Author: Toshikazu Kawaguchi
Translated by: Geoffrey Trousselot
Pages: 202 – Paperback
Geemiz Rating: 4.5/5
This is the fifth installment of the most loved translated Japanese book series Before the Coffee Gets Cold that brings the warmth and depth that fans of Japanese literature like me love. I am excited to read and immerse myself in various heartwarming stories from the Café Funiculi Funicula customers.
“In life, you bundle up the good and the bad – …
Author: Hiromi Kawakami
Translated by: Ted Goossen
Pages: 121 – Paperback
Geemiz Rating: 2.8/5
I thought this would be another charming Japanese translation read, but it isn’t—though that doesn’t mean I don’t want to continue reading the book. Since I have two hours to spare on my boat ride from Bohol to Cebu, I might as well continue what I started.
This is my first time reading Hiromi Kawakami, so I didn’t know what to …
Author: Hiroko Oyamada
Translated by: David Boyd
Setting: Japan | Rural Japan
Pages: 71 – Paperback
Geemiz Rating: 2/5
The storytelling feels like I am watching a Japanese movie with a sepia tone, and when it ended, I just said, “ Oh! So that’s it?” But, don’t get me wrong, my emotions were stirred at the last part during the interaction between the old lady and the husband because I can relate to the couple.…
Author: Hisashi Kashiwai
Translated by: Jesse Kirkwood
Setting: Tokyo, Japan
Pages: 149 – Paperback
Geemiz Rating: 4/5
It took me a while to read the book because I initially thought it was another typical investigative story. While the investigative genre is my cup of tea, I’m currently trying to diversify my reading. You might ask why I didn’t read the plot summary first—well, I accept your criticism and agree with you on that, hahaha. By …
Author: Satoshi Yagisawa
Translated by: Eric Ozawa
Setting: Jimbocho, Tokyo, Japan
Pages: 176 – Paperback
Geemiz Rating: 5/5
I’m at a loss for words because More Days at the Morisaki Bookshop is such a great narrative. Maybe I should just tell anyone to read this to go get their copy of the book and read it. And a note to Satoshi Yagisawa: Thank you for writing this story, sir, and I look forward to more …
Author: Elif Batuman
Setting: Harvard University and Hungary
Pages: 432
Geemiz Rating: 3/5
This is another book review that no one asked for, but I will keep on writing because I love to.
I chose this book because, first, it is a Pulitzer Prize finalist, and I get the impression that Pulitzer novels are difficult to read and contain interesting topics that I find cringe-worthy or difficult to digest, and I like challenging myself by …
Author: Hwang Bo-Reum
Translated to English by Shanna Tan
Setting: A neighborhood in Seoul, South Korea
Pages: 301
Geemiz Rating: 4.8/5
Starting this book was the best decision I have made since I wanted to read it cover to cover in a day, two, or even a week. Unfortunately, I was delayed for a month because life happened. It was a pleasure to dive headfirst into reading this novel, which is my first Korean …
Author: Michiko Aoyama
Translated to English by Alison Watts
Geemiz Rating: 4/5
One of the many feel-good Japanese fictions that I have been diving into since I started reading Japanese novels way back in 2016 with the book The Street of a Thousand Blossoms by Gail Tsukiyama.
Frankly, I miss reading Japanese historical fiction. Even though they are not as comforting and easy to read as the latest Japanese novels that I am into right …
Book Title: Days at the Morisaki Bookshop
Author: Satoshi Yagisawa
Rating: 4.8/5
Reading this book feels like watching a feel-good movie, you keep on smiling most of the time.
“Young people today, they don’t read books anymore. They just play computer games. It’s hopeless. And even if they do read books, it’s just manga or these shallow little stories on their cell phones. Even my son, he’s almost thirty and he still just plays video …
Book Title: The Book of Lost Names
Author: Kristin Harmel
Rating: 4.5/5
Genre: Historical Fiction
Eva, the smart young Jewish forger in Kristin Harmel’s book The Book of Lost Names, may be made up, but the work she did and the risks she took during World War II were real. Among the most famous forgers were Adolfo Kaminsky (1925–) and Alice Cohn (1914–2000), who saved the lives of hundreds of Jews.
…There’s a certain value