The interlinking short stories in this collection are fairy tales in the best Brothers Grimm tradition: naf,magical and frequently veering into the macabre'Financial TimesFrom the best-selling author of Strange Weather in Tokyo,here is a collection of darkly playful Japanese micro-fiction.In Kawakami's super short'palm of the hand'stories the world is never quite as it should be: a small child lives under a sheet near his neighbour's house for thirty years; an apartment block leaves its visitors with strange afflictions,from fast-growing beards to an ability to channel the voices of the dead; an old man has two shadows,one docile,the other rebellious; two girls named Yoko are locked in a bitter rivalry to the death. Small but mighty,you'll find strange delight in spending time with the people in this neighbourhood.'Offers a delicious combination of intrigue,magic and comedy,like an unusual but satisfying snack. Kawakami continues to show off her prowess as a sharp-witted writer with a keen eye for the unexplored mysteries of humanity'Japan Times
MEDIA REVIEWS
Publisher: Granta BooksISBN: 9781846276996Number of pages: 96Weight: 75 gDimensions: 178 x 111 x 7 mm
MEDIA REVIEWS
Beguiling,with a strangeness that feels culturally rootedDeft and funny prose,in a feather-light translation by Ted Goossen,is the signature of Hiromi Kawakami's latest collection... an intriguing and compelling bitesize read... funny,full of heartTempting as it is,People from My Neighbourhood is not a book to rush... The interlinking short stories in this collection are fairy tales in the best Brothers Grimm tradition: naf,magical and frequently veering into the macabre... in a world where much is insubstantial... Kawakami's clean narrative style is very much her own
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