A review by chlonline
Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

Together we peer into the cauldron of hell. We stare into the bubbling red sea of fire, and the air hitting our faces is so hot it makes us reel. Even though we’re standing side by side, even though we’re closer to each other than to anyone else in the world, even though we’re friends forever, we don’t join hands. No matter how forlorn we are, we each insist on standing on our own two feet.

 
both kitchen and moonlight shadow are odes to grief. it’s about having to live life as it’s always been, but with a sudden wave of pang, longing, and regret that eats away every piece of your personhood. 

yoshimoto’s writing made kitchen feel so cozy yet so heart-achingly painful. the way she articulated the feeling of grief reminded me so much of didion’s essays on loss in the year of magical thinking.