Having read and enjoyed 'A Personal Matter' I imagined myself liking 'The Silent Cry' more than I did. Oe deals with the darker parts of life - struggle, misfortune, death and the proceeding ramifications. His works show a commendable honesty, giving voice to the negative emotions which we ourselves either never share or even block from our consciousness. But where 'A Personal Matter' had an inflection of comedy, 'This Silent Cry' is considerably starker and somewhat relentless.

This isn't to say it is a bad book, in fact, writing this review I find myself becoming more aware of its strength. It's a book that would be ideal for literary study due to the magnitude of complex relationships, in depth self-exploration, allegory and historical reference it contains. The book is both about existing through tough experiences as well as dying and what you leave behind.