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"Bookish high school student Rintaro Natsuki is about to close the secondhand bookstore he has inherited from his beloved bookworm grandfather. However, one day, a talking cat named Tiger appears and asks Rintaro to save books with him. Of course, "ask" is putting it politely -- Tiger is demanding Rintaro's help. The world is full of lonely books, left unread and unloved, and only Tiger and Rintaro can liberate them from their neglectful owners. And so, the odd couple begin an amazing journey, entering different mazes to set books free. Through their travels, Tiger and Rintaro meet a man who leaves his books to rot on his bookshelf, a book torturer who cuts books to clips to help people read as fast as they can, and a publishing drone who only wants to create bestsellers. And then, the last maze that awaits leads Rintaro down a realm only the bravest readers would dare enter... Books, cats, first love, fantasy -- THE CAT WHO SAVED BOOKS is a story for those who know books are so much more than words on paper."--… (more)
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I read this book over the course of 24 hours. It is a book expressing a young man's loss, a young man's grief, and his realization of the meaning of lessons taught to him by his grandpa and the legacy of his inheritance. It is a story of moving beyond one's grief through compassion received and friendship.
Some may believe this is a book merely for young adults as Rintaro is a student in high school and may even mimic the talking cat. I believe it is so much more. I believe it is a courageous book that expresses some of the changes in society, the circulation of misinformation, and the desire by some for control of what is read.
I wish this book could be required reading by every individual that is contributing to the censorship of libraries, and the challenges to books in schools and prisons. I also wish this book could be required reading by every person that is making those decisions based on various societal pressures. If only wishing could make it so.
I highly recommend this extraordinary book. I also encourage readers to take the time to read "A Note from the Translator" and "A Note from the Illustrator" as these notes reflect the thoughtfulness of their work that have added t
After the death of his grandfather, high schooler Rintaro finds himself alone, with the books the secondhand bookshop Natsuke Books to keep him company, until he moves in with a distant aunt. A couple of
This internationally best-selling book has been translated into English and will be available in early December. This short book about the power of reading (and sometimes the ways in which our relationship to books can get twisted or out of joint) came across as very pat and simplistic, making me wonder if something got lost in translation.
The Cat Who Saved Books is translated from Japanese, and is a bright, hopeful quick read that celebrates the joy and power of books. Teenage Natsuki has become a total recluse. The grandfather who raised him has suddenly died. Natsuki has
This is really a refreshing, reaffirming book about the love of books, but also a love of life--because a person needs to both live and read. Natsuki is easy to relate to in his despair and depression, but the whole cast is wonderful. I wanted to visit this bookstore myself and see where a cat might lead me! I feel like a lot of people could use a book like this about now.
So now the fable, adventure begins as the cat leads Rintaro through three different labyrinths, meeting different people, all whom use books in a less than ideal fashion. Another book using a mythical journey to highlight the importance of books and what they mean to readers. In the process of saving books, Rintaro will learn about himself.
"A book that sits on a shelf is nothing but a bundle of paper. Unless it is opened, a book possessing great power or an epic story, is a mere scrap of paper. But a book that has been cherished and loved, filled with human thoughts, has been endowed with a soul."
As I gaze at all my unread books on my shelves, lol!
A feel good story that takes place during the weeks leading up to Christmas.
But during the week between the funeral and the day she'll come take him home, and the removal company will take away the books, some very strange events happen. The first strange events don't quite register how strange they are. Rintaro knows he doesn't have any friends at school, so he doesn't quite know what to make of it when he gets visits at the bookstore from a boy, Ryota Akiba, who wonders why he's not attending school and also wants to buy some books, and from a girl, Sayo Yuzuki, who is his class representative. She's worried about his non-attendance, and brings him his homework. It's a bit more undeniably weird when the talking cat shows up.
The cat is a big orange tabby, who says his name is Tiger. Yes, he talks. And he needs Rintaro's help to rescue imprisoned books--lock up, unread, unloved. There's a labyrinth; it might be risky.
He doesn't tell Rintaro until they've left that they might not get back at all, if they don't succeed.
The first labyrinth takes them to the imprisoned books, and a man who reads as many books as possible, as rapidly as possible, and never rereads them. It's reading more books than anyone else that has made him successful, important, powerful, not rereading books.
This isn't loving books, and the books are locked up, never to be reread. Rintaro has to change this, but how?
After this first labyrinth, there are three more, in total, and in each case, it's Rintaro who has to find the words to make these abusers of books see their importance, what they really have to offer. Mere quantity of books read isn't love of them, or speed reading and summaries, or making a profit on publishing them. On one of these adventures, Sayo comes with them, and Rintaro starts to see there's more to her than the dedicated, responsible class representative.
It's the fourth labyrinth, of course, that's the greatest challenge, and makes Rintaro confront himself, and the real meaning of his grandfather's wisdom.
This is a gentle, magical story, with a wonderful talking cat, a love of books, and talk about books, and Rintaro finally breaking out of his shell and connecting with the friends who have been there all along, already sharing or ready to share some of his love of books.
Recommended.
I bought this audiobook.
This is a beautiful little fable about connection, growth, and becoming who you are. I do wish my Japanese was good enough to read the original, as I have a feeling some things were lost in translation, but even in English the magic shines
Seventeen year old Rintaro Natsuki is devastated by the sudden passing of the grandfather who has
Each ‘labyrinth’ requires Rintaro to convince someone to recognise that books are more than just objects, from a wealthy man who hoards books as a status symbol, to a publisher who discards the old for the new. There isn’t anything subtle about the observations made in The Cat Who Saved Books, and they express ideas most inveterate readers would agree with. Eventually Rintaro is required to convince a wizened but sinister figure that books and reading have value to humanity, and hold a unique power.
“I think the power of books is that- they teach us to care about others. It’s a power that gives people courage and also supports them in turn….Empathy - that’s the power of books.”
In between these quests, Rintaro who identifies as a hikikomori (a Japanese term loosely translated as a shut-in or extreme introvert) is left to ponder on the lack of balance in his own life from his own habit of taking refuge in books to avoid human connection and experience. This is illustrated by the connection he forms with a persistent classmate, Sayo Yuzuki.
Though I feel the tone is skewed towards a young adult audience, The Cat Who Saved Books is a charming, uncomplicated story that will speak to the soul of book lovers.
But before he can do so, a talking cat appears that can only be seen by certain people. The cat leads Rintaro through a mysterious portal at the back of the
Each mission is slightly harder, until there is an unexpected fourth mission which Rintaro must accomplish without his cat guide and which has more than books at stake.
I really wanted to love this book; there were so many enticing elements: a fantasy with a magical cat, a bookstore, saving books. But somehow the book just didn’t hit my sweet spots. Some of it, I believe was due to an awkwardness of language which would jar me from the story – perhaps the fault of the translator rather than the story itself. Also I’m not sure for whom the book was written – a young adult probably would not find the book exciting enough. An adult, while more appreciative of the themes, would be put off by the simple story lines.
It's also an interesting choice that all the classic books featured in the story are from the west. Where are the beloved Japanese classics?
Nevertheless, this author wrote a best seller about his experiences as a doctor working in a small hospital in Japan. If that book becomes available in English, I’d like to read that.
Just finished this
After the death of his grandfather, high school student Rintaro Natsuki finds himself at something of a loss and not sure what to do with himself. To occupy the time until he’s to move in with his aunt, he keeps up his grandfather’s routine of running the family bookshop. One day, an orange tabby appears in the shop, requesting Rintaro’s help in saving some books from being imprisoned and thus begins this fantastic story of friendship and a shared love of books. A quick read, but delightful none the less. Translated by Louise Heal Kawai. @harperviabooks
An added bonus, this fits the January selection for @a.novel.concept’s #lansingreads22 2022 Reading Challenge: a book by a Japanese writer in translation. I discovered their challenge just recently, so I’m running a little late@to the party, but I’ll catch up!
This discourse should be read in combination with The Dark Library by Cyrille Martinez, which similarly describes how those charged to protect books can actually do them great harm, in this case by replacing the book with digital alternatives.
In style, this book reminds one of The Little Prince and his own encounters with archetypes on his journey through the little planets. But the first book to come to my mind was Jane Langton's Hall Family Chronicles, especially The Diamond in the Window and The Swing in the Summerhouse. Here we also see children encountering serial and increasingly more difficult challenges of a philosophical and esoteric nature.
This is a very slight novel whose heart is surely in the right place. But it’s so thin on character and formulaic on plot that I can’t really recommend it. Even though I agree with the message it promotes about reading leading to the development of empathy. Oh, go ahead, read it. You’re probably going to like it.
The book begins
The journey takes them through several labyrinths where they discover people who think they love books, but aren't taking the time with them that is needed.
I really enjoyed this fantasy book, translated from the original Japanese, because I love books. Anyone who loves books and savoring a book will enjoy this story.
I struggled to finish this. It felt too long and overwritten. Some of the translation decisions I found baffling, including the lack of pronouns, which only
There may be a cultural issue with Japanese style storytelling on my part though.
Ironically, for a book that repeats several times that reading is dying and incompatible with modern life, I listened to this, as narrated by Kevin Chen. Entirely compatible with my commute, at least.
It feels to be a book for young teens, as while there is emotional matter being dealt with, Rintaro's memories of his grandfather and his tendency so shut himself away, it all feels rather unrealistic. The arguments Rintaro uses are all based on his opinion, the people he meets are extremes of perfectly reasonable ways to view books.
It's rather too twee to be a great book.
“This world throws all kinds of obstacles at us, we are forced to ensure so much that is absurd. Our best weapon for fighting all the pain and trouble in the world isn’t logic or violence. It’s humour.”
What a cute and fun read. I adored Tiger, who was
Tiger appeared at precisely the right time for Rintaro. His life had been derailed by the death of his grandfather and he was struggling. Tiger showed Rintaro that he had the strength, courage and conviction needed to get his life back on track. With Tiger’s help, Rinatro was able to focus on the teachings of his grandfather and their shared love of books without falling apart over his death. Touching and philosophical, with a magical kitty twist, the perfect rainy afternoon read.
This is a modern fairy tale and coming-of-age story that explores the long-lasting effects books can have on us.
Rintaro Natsuki is a bookish high school student who is still grieving his grandfather’s passing and dreading the required closing of his
I really enjoyed this fantasy read. Rintaro is a great character, somewhat lost and needing to find his path on life’s journey, he is a person any reader can relate to. As Tiger leads him on their adventures in the mazes, Rintaro finds his inner strength; he shows loyalty and courage, inventiveness and determination. The final task is one he must do alone, and he finds the reserves of courage that he needs to accomplish that task. He also finds peace, in recognizing that he need not be alone, for there are others who care for him and for whom he cares.
Of course, set in a bookshop, the fable is full of literary references, which I greatly enjoyed.
Keven Shen does a fine job of voicing the audiobook. I loved the voice he used for Tiger!
This is a shortish story but packs quite a punch about how we all individually read and deal