Moshi Moshi: A Novel
"A beautiful translation . . . Yoshimoto deploys a magically Japanese light touch to emotionally and existentially tough subject matter: domestic disarray, loneliness, identity issues, lovesickness . . . [a] nimble narrative." ―ELLE In Moshi Moshi, Yoshie's much-loved musician father has died in a suicide pact with an unknown woman. It is only when Yoshie and her mother move to Shimokitazawa, a traditional Tokyo neighborhood of narrow streets, quirky shops, and friendly residents that they can finally start to put their painful past behind them. However, despite their attempts to move forward, Yoshie is haunted by nightmares in which her father is looking for the phone he left behind on the day he died, or on which she is trying--unsuccessfully--to call him. Is her dead father trying to communicate a message to her through these dreams? With the lightness of touch and surreal detachment that are the hallmarks of her writing, Banana Yoshimoto turns a potential tragedy into a poignant coming-of-age ghost story and a life-affirming homage to the healing powers of community, food, and family.
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Community Reviews
I read this book really slowly, and it think it couldâve been a better experience if Iâd read it over the course of a week. Still, I liked the author a lot, including his afterword. There were a lot of sections in this book that just felt comforting. Not in a warm, cozy way, but in the way you feel after youâve just finished crying and a breeze comes through the window. I recommend this book if you are more interested in character than plot, as the main movement in the story is generated by the feelings of the main character as she explores her fatherâs mysterious death. It is by no means a mystery novel. First thing Iâve read from Banana Yoshimoto and I look forward to more.
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