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thereadingscorpios's reviews
541 reviews
Days at the Morisaki Bookshop by Satoshi Yagisawa
4.5
i enjoyed this book a lot. i felt so sorry for takako and really hoped things were going to look up for her sooner rather than later. takako and satoru didn’t have the best of relationships, since they hadn’t seen each other in a decade, but takako slowly warms up to him. he becomes the one comfort in her life and it’s exactly what she needs.
days at the morisaki bookstore is set in jimbocho, a small “book town” in tokyo, and yagisawa describes it so beautifully. i would love to visit it. it’s magical. takako is surrounded by books and is not a reader to start, but she comes to love books as well. the bookshop and the neighborhood become her new home, and all the people there become her second family.
as the story progresses we get to slowly see takako heal and it truly is so comforting. she learns so much about herself during this period of her life, and as she says herself: “i will always remember the days i spent there. because that’s where my real life began”. to me, takako is really living the dream. one of my own dreams is to work at a cozy bookstore, and that is definitely the correct way to describe the morisaki bookshop - cozy.
the concept of the story might be simple, but yagisawa’s storytelling feels like a warm hug. takako is able to turn her life around and it brings so much joy. the only thing i struggled a bit with was momoko, satoru’s wife. while she did get to explain herself and her choices (which i won’t spoil for you!), i would’ve loved to see a deeper dive into her brain. i do get that this is takako’s story and no one else’s, but what was actually going through momoko’s head when she made that specific life-changing decision? she didn’t really like to talk too much about herself to takako, and that was such a shame. but, that does not take away the fact that i truly enjoyed this book and definitely recommend it to anyone thinking about reading it.
The List by Yomi Adegoke
4.0
this book was both devastating and powerful. it kept me on the edge of my seat and made me want to flip my desk.
adegoke writes about such heavy topics and it’s so so important that she does. not only is this book about the life of a woman whose fiancé is accused of assault and more, but also about said fiancé dealing with these accusations while also lying to his fiancée. they both live in a world where their entire lives are more or less constantly followed on social media.
i really appreciated the fact that adegoke gave both ola and michael a POV, since it gave such nuance to the story. the stress of a wedding was already on their minds. but this? it changes everything.
i don’t want to give too many spoilers, but wow, michael’s friends made me furious. i hate every single one of them. their text messages were filled with misogyny and it felt so real. it hurt and i could honestly see it happening.
the world of media can be such a toxic and awful place, and i’m so grateful to myself that i picked this audiobook up. if you think you can stomach it, it definitely is a must-read, especially now during women’s history month.
the only reason i didn’t give it a full five stars was because the ending left me feeling a bit unsatisfied. i would’ve loved seeing more of those characters we only met at the end. how did they, really, end up in that situation?
as a debut novel, this was a fantastic book. i can’t wait to see what yomi adegoke does next.
adegoke writes about such heavy topics and it’s so so important that she does. not only is this book about the life of a woman whose fiancé is accused of assault and more, but also about said fiancé dealing with these accusations while also lying to his fiancée. they both live in a world where their entire lives are more or less constantly followed on social media.
i really appreciated the fact that adegoke gave both ola and michael a POV, since it gave such nuance to the story. the stress of a wedding was already on their minds. but this? it changes everything.
i don’t want to give too many spoilers, but wow, michael’s friends made me furious. i hate every single one of them. their text messages were filled with misogyny and it felt so real. it hurt and i could honestly see it happening.
the world of media can be such a toxic and awful place, and i’m so grateful to myself that i picked this audiobook up. if you think you can stomach it, it definitely is a must-read, especially now during women’s history month.
the only reason i didn’t give it a full five stars was because the ending left me feeling a bit unsatisfied. i would’ve loved seeing more of those characters we only met at the end. how did they, really, end up in that situation?
as a debut novel, this was a fantastic book. i can’t wait to see what yomi adegoke does next.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Suicide, Gaslighting, Misogyny, Homophobia, Sexual assault, Rape, and Addiction