Banana Yoshimoto - Kitchen

The cult classic that propelled Yoshimoto to fame in 1989. It won two of Japan's most prestigious literary prizes, and clung on for dear life to the top of the Japanese bestseller lists for a whole year. And counting. Its translation into English was, naturally, greeted with accolades from the Western publishing industry.

Essentially, if you're a fan of the Murakami short story, this is one, writ large. To be exact, two. It purports to be a contiguous story, divided into two parts; both address weighty issues of life, love and death in a postmodern surreal way.

First up, we have "Kitchen", a hundred-word tale that is convincingly aching. Mikage is adopted by Eriko, mother to Yuichi; Eriko herself is far from free of controversy, having undergone a sex change after her/his wife died. Tellingly, in her male incarnation, he was adopted by his future wife's family, whom he eventually eloped with, earning their ire; she finally perished in an accident, leaving Yuichi and Eriko clinging on to each other uncertainly.

The relationship-but-not-there scenario is played out mesmerisingly, as people of all inclinations bedevil their budding sort-of-love. As the story reaches a characteristically quirky Yoshimoto conclusion, with Mikage presenting a gift of pork udon to Yuichi, ties are mended, love still simmers meaningfully under the surface, and the two erstwhile lovers walk away from a previously awkward situation.

Next up is "Moonlight Shadow", a haunting novella about what happens to the remaining lover when one dies. Hitoshi and Hiiragi, brothers, date Satsuki, the protagonist and Yumiko respectively. When Hitoshi and Yumiko perish in a car accident as he picks her up from the airport, things turn awry for Satsuki, who is bent on saying goodbye to Hitoshi.

The entire tale is, seemingly, penned in the past; her journey to saying goodbye to Hitoshi is buffeted by memories that slowly ease the fall. As the story concludes, and Satsuki is hauntingly visited again by her betrothed, the final chilling lines, "I earnestly pray that a trace of my girl-child self will always be with you. For waving goodbye, I thank you." are a sure-fire tear-jerker.

These two novellas will leave you reeling with the power of the written word, in brief. A hearty recommendation is thus attached, and readers of all ages will enjoy this adventure into the more esoteric of genres.