A book particularily important for young readers all over the world, the debut book of Banana Yoshimoto. The book features two novellas: the titlular Kitchen as well as Moonlight Shadow. In Kitchen, a young girl, Mikage, finds support in her mourning thanks to a boy she meets and his transgender mother. The characters of Moonlight Shadow have to deal with loneliness and loss as well: Satsuki whose boyfriend died in an accident, the boyfriend’s brother who also lost his girlfriend, and a mysterious woman, Urara.
The warm atmosphere, the smell of cooking, the hum of the refrigerator, the joy of eating at a shared table, the dreaminess of metropolitan Tokyo at night, sadness and love all fill the prose of Yoshimoto’s Bananas and bring comfort to the readers.
The book is also available in English translation.
There are no reviews yet.