Days at the Morisaki Bookshop by Satoshi Yagisawa (audiobook)

Pages: 150 

Publisher: Manila Press 

Released: 4th of July 2023 

The moving international sensation about new beginnings, human connection, and the joy of reading.

Hidden in Jimbocho, Tokyo, is a booklover's paradise. On a quiet corner in an old wooden building lies a shop filled with hundreds of second-hand books.

Twenty-five-year-old Takako has never liked reading, although the Morisaki bookshop has been in her family for three generations. It is the pride and joy of her uncle Satoru, who has devoted his life to the bookshop since his wife Momoko left him five years earlier.

When Takako's boyfriend reveals he's marrying someone else, she reluctantly accepts her eccentric uncle's offer to live rent-free in the tiny room above the shop. Hoping to nurse her broken heart in peace, Takako is surprised to encounter new worlds within the stacks of books lining the Morisaki bookshop.

As summer fades to autumn, Satoru and Takako discover they have more in common than they first thought. The Morisaki bookshop has something to teach them both about life, love, and the healing power of books.

What I Have to Say 

This was such a sweet book, but it was almost written in two halves. The first half was pretty much a love story to Japanese Literature. It sang with the joy of reading and made me want to read some of the authors mentioned. 

The second part is more about family. I was a little disappointed as there wasn't so much set in the bookshop and I wanted more warm cosy bookshop vibes, but it was a still a nice little story with touching emotions. 

The audio was good, the voice actress is half Japanese so there's no pronunciation issues with the Japanese words and she was exactly right for the voice of Takako. 

4 stars

My thanks go to Netgalley and Manila Press for providing me with this gifted copy for review.