I had seen this in the bookstore and resisted it a dozen times, based on the argument that I had too much unread Mishima already on my shelves at home, but when I finally bought this I read the whole thing cover to cover the next day.

Rikio is a star. He is 23 and has a massive fan club that shows up wherever he is. He films long hours, one shoot into the next, living at home with his family and his assistant, who he is having an affair with. Kayo is a fascinating character -- she leans into being unattractive, delights in the secret implausibility of their relationship, is never obviously jealous, but then viciously skewers women he might be more likely to find attractive through disaffected parody.

Of course typical Mishima feels on masculinity and the performance of it, some tired fatalism, and youth's horror of aging.

Decades old but feels like it could be contemporary. It gave me lots of feels about the idol factory systems in countries like China, Korea, and Japan. I am very glad I finally picked this one up. ( )

Star is an interesting novella that for me evokes a short story much more than a novel. Readers who are short story fans (I am!) will definitely like this tale of a young movie actor, Rikio, who is worshiped by his adoring fans. Rikio has an unlikely "relationship" with his assistant, who in some ways grounds him and in other ways bolsters him. Star draws a picture where reality and imagination blur in interesting ways that I look forward to discussing further with other readers. If this is a taste of Mishima, I'd like to go back for more of a true meal. ( )

This new publication in English of Mishima's stark, brief novella was a welcome addition to the stack of Mishima's works already available. Though it is only 94 pages double-spaced, it tells an interesting story from a convincing perspective.
A one-sitting read, and an enthralling piece from the writer who would have made a great literary character himself. Should we separate the artist from his work, or does his incredible life add some value to his literary endeavors? I don't think it's necessary to know much about the man to appreciate his prolific evocations of Japanese traditions, but for this story, knowing what sort of literary celebrity wrote it does add a layer of meaning to the text. Mishima must have felt the emotions of the main character to some degree, exaggerated them, and used them as a dramatic setting. I don't think you can read this and ever forget it. ( )

This Japanese novella/ short story was first published in 1961. It was translated into English and published in 2019. Yukio Mishima was a famous Japanese author, poet, actor, and director. He committed ritual suicide after a failed attempt at a coup against the Japanese government. (He was pro-Emperor). This story is a study on how fame affects people.

Rikio Mizuno is a 23 year old movie actor. A "heart throb" with a mob of screaming fans following his every move. He spends the majority of his time with his assistant, Kayo. Rikio is starting to feel that he is about to lose everything; that he is done. He is exhausted from working almost every day, late into the night. He is exhausted from being unable to escape the gaze of others and whatever it is they think about him. His fame and the constant of filming scenes out of sequence leave him disoriented.
I read about this story on a list of recommended but obscure books. A few days later I was in the Strand and saw it on one of the book tables. Overall it did not live up to my expectations but there were some good passages about fame sprinkled throughout.

It's useless trying to explain what it feels like in the spotlight.The very thing that makes a star spectacular is the same thing that strikes him from the world at large and makes him an outsider.

Given the choice I'd much rather have a girl masturbating somewhere to my picture than actually trying to sleep with me. Real love always plays out at a distance.

It's become a tradition for me to pin up the life-size poster from current project right inside the front door. Every night, when I get home, I'm the first one there to greet me. ( )