Books from Japan

Rika Horauchi has spent much of her life hiding from the world behind an invisible yellow raincoat, an imaginary barrier that protects her from unwanted attention and human interaction. Working in a frozen-food warehouse and spending her evenings watching livestreams, she leads a quiet, isolated existence. Everything changes when she accepts an unusual part-time job at a museum: conversing in Latin with a statue of Venus on Mondays, when the museum is closed. Initially intimidated by the goddess’s beauty, Rika gradually discovers a surprising connection with her. As their conversations deepen, Venus becomes a companion who challenges Rika’s assumptions about beauty, desire, and the way women are perceived by others. Their relationship develops into an unconventional love story that opens up new possibilities for Rika, encouraging her to reconsider her isolation and imagine a different kind of freedom. Blending surrealism, dark humour, and feminist commentary, Emi Yagi’s novel explores loneliness, queer desire, and the transformative power of being understood. Beneath its whimsical premise lies a thoughtful examination of how society shapes women’s identities and how intimacy can help us break free from expectations.

What if the perfect book found you exactly when you needed it most? Hidden inside an ordinary train station north of Tokyo, the Friday Bookshop is said to have a special gift: it can lead readers to the book they need at that particular moment in their lives. Beyond its modest entrance lies an extraordinary underground library, built inside an abandoned subway platform, alongside a cosy café where the chef creates dishes inspired by literature. When university student Fumiya arrives searching for a book for his seriously ill father, he expects little from the unassuming shop. But the eccentric trio who run it soon draw him into their world, and he begins working there part-time. Through the stories of visitors seeking comfort, answers, and connection, Fumiya discovers that books can do far more than entertain: they can help us understand ourselves and reach the people we love. Warm, whimsical, and filled with literary treasures, The Friday Bookshop celebrates the quiet magic of reading and the unexpected friendships that grow around shared stories. It reminds us that sometimes the right book finds us just when we need it most.

What if, after death, you were given one final chance to remain close to the people you love? In The Soul Catchers, eleven recently deceased people encounter a mysterious, nameless spirit who offers them an unusual opportunity: they can return to the world of the living by inhabiting an object cherished by someone they left behind. A treasured mug, a mother’s hearing aid, a diary, or a playground climbing frame becomes a vessel through which the departed can continue to experience fragments of the lives they once knew. Through these intimate encounters, Naoko Higashi explores the quiet, complicated emotions that accompany love and loss. Each story offers a different perspective on the bonds that connect people across generations, even when death has made ordinary communication impossible. Blending magical realism with elements of Japanese folk beliefs about spirits and the presence of souls in everyday objects, this tender, gently humorous collection reflects on grief, memory, and the difficulty of letting go. It invites readers to reconsider the meaning of presence and suggests that love can endure in the smallest, most unexpected corners of our lives.