Reviews

Very well written, great pace, good finish.

A story set in a world where AI has taken over all human labor, and now the AI itself begins to struggle with "work."

Although it ended up becoming relevant to our times in the worst possible way—one the author never anticipated—I can’t help but think that, had things been different, there might have been a media mix adaptation.

"Mercator Ayu" Is Being Made Into a Live-Action Film…?!

It has a freshness to it—in a good way, it doesn't feel like typical Yukio Mishima.

With themes such as the loneliness of a man in his forties, taboos fading away across the ages, sin and technology, the absence of love, and sexual perversion, this novel—in which society and life are intricately intertwined—was deeply compelling. The social climate, in which the development of civilization seems to be reaching a point of convergence, effectively reflects the stifling atmosphere of that era. I believe the novel raises questions that transcend the simple binary opposition of...

I haven't read *The Petition* yet, so I'm left with a bad aftertaste...

This book was selected as the reading assignment for a book club. While the title really strikes a chord, the book isn’t limited to University of Tokyo students; it draws our attention to portable skills, personal growth, and careers—as well as to young people aspiring to become consultants and the society that leads them to choose that path. It may look catchy on the surface, but it really resonates deeply.

Recommended by Ayano Sasaki

The story is set at my alma mater. It was so vivid that I was startled—I even wondered if the author was one of my classmates. When I entered high school, having just come out of a long period of truancy, I definitely gave off the vibe of an outcast. Fearing that if my true self were exposed, I’d either be mercilessly bullied or, at best, looked down upon, I dressed up to the nines, joined the dance club, gossiped, got along with the boys as much as possible, and dated a cool guy from the...

Ken Liu comes across as Chinese-American, but Liu Cixin’s writing—especially the part about the Panama Canal—gives off a strong sense of modern China.

I really loved the stories that a Hong Kong kid my age told about Hong Kong back when they were little… It was a free-spirited era when there were still British-made toys, everything sparkled, and people seemed to think, “This is just a temporary home.”

The scene where he tucks into a barrel full of sparkling salmon roe as a special treat was incredibly memorable—that was the first time I learned that “ikura” is the Russian word for it.

The Nakazenji couple met through an arranged marriage, while the Sekiguchi couple fell in love before getting married—that’s seriously great.

I start to feel bad for being a Tokyoite who dreams of Kyoto.

If you judge a book by its characters, you're in the "Author Alice" camp; if you judge it by its story, you're in the "Student Alice" camp.

The Realities of Girls' School Alumni

Mitsumi-chan's lack of self-consciousness will save the world

I thought to myself, “A pilot who can write such witty prose must have been quite popular with the ladies.”

This review contains spoilers. Click to read the review with spoilers.

I decided to read this after learning it was set at my high school. The atmosphere of the school building, the class competitions, and even the smallest details were faithfully depicted, bringing back memories of that time. Although it’s a school-life manga, the appeal isn’t limited to the protagonist alone. Whether they’re the popular kids in class or those who aren’t, each character is carefully portrayed not merely as a “role,” but as a human being with their own worries and emotions. You...

I read this book around 2024, right when it was incredibly popular. I remember seeing it everywhere—it was displayed prominently on the shelves at every English-language bookstore I visited in Paris. I wonder if it’s been published in Japan by now. Set in the publishing industry, this novel offers a rather scathing portrayal of a writer’s self-consciousness, desire for validation, and obsession with success. Issues of race and identity are also woven into the story, and I found that combinati...

It’s a fairly long novel, and although it took me a while to finish it, I found it very engaging as an epic novel. Although Japanese is my first language, I live in an environment where English and French—languages that are not my native tongues—are spoken. In that context, I sometimes keenly feel a distance that, no matter how hard I try, I can never fully bridge. Reading this novel made me reflect anew on that “linguistic distance” I had vaguely sensed all along. I also found the conflict...

For me—someone who has lived as a woman in a woman’s body—this book provided a way to begin imagining the various feelings I hadn’t fully understood until now. For example, why would someone suddenly confess their feelings to someone with whom they’ve barely established a relationship? Or why does a comic-book-like idea from Shinkenshitsu—such as “If I get into the University of Tokyo, I’ll get a girlfriend”—which seems quite simplistic from the outside, feel like a natural connection to the...