You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
A review by apoorvasr
The Nakano Thrift Shop by Hiromi Kawakami
4.0
The Nakano Thrift Shop by Hiromi Kawakami translated by Allison Markin Powell
This was a fun charming read. Getting into the world of Japanese literature its mostly concentrating on the subtleties of behavior and dissecting the conversations and mannerisms.
Nakano the shop owner is quirky, middle aged and has his own whims and fancies. His sister Masayo equally amusing has a knack of selling objects. The shop itself is a microcosm of objects- some valuable some discarded some to be forgotten.. an eclectic collection of sorts.
The workers, young Hitomi and Takeo work there assisting shopkeepers on selling as well as pickups. This sounds like a dry job..
But the way the stories are narrated are full of little details, snippets of conversations, day to day idiosyncracies and mostly sweet shows of love..
Peppered with lot of japanese food and green tea(insert hot bowls of Soba).. we see each story somehow separate but forming a piece of a puzzle that encompasses Nakano Thrift shop. The author does not introduce the characters conventionally.. but takes a certain incident or interaction with a certain customer and slowly makes us understand each character. Mind you the personality development is not full and keeps you hanging for more..
Sometimes its the nude photographs on sale, or the awkward love between Hitomi and Takeo, the whimsical Masayo who prefers her cupcakes or its Nakano himself a polyamorous character .. Theses stories are free of judgment and explanation, they are just written how they are supposed to have happened..
"It was as if everyone doled themselves out in such small portions. Never completely open, not all at once"
Another great Japanese fiction book read..
This was a fun charming read. Getting into the world of Japanese literature its mostly concentrating on the subtleties of behavior and dissecting the conversations and mannerisms.
Nakano the shop owner is quirky, middle aged and has his own whims and fancies. His sister Masayo equally amusing has a knack of selling objects. The shop itself is a microcosm of objects- some valuable some discarded some to be forgotten.. an eclectic collection of sorts.
The workers, young Hitomi and Takeo work there assisting shopkeepers on selling as well as pickups. This sounds like a dry job..
But the way the stories are narrated are full of little details, snippets of conversations, day to day idiosyncracies and mostly sweet shows of love..
Peppered with lot of japanese food and green tea(insert hot bowls of Soba).. we see each story somehow separate but forming a piece of a puzzle that encompasses Nakano Thrift shop. The author does not introduce the characters conventionally.. but takes a certain incident or interaction with a certain customer and slowly makes us understand each character. Mind you the personality development is not full and keeps you hanging for more..
Sometimes its the nude photographs on sale, or the awkward love between Hitomi and Takeo, the whimsical Masayo who prefers her cupcakes or its Nakano himself a polyamorous character .. Theses stories are free of judgment and explanation, they are just written how they are supposed to have happened..
"It was as if everyone doled themselves out in such small portions. Never completely open, not all at once"
Another great Japanese fiction book read..