Hidden in Jimbocho, Tokyo, is a booklover's paradise. On a quiet corner in an old wooden building lies a shop filled with hundreds of second-hand books.
Twenty-five-year-old Takako has never liked reading, although the Morisaki bookshop has been in her family for three generations. It is the pride and joy of her uncle Satoru, who has devoted his life to the bookshop since his wife Momoko left him five years earlier.
When Takako's boyfriend reveals he's marrying someone else, she reluctantly accepts her eccentric uncle's offer to live rent-free in the tiny room above the shop. Hoping to nurse her broken heart in peace, Takako is surprised to encounter new worlds within the stacks of books lining the Morisaki bookshop.
As summer fades to autumn, Satoru and Takako discover they have more in common than they first thought. The Morisaki bookshop has something to teach them both about life, love, and the healing power of books.
Paperback, 150 pages
Published July 4, 2023
by Harper Perennial
3/5 stars
This was a relatively quick read, coming in at 147 pages, I suppose a bit longer than a short story and possibly the size of a novella. This was the author's debut published in 2009 and has since been translated to English.
Like I said a quick read, the story of a 25-year-old girl as her life takes a change in direction. She is suddenly working at a used bookstore that is owned by an uncle she has not seen in years. What follows is her life, the life of the uncle whose wife has left him five years previous. All this is recap in blurb.
The Morisake bookshop is a story of new beginnings, family dynamics and grief. It was a fun read, nothing spectacular jumped out at me and at times I would have liked more. There is a sequel to this book so maybe at some point in time I will read it and see what Takako is up to.
This book was part of my 2024 reading off my shelf challenge.
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