonderfully musical quality. Even without reading it aloud, the reader could 
recognize its deep sonority. This was not writing that flowed naturally from the pen of 
a seventeen-year-old girl. 
Having ascertained all this, Aomame proceeded to read the rest with great care. 

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The heroine is a young girl. She belongs to a small mountain community known as 
the “Gathering.” Her mother and father live a communal life in the Gathering. She has 
no brothers or sisters. Because she was brought here shortly after her birth, the girl 
has virtually no knowledge of the outside world. All three members of the family 
have busy schedules that give them little opportunity to spend time together in relaxed 
conversation, but still they are close. The girl spends her days in the local elementary 
school while her parents are primarily engaged in farm work. The children also help 
with the farming when they have free time. 
The adults of the Gathering all hate the outside world. At every opportunity, they 
like to say that the world in which they live is a beautiful, solitary island floating in a 
sea of “cap-i-tal-izum,” a “for-tress.” The girl does not know what they mean by 
“cap-i-tal-izum” (or the other word they sometimes use, “ma-teer-ee-al-izum”), but, 
judging from the scornful tone they use whenever they speak the words, cap-i-tal-
izum and ma-teer-ee-al-izum must be very twisted things that are opposed to nature 
and