This book had potential to be an absolute classic but somehow didn’t quite hit the mark. The concept was good and I expected good things. The characters could have been amazing but were never fully fleshed out. Perhaps there was something list in translation but I didn’t really have any emotional connection with them and ended up feeling generally a little bored. The same with the storyline that started off well but just petered out. What a shame.

I found this a very interesting book, a different genre from my usual read. The details were so cleverly written, one was really drawn into the life of Takako and into the bookshop. Japanese gardens are full of tiny details making up a whole, and I felt the book had much of the same approach.
Thank you giving me a chance to read and review the book.

Rating 2.5/5

This is a hard one to sum up my thoughts on, I went into this story hoping for some cosy and lighthearted vibes and whilst the first half of the book manages to capture the feeling I was hoping for, the second half I found a bit more difficult to get through.

There are some pretty marvellous descriptions of the setting that made it come to life, what could be better than a bookshop situated in a street full of bookshops with a lovely community spirit. I enjoyed getting to experience this community as Takako moved into the bookshop and rediscovers her joy for reading and life generally, with the help of her uncle and others.

Unfortunately, I didn’t really warm to Takako, I wouldn’t say for a book that is driven mostly by its characters she was the right type of person to carry this story. I also felt like the characters didn’t seem to have much substance, especially the female characters, which was surprising because they were the story's main focus.

In the book's second half, as the focus turns toward Momoko, Takako’s aunt, the story takes a weird turn. I didn’t feel like I understood why Takako and her uncle kept giving Momoko a chance and this is where I felt the book get longer and longer. I have read full-length novels in less time than it took me to get through this book.

I stuck with it hoping that it would recapture the joy of the first half and it did somewhat but not in a way that managed to pull the story back.

I’ve been really enjoying fiction in translation lately particularly stories set in Japan and this one certainly didn’t disappoint!

A cosy heartwarming tale which unfolds in a second hand bookstore, what more could you want!

Ah, I'm a sucker for a gentle Japanese coffee/bookshop based tale, and this hits the target. A lovely, quietly unassuming rambling story of a young woman finding her way, this joyful story explores the power of friends, taking chances and the power of books. Nothing groundbreaking or terribly deep, but a good read.

A sweet story about books and family. Cosy vibes and fun characters.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an e-copy. I did read the physical copy.

* 3.5.
A deceptively simple story of how having a break from your normal life can help you to move on. I really enjoyed reading about Takako’s time at the bookshop. I was really envious of the how she got to escape from everyday life and read and find herself again. I wasn’t so keen on the second half, after she had left the shop. I was reading it because I wanted all the bookish bits and they were a bit lacking. The story seemed to go off in a slightly odd direction. The ending left me wanting.

Days at the Morasaki Bookshop - Satoshi Yagisawa

A book about a bookshop, there cannot possibly be anything more cute and appealing to a book lover. After Takakos boyfriend announces he is marrying someone else she reluctantly accepts her uncle's offer to move into his second hand bookshop. He's a bit eccentric, as is the shop, but she settles into the small town. After noticing she sleeps all the time, Takakos uncle decides she needs to visit some of the local shops and cafes. Upon visiting Takako opens up to her uncle and to a world of reading. They realize they have a lot more in common than initially meets the eye. After Takako leaves the bookshop she remains close to her uncle, now it is her time to support him.

I thought this was an adorable read. I loved the characters and the setting of the bookshop. I also loved two parts, one in which Takako needs support and then it moving over to her uncle. A must read for all of us book lovers.

A heartwarming read with loveable characters and a sweet story of how books can create community. I enjoyed it :)

Quite a slow book to read, an insight into a young girl in Japan, whose life falls apart when her 'boyfriend ' announces he is getting married to someone else.

Takako leaves her job and stays at her uncle's secondhand bookshop to recuperate, she also becomes friends with her uncle and his estranged wife.

The book did lack depth and was at times quite slow reading,

This is a very Japanese novel both of its setting, and its writing style, it really made me want to travel to Japan to look at the bookshop area described in the novel so perfectly.
Having said this about the Japanese elements of the novel, the theme of searching the world for the place where are you fit in is universal . The book was easily accessible to British readers.
The writing is spare but beautiful in its clarity and preciseness The novel is well crafted and complete.
Story of a young Japanese woman who has a crisis of confidence then finds that, just at the right time ,an offer to come and help her uncle run a family bookshop whilst living above the property surrounded by books is just what she needs. . The book is calming and gentle, relaxing read . I’ve seen quite a lot of mention of this book on book Twitter (x) I think it will prove to be very popular in the UK. I love the thought of secondhand versions of it in due course, arriving in secondhand bookshops that seemed pleasingly circular to me.
There is quite a lot of mention of specific Japanese literature within the story, which is probably to be expected as the novel is set in a secondhand bookshop .As a British reader, I haven’t heard of most of the authors I’m sure that this must’ve added to the enjoyment if you were an, Japanese reader. As I was reading, I tried to reframe it in my own mind using what I thought would probably be equivalent British novels in a British secondhand bookshop.
The joy of reading, and finding your favourites in the secondhand bookshop is so universal, the author really manages to bring this over.
As a British reader, I enjoyed reading this specific, Japanese customs and experiences in day-to-day life.
This is quite a short book, but I felt this increased the feeling of completeness as the whole of this young girls experience at that time is so succinctly described and fits into such a little book.
I read an early copy of the novel on NetGalley UK. The book is publish in the UK on the 4th of July 2023 by Bonnier books.
This review will appear on NetGalley, UK, Goodreads and my book blog. Bionicsarahsbooks.Wordpress.com After publication, it will also appear on Amazon, UK.

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!