Reviews with content warning for Abandonment - Days at the Morisaki Bookshop

First of all: Why has every version of the cover art a cat on it when there are a grand total of 0 cats in the book?

I read this book in Dutch and I am sure most of my opinions on it are because the translation felt very bad. The sentences just did not flow well at all, which made it jarring to read. Besides that, I wonder if there is just too much of a culture gap here for me to understand this book and its characters.

I disliked the main character, Takako. Sure, she got out of a bad relationship and was feeling depressed, but she was behaving like such a whiny child that I often forgot she was supposed to be 25.

The whole storyline with the aunt that came back after rudely disappearing for 5 years, was so weird. Were we supposed to feel for her? Because I kinda didn’t. Sure, she was still processing the loss of their child, but it still felt flat.

I’m also going to say it, there are some… questionable things in the story and language used. First, the bath scene felt weird. Second, why was Takako asked if she was into girls when she was (in a strange way I agree) trying to hug her aunt? She was asked the same when she looked at a waitress for 3 seconds earlier in the book. To me that is just not something to joke about

So yeah. Me and this book did not vibe, but if I ever get the chance to read it in English, I am willing to try it.

Content Warnings

fyre_flies's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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aseel_reads's review against another edition

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funny hopeful reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

This was a very sweet and quick read. I think it ended at a pretty good point of the story, just a short slice of life - because it was short, i can't rate it higher, since the several heavy plot points were not deeply discussed (like a good thing and a bad thing at the same time)

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aliyachaudhry's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Content Warnings

lucyatoz's review

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adventurous challenging emotional hopeful mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

"A tale of families, love, new beginnings, and the comfort that can be found in books."

The first line of the synopsis for Days At The Morisaki Bookshop by Satoshi Yagisawa does kind of sum up the story of Takako, who finds herself unexpectedly living in the room above her Uncle Satoru's secondhand bookshop in Tokyo. This novel is in two parts and deals with lost of relationships and how one young woman navigates the challenges of these so that she and her Uncle can move onwards in life.

I would highlight that issues around loss and grief are part of the story and how this effects the relationships with those we love the most. It is written in a very poignant way and had a profound impact on me.

I own a copy of this book and listened to it on cloudLibrary. I read this for prompt 28, a yellow spine, for the 52 Book Club Reading Challenge 2024.

Content Warnings

wisewayfarer's review

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emotional hopeful lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

It's a short lighthearted and yet emotional read about a girl trying to find herself and the complexities of her aunt/uncle's relationship that she finds herself in the middle of when she moves into her uncles bookshop.

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navayiota's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

"It's important to stand still sometimes. Think of it as a little rest in the long journey of your life. This is your harbour, and your boat is just dropping anchor here for a little while. And after you're well rested, you can set sail again"

Enjoyable and inspiring. It's good to read stories about finding the joy in slow, peaceful life. Now I'm in the mood to check out the authors mentioned in the book!

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