Chloe's Bookish Corner

     In Natsuko Imamura’s debut novel in English The Woman in the Purple Skirt follows the story of a woman who is notoriously noted for always wearing the same purple skirt, eating the same cream bun, and sitting in the same seat in the park. Children in the park play a game to try and get her attention and is subject to local intrigue about who she is. What the Woman in the Purple Skirt is unaware of is that there is someone watching her every move, not a stalker, but a friendly stranger. The Woman in the Yellow Cardigan, when not at work, is always watching the Woman in the Purple Skirt. After noticing that the Woman in the Purple Skirt is constantly in and out of work the Woman in the Yellow Cardigan manages to secure The Woman in the Purple Skirt a job at the same hotel that she works at much to the disgust of the other employees.      What begins as a friendly gesture from the Woman in the Yellow Cardigan slowly develops into an all-consuming obs...

  After a near-death experience, Nora wakes up to find herself in a library. A familiar face informs her that each book contained within the library is a different life that she could have led. When Nora reads the books of her other lives she is transported to exist within them to see how if she had made different decisions what the outcome of her life would be. Lives such as being in a famous band, being a world-class swimmer, or a glaciologist. Aiming to find her ideal life, Nora is finally able to explore all the “what if?” scenarios she often thinks about, but there is little time before the library collapses. Nora must decide on her perfect life.   I don’t know what I could possibly say about this book that hasn’t been said before. Matt Haig is a master of words, and his skill of storytelling is unbelievably captivating it will leave you yearning for more. The Midnight Library was my favourite book of 2020. Nora’s life has been miserable and when she decides to take her ...

  Earthlings tells the story of Natsuki and her cousin Yuu who meet each summer in the Nagano mountains and are convinced that one day a spaceship will arrive for them to take them to their home planet. When an event occurs that changes their lives forever they promise each other to survive no matter what. Now grown Natsuki is in an asexual marriage she finds that her past is creeping up on her and is threatening to take away the life she carefully built for herself. She and her husband flee back to the mountains and Natsuki must prepare herself for a reunion with Yuu after not seeing him for 23 years. Following on from Convenience Store Woman, Earthlings is a very different tale and is very out there in terms of themes. The theme of society as brainwashing people into work and reproduction is evident in both of Murata’s books, but Earthlings elevates the level that the characters are determined not to conform. After a series of horrendously traumatising events, Natsuki believes th...

  Keiko is a very unconventional 30-year-old woman. She has been working in the same convenience store for 18 years and shows no signs of changing. Her family wishes for her to get another job, and her friends are constantly asking her when she plans on getting married and settling down. But for Keiko these things are not important; her job at the convenience store is all that she needs to be happy.   Sayaka Murata crafts a book that is completely unique, and Keiko appears to be based on Murata’s own experiences as the author's profile reveals that she spent 18 years working in convenience stores before leaving to become a full-time writer. Keiko is a fun, quirky character who is unashamedly her own person. She cannot understand why people want to quit her job for something she wouldn’t enjoy or get married when she has no attraction to anyone as all she needs to be complete is her job at the convenience store. It just makes sense to Keiko, the way everything in the shop is ar...

  Girl in the Walls is a story about a girl named Elise who loses her parents in a car accident; unable to deal with the loss of her parents Elise leaves her extended family and returns to her family home, which she grew up in. The catch? There is another family already living in the house so Elise must adapt and occupies the wall space to avoid the family, only coming out when the family is away or at night when the family is sleeping. Elise is aware of all the creaky floorboards that may expose her position in the house, but a series of mistakes leaves Eddie, the youngest son of the family in Elise’s family home, unsettlingly aware that someone is watching him. As more things begin to go missing or things are misplaced with no explanation Eddie confides in his older brother about the girl in the walls and thus begins their attempts to expose the intruder living in their house.   When I began reading A.J. Gnuse’s Girl in the Walls it filled me with such anxiety of Elise getti...

  Sweet Bean Paste is an absolute masterpiece of a novel and feels like such a hidden gem that deserves more attention and wider discussion. Following Sentaro, an ex-con who now works in a confection shop, and Tokue, an elderly woman whose hands were disfigured by a disease she had as a child. Sentaro works at Doraharu, a confection shop that exclusively sells dorayaki, which is two pancakes with a filling in the middle. Their sales are average to keep them afloat and Sentaro is able to keep paying off his debt to the owner of the shop. But when Tokue enters the shop in search of a job she begins to make the bean paste and sales quickly pick up. However, when the customers begin to notice Tokue’s disfigured hands the sales dip again and the newer customers do not return. Eventually, Tokue and Sentaro decide that is best for the shop if Tokue stops working, but despite this, the popularity of Doraharu’s dorayaki never picks up again, and Sentaro questions which is more important to ...

Matt Haig is able to capture the small aspects of humanity that are often overlooked with such eloquence The Humans will leave you with a new love for life. The Humans follows the story of an alien who has assumed the body of a human to remove a significant mathematical formula that would advance human technology. Also, assuming the name of the human Professor Andrew Martin is on a mission to not only delete the formula but also remove anyone who is aware that the breakthrough has been made. When we are introduced to Andrew he is sickened by humans, their mere appearances disgusts him. But as the story progresses he learns to appreciate humans and their ways as well as making friends with the family dog Newton.   What is so captivating about this book is that Haig is able to write in a way that is so strikingly human it’s sure to have an enlightening impact on the reader. A quote that really stuck out for me is: “that is why they invented art: books, music, films, plays, pain...