This book was read as an advanced readers copy, given to by the publishers (HarperVia) through Netgalley. All Opinions are mine.

• Author: Sosuke Natsukawa Translated by : Louise Heal Kawai
• Genre: Japanese Fiction, Magic realism
• Publisher: HarperVia
• Date of Release: December 7th 2021
• Pages: 353
• Book Rating: 4 stars

Summary From Goodreads

Bookish high school student Rintaro Natsuki is about to close the secondhand bookstore he inherited from his beloved bookworm grandfather. Then, a talking cat named Tiger appears with an unusual request. The feline asks for—or rather, demands—the teenager’s help in saving books with him. The world is full of lonely books left unread and unloved, and Tiger and Rintaro must liberate them from their neglectful owners.

Their mission sends this odd couple on an amazing journey, where they enter different mazes to set books free. Through their travels, Tiger and Rintaro meet a man who leaves his books to perish on a bookshelf, an unwitting book torturer who cuts the pages of books into snippets to help people speed read, and a publishing drone who only wants to create bestsellers. Their adventures culminate in one final, unforgettable challenge—the last maze that awaits leads Rintaro down a realm only the bravest dare enter . . .

The Review

If you like reading books that talk about books, this one is for you.

At the start of the book Rintaro is introduced to us, he has just lost his grandfather and it isn’t until the end of the funeral that it really hits him that his grandfather is dead. Rintaro the main character is shown to be a bland character at the beginning of the book, he was just and average school boy with nothing special about him. Until the day a talking Tabby cat named Tiger enters his shop and there begins an adventure like no other.

The beauty of this book is the character development. From the moment that cat enters the bookstore Rintaro begins to transform with each task he faces. He goes from a hikikomori ( a shut in) to a compassionate person. I loved this, watching Rintaro Blossom and come into his own being was beautiful to read. He faces each task with a deep wisdom and his love for books. The bosses of the Labyrinths were not easy to deal with and as they went further there were more handicaps introduced, i like that these handicaps contributed to Rintaro’s development.

Something to be said about the Labyrinth ”Bosses”, i could help but think these people are present in today’s world especially in the *ahem* book community and yes including the publishing industry. I have been guilty of some of the crimes ( aside from cutting up books that’s just sacrilege) and although some of what they ( the bosses) say makes sense, Rintaro goes deep down as a book lover to find the real truths behind their worlds. And it all boiled down to Do you really love books?

The cat, in my opinion was an excellent guide, he always news when to step in to help and when to leave Rintaro to it. I think his Grandfather sent him from the other side to help him. Tiger is one sassy cat though and he is sarcastic to the core. I liked him and when it ended i missed him . I think readers would cosy up to this sassy companion of Rintaro.

This was an Easy read and i recommend it, when i make my second book list of Japanese Books to read its definitely going up there. This is a magic realism book about books and i think if you love books you should pick this up.

As always,

Nelo-The Booked Unicorn