I enjoyed meeting the characters in this quirky story but it felt a little like this was an introduction to a longer book, that there was more to come. The bookshop setting is appealing to anyone who loves books and I loved the gentle way the relationship developed between the main character and her uncle. I particularly liked the scenes set in the coffee shop and the owner is someone you feel has their own story to share.

Like others have said, I enjoyed the first half more than the second when the focus switched to the story of the uncle’s missing wife.

It is an intriguing read and one that left me wanting more.

Books about books and bookshops are pretty much a winner for me. I am actually a little wary though – what if such a book lets me down and (gasp) disappoints in its depiction of one of my favourite places in the world? Can such a book accurately describe my love for such places?

Well, no fears on this one. From the first few lines I was hooked.

From the beginning of summer to early spring, I lived at the Morisaki Bookshop. I spent that period of my life in the spare room on the second floor of the store, trying to bury myself in books. The cramped room barely got any light, and everything felt damp. It smelled constantly of musty old books.

But I will always remember the days I spent there. Because that’s where my real life began. And I know, without a doubt, that if not for those days the rest of my life would have been bland, monotonous, and lonely.

The Morisaki Bookshop is precious to me. It’s a place I know I’ll never forget

Young (well, in her twenties) Takako finds her life in Tokyo suddenly changed when her boyfriend out of the blue announces he is going to get married – not to her. This is a shock, understandably. Takako gives up work but then takes up the kind offer of her Uncle Satoru to live and work in his second-hand book shop in Jimbocho, a kind of Japanese version of Hay on Wye in Tokyo. She is initially reluctant, not really being a reader, and feeling that a move back towards family could be an admission of failure, but the quiet charm of the place works its magic and before long, living above the shop, Takako learns to love it.

“In the end, it doesn’t matter if you’re related by blood or if you spend years together in the same class at school or the same office; unless you really come face to face, you never really know someone at all.”

Although books are an essential part of the story, this book is really about relationships. Although Takako knows a little about her Uncle Satoru, it’s not really a lot and she hasn’t seen him in years – the rest of her family regard him as a bit of an idiot. Working for him, she gets to know her Uncle better, and realises that he is a much more complicated person than she realised. Satoru’s relationship with his wife Momoko is complicated. At the beginning of the book, we find that Momoko walked out five years ago, although in the second half of the book she returns.

This is a book that exudes gentle melancholia and a certain nostalgic charm, combined with the complexity of human relationships (well, humans and a cat) and the profoundness of life. Not a lot really happens, but as an encapsulation of a no-doubt idealistic Japanese lifestyle and as a meditation on the important things in life it worked wonderfully well for me. The Studio Ghibli feel is strong with this one, and I also think that fans of Haruki Murakami should like this one too, although this is not as complex.

Days at the Morisaki Bookshop is for anyone who loves Japanese culture or literature, or would like to. At a mere 160 pages this can be a quick read – I read it in two short sittings – but like the best contemporary Japanese writing, it has scenes that I’ll remember for a long time. Whisper it quietly, but this is a great big hug in a book.

After Takako's boyfriend shocks her by telling her he is marrying someone else, she quits her job and goes to live with her Uncle Satoru who owns a second hand bookstore. Although Takako has never been particularly interested in books she soon becomes to realise that reading can be very therapeutic. Momoko, Satoru's wife, walked out on him some years earlier and he has never known why. However she suddenly reappears but doesn't offer any explanation of where she's been or why she left.

This is a short, quirky read and I enjoyed the first part where Takako discovers her love of reading more than the second part which was more centred on Momoko.

This is a very sweet novel about a 25 year old woman who goes to stay with her eccentric unde who owns a bookshop. Takako intends to only join her uncle for a short while as she processes a break up, but she ends up enjoying the pace of life and all the eccentricities of the shop's customers. Her uncle Satoru is a wonderful character who attempts to lift Takako from her depression as he shares details of his unconventional life choices.

The book feels like a bit of a love letter to those who choose alternative paths in life. And it goes without saying that the setting
is a book lover’s dream.

With thanks to Netgalley and Bonnier books Uk for the copy in exchange for an honest review.

Takako unlucky in love moves to help her uncle run his bookstore. There she finds that her aunt has moved out and there is no real reason why. The first half of the book deals with how Takako finds solace in reading / finding new literature. The book then moves on to discovering what led to her aunt and uncle's separation and the attempt to bring them back together. A short book that is a relatively easy and undemanding read. The titles of the books Takako interested me and the account of her journey with her aunt was well written. However for me the brevity of the book was a problem in that I never really felt immered in the narrative. I wanted more to draw me in and it ended up being something of a lacklustre read.

DISCLAIMER: I Received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I think I may have missed something...

Where is the plot? Where is the character development? Where is the redeeming moment of the protagonist?

I am struggling to find any positives to take from the Morisaki Bookshop. I found it difficult to relate to any of the characters and therefore felt no real connection to what was happening. The story changed focus between parts 1 and 2 and I was expecting them to come full circle and reach a satisfying conclusion. Unfortunately, this didn't happen.

That said, there are no negatives to take from the story either. There just isn't enough of anything to form an opinion and give constructive feedback.

Having recently read The Cat Who Saved Books (and being somewhat disappointed with it) I maybe wasn't in the correct headspace to read another translated book set in/around a bookshop.

This book was so good! It was intriguing and really drawed me in. I'll be reading more of this authors work.

This started off well for me and I enjoyed the time Takako spends in the book shop. Once the aunt appeared on the scene the book became less interesting for me.

I also found some of the language strange “ Pinky swear if I’m lying you could hit me 300 times”. Perhaps it was an issue with translation, perhaps not. Either way, it took me out of the book and into analytic it the book.

Thanks To NetGalley for the ARC

I adored this book. So much. Just a wonderful book.

Firstly, there's nothing "adult" in here and no bad language. Which makes this book stand out from others for a start.

I loved the vivid descriptions of Jimbocoho, Tokyo as well as the bookshop. Takako was a likeable character and I enjoyed following her story. The relationship with her uncle grows as the story goes on.

Overall just a delightful book with warm characters. Would 100% recommend!

It is a lovely story for anyone who loves books. This captures the true heart of reading, which is the joy of all aspects of books. The smell, the browsing, selection, enjoyment, late nights, and in-depth discussion with others. This is reminiscent of before the coffee gets cols in that each chapter covers a different aspect of the overall story a bit like a series of short stories. A lovely read if a bit abruptly ended.

I recieved a copy of this book from the publisher via net galley for free in exchange for my honest review.

What a lovely gentle book. Not at all my usual thing, and had I known it was classified anywhere in 'literary fiction' I would probably not have read it, but I am very glad that I did.

This was a sweet, gentle book, if a little quirky. I've just started learning Japanese so was very interested to read a Japanese novel. I really liked the setting too.

A sweet story about a young woman reconnecting with her uncle after a failed relationship. Takako rediscovers her old love of books and they help her recover from melancholy. She grows to love the neighbourhood and the quirky characters that populate it. This first half of the narrative is lovely; simple, sweet and comforting although I did expect books and stories to be more of a predominant theme. The second part is more difficult to connect, Takako’s Aunt Momoko suddenly returns, years after just as suddenly leaving Takako. As Momoko tries to rebuild bridges the story begins to feel a little fragmented. The gentle pace of the first parts seems unsure of its direction and made the last quarter or so seem disconnected and I was left with the feeling of potential unreached.

Japanese literature is always a favourite of mine and this book did not disappoint!

A cosy calming book with no dramatic plot, perfect for a nice evening in!

Combining two of my favourite things, I was always going to love this book. Books and Japan, what is not to love?! This book has a real charm about it. The bookshop and love of books really comes across in this story and makes you realise the importance of books and stories at bringing people together. The characters in this book are just perfect and made me fall in love with this story even more. They all feel perfectly imperfect. This book is a real treat of a read.

Could not put this book down it was cosy little weird in some respects but I loved it so much could sit and read more like this over and over again

A pleasant enough, but fairly inconsequential, short novel about love, new beginnings and the consolation and power of books and reading. When Takako’s boyfriend leaves her and she is cast adrift, she is thankful to accept her uncle’s invitation to live rent-free at his bookshop. Uncle Satoru is passionate about his shop and the thousands of books it holds and inevitably, and predictably, it’s not long before Takako falls under their spell as well, setting her on the road to recovery. Very Japanese in its quirkiness and understated in style, it’s a gentle easy read – but haven’t we already read a lot about the healing power of books? Neither original nor inventive, I found the book both sentimental and cloying. By no means a boring or bad book, just nothing special.

A thoroughly enjoyable read. A cozy quirky story with the characters lives being entwined. It had me hooked from start to finish.

It was a nice chilling read, there were points where I wished something interesting would happen. Everything happened in the last 95% of the book and wished it had happened sooner and the story continue from there as I wanted to know more.

This is a gentle, calming story about a young woman, Takako, who takes up her somewhat eccentric uncle's offer to live above his quaint bookshop in the Jimbucho district of Tokyo . The offer is timely for Takako as she is struggling to get over the shock of her boyfriend suddenly revealing he is off to marry someone else. By no means a reader, Takako is still tempted into reading some of the many books that now surround her. Gradually the books, the charismatic customers and the friendly staff at the local coffee shop lift her spirits and after 6 months she is ready to move on. Her uncle Saturo tries to persuade her to stay as he has been lonely ever since his wife, Momoto, walked out without any warning 2 years previously, but Takako is determined, and reluctantly moves away promising to keep in touch.
The second part of the book starts when Takako gets a call from her uncle saying Momoto has returned - again with no warning - and he wants Takako to talk with her and find out what was behind this erratic behaviour. In discovering this Takako also gains a deeper understanding of herself and by the end of the book it appears that the calm environment of the Morisaki bookshop has quietly solved everyone's problems.
It's always a pleasure to enter a gentle, escapist world, especially one filled with books, and Yagisawa's very human story is a real joy.