Sayaka Murata - Life Ceremony

Sayaka Murata - Life Ceremony 

4 ⭐

Genre:  Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, Japanese Literature, Asian Literature, Translated Fiction, East Asian Literature, Short Stories, Horror, Mystery 

Translated by: Ginny Tapley Takemori 

Original Title: 生命式 [Seimeishiki]  

Original Language: Japanese 

Pages: 266

Format: Kindle (Digital) 

Publisher: Granta Books 

Date Published: 1st October 2019

 

Book Blurb: 

From the author of international bestseller Convenience Store Woman comes a collection of short fiction: weird, out of this world and like nothing you’ve read before.

An engaged couple falls out over the husband’s dislike of clothes and objects made from human materials; a young girl finds herself deeply enamoured with the curtain in her childhood bedroom; people honour their dead by eating them and then procreating. Published in English for the first time, this exclusive edition also includes the story that first brought Sayaka Murata international acclaim: ‘A Clean Marriage’, which tells the story of a happily asexual couple who must submit to some radical medical procedures if they are to conceive a longed-for child.

Mixing taboo-breaking body horror with feminist revenge fables, old ladies who love each other and young women finding empathy and transformation in unlikely places, Life Ceremony is a wild ride to the outer edges of one of the most original minds in contemporary fiction.

My Review: 

OMG! This book was something else! In both, good and very grossly disturbing ways. The good is that this book is different to anything else I have ever read before. The grossly disturbing is that each story makes you feel like you are in a horror version of the Black Mirror episode. However, the writing is amazing, just as amazing as it was in Convenience Store Woman. I enjoyed the different parts of all twelve stories and learned so much, as each of them had a different hidden message in it.

Throughout 12 stories Murata explores our societal norms and traditions in a very creative way. Most of the stories ask ‘’what if..?’’ and makes you question whether the norms and traditions we have now wouldn’t be weird for others that come before us or will come after us. I felt that each story makes the reader question what societal norms are and who creates them. It also makes people question what is considered normal and what is not.

Overall: I really recommend this book, but be aware that is not a light-hearted read. There are so many gruesome, disgusting, and weird parts in every story, yet you also take something important and informative from each of the stories too. If you like horror and if you like Black Mirror, then you will definitely enjoy Life Ceremony! 

About the Author:

Sayaka Murata (in Japanese, 村田 沙耶香) is one of the most exciting up-and-coming writers in Japan today. She herself still works part time in a convenience store, which gave her the inspiration to write Convenience Store Woman (Konbini Ningen). She debuted in 2003 with Junyu (Breastfeeding), which won the Gunzo Prize for new writers. In 2009 she won the Noma Prize for New Writers with Gin iro no uta (Silver Song), and in 2013 the Mishima Yukio Prize for Shiro-oro no machi no, sono hone no taion no (Of Bones, of Body Heat, of Whitening City). Convenience Store Woman won the 2016 Akutagawa Award. Murata has two short stories published in English (both translated by Ginny Tapley Takemori): "Lover on the Breeze" (Ruptured Fiction(s) of the Earthquake, Waseda Bungaku, 2011) and "A Clean Marriage" (Granta 127: Japan, 2014). 

https://twitter.com/sayakamurata

Toshikazu Kawaguchi - Before We Say Goodbye (Before the Coffee Gets Cold #4)

 

Toshikazu Kawaguchi - Before We Say Goodbye (Before the Coffee Gets Cold #4)

4⭐

Genre: Fiction, Mystical Realism, Asian Literature, East Asian Literature, Japanese Literature, Short Stories, Book Series, Translated Books, Fantasy, Paranormal

Original Title: さよならも言えないうちに

Original Language: Japanese 

Translated by: Geoffrey Trousselot 

Pages: 192

Format: Paperback Proof

Publisher: Picador 

Date Published: 14th September 2023

Huge thank you to Picador for sending me a copy of this book to read and review.

Book Blurb: 

The regulars at Café Funiculi Funicula are well acquainted with the whimsical ability it grants them to take a trip into the past—as well as the strict rules involved, including that each traveller must return to the present in the time it takes for their coffee to get cold. In Toshikazu Kawaguchi’s previous novels, patrons have been reunited with old flames, made amends with estranged family and visited loved ones. Now readers will once again be introduced to a new set of visitors.

The Husband with Something Important Left to Say

The Woman Who Couldn’t Bid Her Dog Farewell

The Woman Who Couldn’t Answer a Proposal

The Daughter Who Drove Her Father Away

In Last Chance to Say Goodbye, which is translated from Japanese by Geoffrey Trousselot and features signature heartwarming characters and wistful storytelling, Kawaguchi once again invites the reader to ask themselves: What would you change if you could travel back in time?

My Review: 

I adored Before the Coffee Gets Cold Series, as well as I love Japanese literature, and this book is no exception. It was so amazing to come back to the Funiculi Funicula café and reunite with the café’s owners, and its regulars, yet at the same time immerse myself in new stories about people who chose to travel back in time for various reasons.

In this book, there are four more stories of people who decided they want to travel back in time. We met a husband who wanted to tell something very important to his wife who is in a coma. We also met a woman who wanted to say goodbye to her dog but didn’t have a chance before. There was also a story about a girl who couldn’t say yes to her boyfriend’s proposal until it was too late and we learn about a daughter who regretted pushing her father away and wants to set wrongs to rights.

I didn’t think all the stories were as strong as in the first three books, but I particularly enjoyed the one about the girl wanting to meet her father and say what she actually felt before she pushed him away. It was such a great story that linked to a significant event from a recent Japanese history and was perfectly intertwined with the main point of the café – to say what you want to say but didn’t have a chance before it is too late.

Overall: I really enjoyed being back with the characters that I grew to love over the last three books and the stories themselves were unique, different to one another and very heartwarming and heartbreaking at the same time. I just wish there were more than four stories in each of the books as I love the style of writing, the mystical realism and how well the main characters are developed throughout this book. Truly recommend! 

About the Author:

Toshikazu Kawaguchi (in Japanese: 川口 俊 和) was born in Osaka, Japan, in 1971. He formerly produced, directed, and wrote for the theatrical group Sonic Snail. As a playwright, his works include COUPLE, Sunset Song, and Family Time. The novel Before the Coffee Gets Cold is adapted from an 1110 Productions play by Kawaguchi, which won the 10th Suginami Drama Festival grand prize. Before the Coffee Gets Cold is his debut as an author. It has become an international bestseller and has been adapted for the screen in Japan.

https://www.panmacmillan.com/authors/toshikazu-kawaguchi/28093

Rin Usami - Idol, Burning

Rin Usami - Idol, Burning 

4⭐

Genre: Japanese Literature, Literary Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, Fiction 

Original Title: 推し、燃ゆ [Oshi, Moyu]

Original Language: Japanese 

Translated by: Asa Yoneda 

Pages: 144

Format: Paperback 

Publisher: Canongate 

Date Published: 20th July 2023

Huge thank you to Canongate for sending me a copy of this book to read and review.

Book Blurb: 

High-school student Akari has only one passion in her life: her oshi, her idol. His name is Masaki Ueno, best known as one-fifth of Japanese pop group Maza Maza. Akari's dedication to her oshi consumes her days completely - until he disgraces himself and Akari's world goes into a tailspin.

My Review: 

This book was on my wishlist for ages, and I am so glad I finally had a chance to read it. It is so beautifully written and although it is a very short book, it packed so much in such a short length. This book explores idol culture yet at the same time draws a lot on cancel culture that happens quite often with celebrities and touches on social media’s role in both, cancel and idol cultures. Additionally, it explores mental health, obsession and anxiety…

The story follows a 16-year-old Akari who is obsessed with one of the members of the J-Pop band Maza Maza. Masaki is her idol and she has been obsessed with him ever since she saw him in the movie Peter Pan. Akari even runs a blog, which is quite popular, discussing and fangirling over her idol Masaki. However, suddenly she finds out from news outlets that her idol punched a fan. With no more details than that and just speculations from fans and media, Akari goes into a deep obsession and depression over her favourite idol. That’s where bits of Akari’s potential neurodivergence and mental health issues are discussed. She alienates herself from her family and friends even more than she used to and immerses even more in obsessing over Masaki, whilst trying to figure out who he is and whether everything she knows about him is true.

In this book, the author also points out the very thin line between consumerism and production…Fans both produce celebrities and can end their career just as easily, but then at the same time are used as consumers to make those celebrities as powerful and as famous as they are. Additionally, it shows the reality of being a fan and idolising someone to the point it becomes your new reality.

What stood out for me the most in this book is that Akari is labelled as ‘abnormal’ by other people and this, together with the fact that she doesn’t get any help when it comes to learning provisions in school or emotional support from her family, drives her to search for that support elsewhere, leading her to this obsession and idolisation of a celebrity.

However, I wish there was more gone into the incident of Masaki punching a fan, maybe how it happened and why it happened, all that leading to him and then the band being cancelled. Also, it would have been interesting to see what exactly Akari is struggling with and why her family is not willing to help her with that.

Overall: Very thought-provoking and interesting short book. I enjoyed learning and reading about different, yet important topics in our modern society, such as idol and cancel cultures, fandom toxicity, obsession, consumerism, mental health, and social media’s role in all of it. Just wished this book was longer and explored all these topics even more in depth. 

About the Author:

Rin Usami (b. 1999) was born in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. Usami began writing novels in high school. Her debut novel Kaka, published in 2019, received the Yukio Mishima Prize, making her the youngest recipient in the award’s history. In 2020, at the age of 21, Usami won the prestigious Akutagawa Prize for Idol, Burning. She lives in Tokyo. 

https://www.harpercollins.com/blogs/authors/rin-usami-20228291555826

Wiz Wharton - Ghost Girl, Banana

Wiz Wharton - Ghost Girl, Banana 

5⭐

Genre: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Asian Literature, China, Literary Fiction 

Pages: 400

Format: Paperback Proof 

Publisher:  Hodder & Stoughton 

Date Published: 18th May 2023

Huge thank you to the author, Wiz Wharton and Hodder Books for sending me this book to read and review.

 

Book Blurb: 

Set between the last years of the "Chinese Windrush" in 1966 and Hong Kong's Handover to China in 1997, a mysterious inheritance sees a young woman from London uncovering buried secrets in her late mother's homeland in this captivating, wry debut about family, identity, and the price of belonging.

Hong Kong, 1966. Sook-Yin is exiled from Kowloon to London with orders to restore honor to her family. But as she trains to become a nurse in cold and wet England, Sook-Yin realizes that, like so many transplants, she must carve out a destiny of her own to survive.

Thirty years later in London, having lost her mother as a small child, biracial misfit Lily can only remember what Maya, her preternaturally perfect older sister, has told her about Sook-Yin. Unexpectedly named in the will of a powerful Chinese stranger, Lily embarks on a secret pilgrimage across the world to discover the lost side of her identity and claim the reward. But just as change is coming to Hong Kong, so Lily learns Maya's secrecy about their past has deep roots, and that good fortune comes at a price.

Heartfelt, wry and achingly real, Ghost Girl, Banana marks the stunning debut of a writer-to-watch.

My Review: 

Ghost Girl, Banana is my new favourite book, being one of my top 5 books ever and the only book that I ever related to so much. Such a beautifully written story about family, belonging, heritage and finding yourself. I loved Wiz Wharton’s poetic writing, detailed descriptions and complex yet, relatable characters. I also adored the alternative POVs, as it allowed us to get a glimpse into both Lily’s and Sook-Yin’s lives, the similarities and differences between them. This book also kept me on my toes, as I wanted to know what happened to Sook-Yin and loved the strong development of all the characters throughout the book.

The story is split between two timelines. One follows Lily in 1997 and one follows her mum Sook-Yin in 1966 onwards. In Sook-Yin’s timeline, we follow her coming to the UK from Hong Kong, her struggles, her adapting and her fighting for her family. In Lily’s timeline, we follow her trying to find herself and where she belongs, whilst finding out more about her mother and her heritage.

I adored both Lily and Sook-Yin. Reading this book, I just wanted to hug them both and hated people that hurt them or made them feel less than enough. Also, I found so much of myself in both Lily and Sook-Yin, especially the want to belong in a culture that isn’t yours but at the same time hiding parts of your true self just to belong. I was also inspired by how both heroines are so strong and brave and I loved them for that so much.

Overall: Without spoiling anything and rambling about how amazing this book is and how everyone should read it…If you love historical fiction, complicated family relationships, beautiful descriptions of Hong Kong, suspense, complicated yet so relatable characters and brilliant writing then you should read this book. For me, it will always hold a special place in my heart as it made me cry and laugh, poked my heartstrings, and then put all that back together and taught me so much too. I cannot wait to see what Wiz Wharton will write next and can’t wait to read it! 

About the Author:

Wiz Wharton was born in London of Chinese-European heritage. She is a prize-winning graduate of the National Film and Television school, where she studied screenwriting under the filmmakers Mike Leigh, Stephen Frears and Kenith Trodd. Her debut novel Ghost Girl, Banana - a dual narrative set in 1960s London and 1990s Hong Kong on the cusp of its handover to China - will be published by Hodder and Stoughton (UK) and HarperVia (US) in May 2023 with translated editions to follow. Adaptation rights have also been optioned by a leading UK production company. She lives in the Scottish Highlands.

https://twitter.com/Chomsky1

Sayaka Murata - Convenience Store Woman

Sayaka Murata - Convenience Store Woman 

5 ⭐

Genre:  Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, Japanese Literature, Asian Literature, Translated Fiction, East Asian Literature 

Translated by: Ginny Tapley Takemori 

Original Title: コンビニ人間  Konbini Ningen 

Original Language: Japanese 

Pages: 107

Format: Kindle (Digital) 

Publisher: Granta Books 

Date Published: 1st January 2018

Book Blurb: 

Meet Keiko.

Keiko is 36 years old. She's never had a boyfriend, and she's been working in the same supermarket for eighteen years.

Keiko's family wishes she'd get a proper job. Her friends wonder why she won't get married.

But Keiko knows what makes her happy, and she's not going to let anyone come between her and her convenience store...

My Review: 

I love Japanese Literature, so I don’t know why I waited so long to read Convenience Store Woman or any of Sayaka Murata’s books for that matter. It didn’t disappoint. Loved the storytelling, love the narrative, loved the story setting. It was just superb. My only negative thing was that this book was so short and I read it in one sitting in less than 45mins.

The story follows Keiko, who is 36 and for the last 18 years worked part-time in the same convenience store. She loves the routine, loves her job is happy with her life. However, her family and friends think that she needs to be ‘cured’ and that she needs a family, a husband and a kid. Keiko notices that both her family and friends act differently around her and usually look down on her because she is different and because she isn’t married. Keiko knows she is different and she happily embraces that in her work that she adores, even if it angers her family or friends.

I loved Keiko’s character. She is so bright, kind and lovely. She takes her work seriously, but she also knows that it's the only thing that makes her happy and the only thing that she can do without faking. She doesn’t want the so-called ‘normal life’, which is prescribed to her by her culture. She just wants to be herself, and that is working at a convenience store.

I also loved the social commentary in this book about expectations in societies and certain cultures, especially what is seen as a ‘normal life’ that everyone needs to strive for. For Keiko, her friends and family pressure her into thinking that she isn’t normal because she is 36 without a family of her own and works in a dead-end job. They also judge her and look down on her like she is less than them. However, none of them asks what makes her happy.

Overall: Amazing book! The writing and storytelling capture so much in such a short book. The book itself also explores deeper issues ingrained in our society, as well as in Japanese culture. It also looks at certain expectations that society has of women and people with disabilities. I will be reading more of Sayaka Murata’s books but also, but I will be re-reading Convenience Store Woman, too. 

About the Author: 

Sayaka Murata (in Japanese, 村田 沙耶香) is one of the most exciting up-and-coming writers in Japan today. She herself still works part time in a convenience store, which gave her the inspiration to write Convenience Store Woman (Konbini Ningen). She debuted in 2003 with Junyu (Breastfeeding), which won the Gunzo Prize for new writers. In 2009 she won the Noma Prize for New Writers with Gin iro no uta (Silver Song), and in 2013 the Mishima Yukio Prize for Shiro-oro no machi no, sono hone no taion no (Of Bones, of Body Heat, of Whitening City). Convenience Store Woman won the 2016 Akutagawa Award. Murata has two short stories published in English (both translated by Ginny Tapley Takemori): "Lover on the Breeze" (Ruptured Fiction(s) of the Earthquake, Waseda Bungaku, 2011) and "A Clean Marriage" (Granta 127: Japan, 2014). 

https://twitter.com/sayakamurata

Toshikazu Kawaguchi - Before Your Memory Fades (Before the Coffee Gets Cold #3)

Toshikazu Kawaguchi - Before Your Memory Fades (Before the Coffee Gets Cold #3)

5⭐

Genre: Fiction, Mystical Realism, Asian Literature, East Asian Literature, Japanese Literature, Short Stories, Book Series, Translated Books, Fantasy, Paranormal

Original Title: 思い出が消えないうちに

Original Language: Japanese 

Translated by: Geoffrey Trousselot 

Pages: 224

Format: Hardback

Publisher: Picador 

Date Published: 30th August 2022

Huge thank you to Picador for sending me a copy of this book to read and review.

Book Blurb: 

The third novel in the international bestselling Before the Coffee Gets Cold series, follows four new customers in a cafe where customers can travel back in time.

In northern Japan, overlooking the spectacular view Hakodate Port has to offer, Cafe Donna Donna has been serving carefully brewed coffee for more than one hundred years. But this coffee shop offers its customers a unique experience: the chance to travel back in time.

From the author of Before the Coffee Gets Cold and Tales from the Cafe comes another story of four new customers, each of whom is hoping to take advantage of the cafe's time-travelling offer. Among some familiar faces from Toshikazu Kawaguchi’s previous novels, readers will also be introduced to:

A daughter who couldn’t say ‘You’re an idiot.’
A comedian who couldn’t ask ‘Are you happy?’
A younger sister who couldn’t say ‘Sorry.’
A young man who couldn’t say ‘I like you.’

With his signature heart-warming characters and immersive storytelling, in Before Your Memory Fades, Toshikazu Kawaguchi once again invites the reader to ask themselves: what would you change if you could travel back in time?

My Review: 

OMG! The third book of the Before the Coffee Gets Cold series is even better than the last two. This usually doesn’t happen in the world of book series for me. However, I take that as an amazing thing. I love this series. It has everything that I love, it is set in Japan, it has mystical realism, it talks and discusses important subjects and the writing with translation are just superb.

This third instalment is slightly different from the first two, because the scene moves to rural northern Japan, to a Hakodate port by the hillside of the Mount. Hakodate. Nagare and Kazu, owners of the café in Tokyo are asked by the owner of Hakodate’s café to look after it, whilst she is away. Nagare and Kazu agree thus we meet a completely different group of customers who want to travel to the past or the future in this café. This café in Hakodate also has the same magical chair that can help you time travel. The rules are also the same.

In this book, we meet a daughter who wants to travel to see her dead parents and tell them how much she hates them. We also meet a successful comedian who wants to share his success with his wife who passed away and who he misses dearly. Additionally, we get to know a local boy who wants to travel into the past upon realizing that the girl who was by his side from a young age is the one for him, as well as, we get to read the story of two sisters, one of them passed away and the other is consumed with grief and need to hear from her deceased sister that it is alright to be happy.

I liked how much this book interlinked with the first two, as this made the move to another location so much more natural. I also really liked the change in scenery, as I think changing the location of the café made the stories of the customers fresher.

I felt that this book was concentrating more on grief, loss, and losing loved ones in comparison to the two previous books. I honestly, really liked this, as it explored different characters and how they all deal with loss and grief in their separate ways. It makes the book realistic and relatable. The only thing I hoped that this book would do, which it sadly didn’t explore, was the origin story of the ghost that sits in the time travel chair in this café in Hakodate.

The ending of this book was so heart-wrenching and I honestly shed a tear or two, as it was that beautiful and sad at the same time. It made me think about life and loss, whilst also remembering and cherishing all the good memories and moment that comes my way.

Overall: Another perfect read for windy autumn weather, whilst enjoying a frothy cup of coffee under a fluffy blanket. Such a lovely book, which has so much food for thought and so many lessons about life, loss, and grief. Loved it and hope that there will be more instalments of this series in the future as I will be keeping my eyes peeled for that. 

About the Author:

Toshikazu Kawaguchi (in Japanese: 川口 俊 和) was born in Osaka, Japan, in 1971. He formerly produced, directed, and wrote for the theatrical group Sonic Snail. As a playwright, his works include COUPLE, Sunset Song, and Family Time. The novel Before the Coffee Gets Cold is adapted from an 1110 Productions play by Kawaguchi, which won the 10th Suginami Drama Festival grand prize. Before the Coffee Gets Cold is his debut as an author. It has become an international bestseller and has been adapted for the screen in Japan.

https://www.panmacmillan.com/authors/toshikazu-kawaguchi/28093

Toshikazu Kawaguchi - Before the Coffee Gets Cold: Tales from the Cafe (Before the Coffee Gets Cold #2)

Toshikazu Kawaguchi - Before the Coffee Gets Cold: Tales from the Cafe (Before the Coffee Gets Cold #2)

5⭐

Genre: Fiction, Mystical Realism, Asian Literature, East Asian Literature, Japanese Literature, Short Stories, Book Series, Translated Books, Fantasy, Paranormal

Original Title: この嘘がばれないうちに

Original Language: Japanese 

Translated by: Geoffrey Trousselot 

Pages: 192

Format: Paperback 

Publisher: Picador 

Date Published: 17th September 2020

Book Blurb: 

In a small back alley in Tokyo, there is a café which has been serving carefully brewed coffee for more than one hundred years. But this coffee shop offers its customers a unique experience: the chance to travel back in time...

From the author of Before the Coffee Gets Cold comes a story of four new customers each of whom is hoping to take advantage of Cafe Funiculi Funicula's time-travelling offer.

Among some faces that will be familiar to readers of Kawaguchi's previous novel, we will be introduced to:

The man who goes back to see his best friend who died 22 years ago
The son who was unable to attend his own mother’s funeral
The man who travelled to see the girl who he could not marry
The old detective who never gave his wife that gift...

This beautiful, simple tale tells the story of people who must face up to their past, in order to move on with their lives. Kawaguchi once again invites the reader to ask themselves: what would you change if you could travel back in time? 

My Review: 

I loved the first book but this second installment was even better. All four stories were heart-warming and heart-wrenching at the same time, as well as, covering so much depth when it comes to grief, loss, love, relationships, happiness, and illness. Each of the characters were so well explored and their stories are also so relatable.

The second installment of Before Coffee Gets Cold presents readers with four new customers in the café that want to time travel to the past or the future. In the first story, we meet a man who wants to visit his best friend and tell him about his daughter. The second story follows a boy who didn’t have a chance to go to his mother’s funeral but wants to see her one last time. The third story presents us with a soon-to-be husband who is also terminally ill and visits his fiancé in the future in the hope to see her happy without him. The fourth story follows a detective who is now retired and wants to travel to the past to give his wife one last gift for her last birthday that he sadly missed.

Loved that we get to learn more about Kazu, one of the café’s waitresses, as well as a backstory of the ghost that occupies the time-traveling chair. For me, Kazu’s backstory was a highlight of this second book. Also, Miki's character was just so adorable. She added so many good emotions and happiness to the café and customers, as well as changed the café’s mood from very mysterious as in the first book to very welcoming and homely, which was a very interesting change. I believe that these background stories about the café’s staff and the café itself just add so much atmosphere to the story and keep all the stories so well interconnected.

Overall: It is another heart-warming and heart-wrenching installment of Before the Coffee Gets Cold. I love mythical realism in Japanese literature and this series executed this so well. Mystical realism mixed with everyday characters and stories makes this book a perfect blend for the perfect autumn read. I loved it so much and recommend it to everyone that loves short stories, Japanese literature, and mystical realism. 

About the Author:

Toshikazu Kawaguchi (in Japanese: 川口 俊 和) was born in Osaka, Japan, in 1971. He formerly produced, directed and wrote for the theatrical group Sonic Snail. As a playwright, his works include COUPLE, Sunset Song, and Family Time. The novel Before the Coffee Gets Cold is adapted from an 1110 Productions play by Kawaguchi, which won the 10th Suginami Drama Festival grand prize. Before the Coffee Gets Cold is his debut as an author. It has become an international bestseller and has been adapted for the screen in Japan.

https://www.panmacmillan.com/authors/toshikazu-kawaguchi/28093

Toshikazu Kawaguchi - Before the Coffee Gets Cold (Before the Coffee Gets Cold #1)

Toshikazu Kawaguchi - Before the Coffee Gets Cold #1

4.5⭐

Genre: Fiction, Mystical Realism, Asian Literature, East Asian Literature, Japanese Literature, Short Stories, Book Series, Translated Books, Fantasy, Paranormal

Original Title: コーヒーが冷めないうちに

Original Language: Japanese

Translated by: Geoffrey Trousselot 

Pages: 213

Format: Paperback 

Publisher: Picador 

Date Published: 19th September 2019 

Book Blurb: 

What would you change if you could go back in time?

In a small back alley in Tokyo, there is a café which has been serving carefully brewed coffee for more than one hundred years. But this coffee shop offers its customers a unique experience: the chance to travel back in time.

In Before the Coffee Gets Cold, we meet four visitors, each of whom is hoping to make use of the café’s time-travelling offer, in order to: confront the man who left them, and receive a letter from their husband whose memory has been taken by early onset Alzheimer's, to see their sister one last time, and to meet the daughter they never got the chance to know.

But the journey into the past does not come without risks: customers must sit in a particular seat, they cannot leave the café, and finally, they must return to the present before the coffee gets cold . . .

Toshikazu Kawaguchi’s beautiful, the moving story explores the age-old question: what would you change if you could travel back in time? More importantly, who would you want to meet, maybe for one last time?

My Review: 

I have recently kindly been sent the third instalment of this series, Before Your Memory Fades, by Picador and decided to re-read the first two, to fully immerse myself into the plots and characters. I love mystical and magical realism and Japanese literature has plenty of that. Before the Coffee Gets Cold is not an exception. It brilliantly links mystical and magical realism with the important topics about life, loss, grief, forgiveness, second chances, and happiness. In only 200 pages this book has so much to give and so much food for thought about all of those topics. I loved it with all my heart.

The book follows four different stories all set in a small cafe in Tokyo. This cafe is not ordinary, it offers its customers a chance to travel in time, to the past and the future. However, there are strict rules that each customer needs to follow if they want to travel in time. They need to sit in a certain seat, they can’t change the future or the past and they can only travel to see people who previously visited this cafe. Oh…and they need to come back from the time travel before their coffee gets cold.

In this first instalment, we meet a girl who wants to travel back in time to tell her boyfriend not to leave her for work abroad opportunity. We also meet a wife that travels into the past to talk to her husband who is slowly losing his memory to Alzheimer’s. The third story is about a sister who wants to visit her younger sister who passed away one last time to make amends. The fourth story is about a mother who wants to travel into the future to visit her daughter, who she might never meet otherwise.

I loved that each of the stories has a lesson behind it and very gently discusses all the subjects of life, death, loss, grief, etc. Each story is very touching and features characters that as a reader you can easily relate to. One rule of the cafe is that you cannot change the past or the future no matter what, but although you can't change what happened or what might happen, travelling to the past or the future for these characters most of the time offers something better. Some characters got closure, some wanted forgiveness and some wanted to get permission to be happy from their loved ones. So, even though the past or the future didn’t change for those characters, seeing and speaking to a person they wanted to visit one last time, changed something within them, allowing each of them to move on in their way.

I also loved the atmospheric setting of the cafe and the fact that all of the stories and characters are somehow interconnected, which just shows that life is not as simple as we think it is. Stories also give a glimpse into the cafe's past and its owners, which just adds so much to the overall atmosphere and mysticism of this cafe.

Overall: It is a very unique book and has all the things that I love about Japanese literature.  Each of the stories in this book taught me something different and each of them allowed me to look at life, grief, loss, love and relationships in a different way. Heart-warming book that should be on everyone’s bookshelf and definitely a perfect read for long autumn nights. 

About the Author:

Toshikazu Kawaguchi (in Japanese: 川口 俊 和) was born in Osaka, Japan, in 1971. He formerly produced, directed and wrote for the theatrical group Sonic Snail. As a playwright, his works include COUPLE, Sunset Song, and Family Time. The novel Before the Coffee Gets Cold is adapted from an 1110 Productions play by Kawaguchi, which won the 10th Suginami Drama Festival grand prize. Before the Coffee Gets Cold is his debut as an author. It has become an international bestseller and has been adapted for the screen in Japan.

https://www.panmacmillan.com/authors/toshikazu-kawaguchi/28093

Kim Hye-jin - Concerning My Daughter

Kim Hye-jin - Concerning My Daughter 

5⭐

Genre: Korean Literature, Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, Asia Literature, LGBTQIA+, K-Drama

Original Title: 딸에 대하여

Original Language: Korean

Translated by: Jamie Chang 

Pages:  176

Format: Paperback 

Publisher: Picador 

Date Published: 14th April 2022 

Book Blurb: 

When an ageing mother allows her thirty-something daughter to move into her apartment, she wants for her what many mothers might say they want for their child: a steady income, and, even better, a good husband with a good job with whom to start a family.

But when Green turns up with her girlfriend, Lane, in tow, her mother is unprepared and unwilling to welcome Lane into her home. In fact, she can barely bring herself to be civil. Having centred her life on her husband and child, her daughter’s definition of family is not one she can accept. Her daughter’s involvement in a case of unfair dismissal involving gay colleagues from the university where she works is similarly strange to her.

And yet when the care home where she works insists that she lower her standard of care for an elderly dementia patient who has no family, who travelled the world as a successful diplomat, and who chose not to have children, Green’s mother cannot accept it. Why should not having chosen a traditional life mean that your life is worth nothing at all? 

My Review: 

Just love translated fiction, especially Asian fiction. Concerning my daughter is no exception. I loved it so much as in a few short pages this book tackled so many issues and made me go through so many emotions. It took me a few days after reading this novella to gather my thoughts on it and rethink everything that was discussed and that’s how powerful this book is. 

This novella follows a Korean mother in her seventies who struggles with her health yet works long hours in a care home taking care of elderly and ill patients. She is never named in the book but we know that she has a daughter that she worries about. Her daughter is gay and for the last seven years living with a girlfriend called Lane. The mother is blaming herself that her daughter is different, that her daughter is in her thirties but doesn’t want a normal family, a husband and children. She also blames herself that her daughter alongside her work fights for LGBTQ+ rights. The mother also blames Lane for making her daughter not want a husband and kids. She also blames Lane for making her daughter gay. 

Throughout the book, the mother is struggling to accept her daughter's sexuality and life choices. We see her battling with herself, her morals, her upbringing, traditions and societal expectations of her generation, as well as her love for her daughter and wanting her daughter to have a good and respectful life. It is very interesting to see how her emotions and thinking process change throughout the book too as she sees how her daughter is discriminated outside of the home environment by others, such as her job, society and other people. 

It was very interesting to see the thought process of the mother and see her going through all those emotions and moods when she is dealing with the fact that her daughter is gay. It is the first book ever that I have read that is exploring this point of view of a loved one getting in terms of their loved one’s sexuality. 

Also, it was so interesting to read about the cultural and societal differences, especially to see how differently society is seeing and treating the LGBTQ+ community in Korea when compared to Western countries like the USA and the UK. Also, not only the marginalisation of LGBTQ+ communities but also the marginalisation of elderly people and seeing them as burdens is heavily discussed in this book, which was very interesting to read as I wasn’t familiar with Korean culture around that subject. 

I learned a lot from this book about Korean culture, generational perceptions and issues that are present there. I love reading about different cultures and societies; thus, this book was perfect in that educational aspect. 

Overall: Very powerful and important book, exploring the mother’s emotions and perspectives whilst she is getting into terms of her daughter being gay. Definitely a perfect book when it comes to educating yourself on Korean culture, and current social issues in Korean society, such as the marginalisation of LGBTQ+ communities and elderly people. Can’t wait to read more Asian-translated fiction about these topics and learn more about Korean culture and society. 

About the Author:

Kim Hye-jin was born in Daegu, Korea, in 1983. She debuted in 2012 when her story ‘Chicken Run’ won Dong-A Ilbo’s Spring Literary Award. She won the Joongang Novel Prize for Joongang Station, and the Shin Dong-yup Prize for Literature for Concerning My Daughter.

https://www.panmacmillan.com/authors/kim-hyejin/41542

Baek SeHee - I Want to Die but I Want to Eat Tteokbokki

  

Baek SeHee - I Want to Die but I Want to Eat Tteokbokki

5 ⭐

Genre: Biography, Memoir, Non-Fiction, Mental Health, Self-Care, Health, Mind and Body, Korean Literature

Translated by: Anton Hur 

Original Title: 죽고 싶지만 떡볶이는 먹고 싶어

Original Language: Korean 

Pages: 208

Format: eARC on NetGalley 

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing Plc (UK)

Date Published: 23rd June 2022

Huge Thank You to Bloomsbury UK and NetGalley UK for a copy of eARC to read and review! 

Book Blurb: 

Baek Se-Hee is a successful young social media director at a publishing house when she begins seeing a psychiatrist about her - what to call it? - depression? She feels persistently low, anxious, endlessly self-doubting, but also highly judgemental of others. She hides her feelings well at work and with friends; adept at performing the calmness, even ease, her lifestyle demands. The effort is exhausting, and overwhelming, and keeps her from forming deep relationships. This can't be normal.

But if she's so hopeless, why can she always summon a yen for her favourite street food, the hot, spicy rice cake, tteokbokki? Is this just what life is like?

Recording her dialogues with her psychiatrist over a 12-week period, Baek begins to disentangle the feedback loops, knee-jerk reactions and harmful behaviours that keep her locked in a cycle of self-abuse. Part memoir, part self-help book, I Want to Die but I Want to Eat Tteokbokki is a book to keep close and to reach for in times of darkness.

My Review: 

I really loved this book!  It is the first self-help book that I loved, actually enjoyed reading, and didn’t DNF’ed.

Firstly, it’s part memoir, featuring the author’s therapy sessions, where she is trying to find out why she is how she is, depressed, unhappy, with low self-esteem and always puts herself down. Secondly, it’s a part self-help book, where the author explains her mental health struggles without sugar-coating or glamorising it, whilst providing some explanation on different conditions and how it is possible to tackle them. The author also talks about how she is slowly overcoming her struggles, step by step and not always in a linear fashion, taking a few steps forward but in reality stumbling some ten steps backwards.

I love the honesty, the raw truth of mental health problems and how the author talks about her struggles, how she is not afraid to talk about her feelings too. I really liked how the book was so easy to read and felt really personal, like, I felt I was the one in the therapy room having the conversation with the therapist. I devoured this book in a few hours and would love to go back read it again and annotate, and add my thoughts (hopefully can do that once I get a physical copy when it's out). It was also so relatable, as most of the author’s struggles are so universal and some of us might face more than one in our everyday life.

This book is different but in such a good way, it stands out, as it's not your traditional ‘how to take care of your mental health’,  full of checklists and tips book. This book has a unique voice and true story, which makes it very raw and real, whilst teaching quite a lot about mental health from the perspective of our everyday life.

Overall:  I really think we need more books like this on mental health, as for me how the author bravely shared her feelings and thoughts on mental health conditions, made me think that more conversations like this need to happen in our communities and society to get over the stigma surrounding this subject. I can’t wait until it’s released, so I can buy a physical copy, re-read it and annotate it, and have it on my bookshelf to help me when I face hard moments in my life. It is translated so well, as writing just flows. It’s also so easy to understand, and there is some extra information provided, explaining Korean cultural nuances that the reader might not be familiar with.

Honestly, a book that is really worth a place on your bookshelf. 

This review was first published on NetGalley and can be found on:

https://www.netgalley.co.uk/book/252006/review/959200 

About the Author: 

Born in 1990, Baek SeHee studied creative writing at university before working for five years at a publishing house. For ten years, she received psychiatric treatment for dysthymia (persistent mild depression), which became the subject of her essays, and then I Want to Die, but I Want to Eat Tteokbokki, books one and two. Her favourite food is tteokbokki, and she lives with her rescue dog Jaram.

https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/author/baek-sehee/