yellow house
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Description
Book Introduction
This is a long novel serialized for a year in the Yomiuri Shimbun by author Mieko Kawakami, who rose to fame with her unique world of works such as "Heaven" and "Summer's Gate." The story of a fifteen-year-old girl struggling to survive in her own way at home amidst the hardships of life is deeply portrayed in a calm and profound way. The process of forming a bond by sharing pain, filling in what is lacking, and connecting with those who may seem “useless” in the eyes of society also resonates warmly. The sight of these people, who work day and night to become independent with the sole desire to be happy, eventually leaving home and dreaming of a family with others who grew up in different environments, is an unfamiliar sight that breaks away from common sense, and provides us with an opportunity to think about what a true 'home' and 'family' are. Watching and cheering on the choices made by someone who wants to "live a life that has already begun with all their might" will be a thrilling and fascinating reading experience that will keep you turning the pages. Moreover, as the narrative unfolds quickly and densely, readers will find themselves knocking on the door of the yellow house before they know it. |
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Preview
index
Chapter 1 Reunion
Chapter 2: Fortune
Chapter 3: Opening the Axis
Chapter 4 Premonition
Chapter 5 Youth
Chapter 6 Touchstone
Chapter 7 Family Reunion
Chapter 8: Getting Started
Chapter 9: The Return of the King
Chapter 10: Boundaries
Chapter 11: Before and After
Chapter 12 Bankruptcy
Chapter 13: The Fall of the Yellow Emperor
Chapter 2: Fortune
Chapter 3: Opening the Axis
Chapter 4 Premonition
Chapter 5 Youth
Chapter 6 Touchstone
Chapter 7 Family Reunion
Chapter 8: Getting Started
Chapter 9: The Return of the King
Chapter 10: Boundaries
Chapter 11: Before and After
Chapter 12 Bankruptcy
Chapter 13: The Fall of the Yellow Emperor
Detailed image
Into the book
I thought that no matter how old I became, where I was, what I did, or how I lived, I would never forget her.
But until I happened to see her name in a small internet article a little while ago, I had completely forgotten not only what I thought, but also her name, her existence, the time we spent together, and what we did there.
--- p.9
I couldn't even nod, let alone answer.
I was upset and ashamed of myself for always getting hurt by childish pranks that even elementary school kids wouldn't do these days, but more than that, I was embarrassed to death that I was caught doing this in front of someone I just met.
I was so embarrassed that I wanted to run away right away.
--- p.46
What if Mom comes back home?
I thought about it seriously.
As I was thinking about this and that and thinking about it, my heart started to ache, and I started to feel anxious about whether I would be able to manage on my own in the future, whether I would get involved in trouble, and whether I would be worried about myself by now. I even blamed myself for leaving the house without saying anything.
But it was all in vain.
It took my mother a week to realize that I had left home.
--- p.121
Forsythia, chickpea, banana, lemon.
There were many shades of yellow.
But what they all had in common was that they were all yellow, and yellow, by its very nature, was a special color that gave us courage and a sense of relief.
--- p.125
Momoko Tamamori, as if making a small resolution, grabbed the thick karaoke playlist and turned the pages with a serious expression, wrote down the number on a piece of paper, and handed it to Ran.
After a while, the words 'X JAPAN Kurenai紅' appeared on the karaoke screen, and a heavy and sad ballad-like intro flowed out.
Soon, the English lyrics slowly appeared and Momoko Tamamori began to sing.
At that moment, Ran and I found ourselves looking at each other.
It was a voice so beautiful that it made me exclaim, “Wow.”
--- p.176
Come to think of it, it wasn't just my family, Kimiko didn't talk about herself, and I felt like I had nothing left to say about myself.
What kind of stories did we usually share?
I thought about it for a while, but I couldn't figure it out.
We just ate together, worked together, came back and slept together, Ran and Momoko joined us, chatted and laughed, but that alone was enjoyable enough.
--- p.199
Why can't they even do that? How many times do I have to tell them to understand? Other people's kids are doing well. Their mom works so hard in an environment where nothing is lacking, but why are they like this?
He often causes hysteria and really gets people caught up in it.
What good is it that I gave birth to you with so much pain, and poured so much time and money into providing meals for you? I feel bad for those dumb, useless kids who can't do anything but be a good mother. I put in all my effort just to make sure my beloved daughters have a bright future, so why don't I get anything in return? And then I cry like this. Isn't that funny?
--- p.165
I was eating takoyaki in a distant summer night.
Every summer, that summer, sparkling candy apples and cotton candy, red goldfish swimming in the water, colorful rubber balls, the smell of dirt, the smell of sauce.
The night grew endlessly with the rising smoke and the cheers of the people.
--- p.237
Oh, so it's because of the money.
I stared at the browned oolong tea left on the floor.
I felt a little funny.
It's not like she's asking me to live with her or come back, and it's not like she's seriously ill or anything important to talk about, which is fortunate enough, but still, I see, Mom came to see me for money.
--- p.288
I didn't realize that he was going into specifics, that he was talking so fast that I couldn't even guess the amount of information, or that he was testing my comprehension, reflexes, or even my brain.
This person must not give the impression that he is wrong.
You have to appeal to their motivation and show that you can sprout.
I said this with as much composure as I could muster.
--- p.284
"Hello, Mom? Mom, I'm in trouble. I don't know what to do." I said to her, caught between dream and reality.
You know, Mom, how did you, how on earth did you survive until now? When I was little, still a child, with no money, how did you survive? I don't know how everyone else lives every day, I don't know, Mom.
But until I happened to see her name in a small internet article a little while ago, I had completely forgotten not only what I thought, but also her name, her existence, the time we spent together, and what we did there.
--- p.9
I couldn't even nod, let alone answer.
I was upset and ashamed of myself for always getting hurt by childish pranks that even elementary school kids wouldn't do these days, but more than that, I was embarrassed to death that I was caught doing this in front of someone I just met.
I was so embarrassed that I wanted to run away right away.
--- p.46
What if Mom comes back home?
I thought about it seriously.
As I was thinking about this and that and thinking about it, my heart started to ache, and I started to feel anxious about whether I would be able to manage on my own in the future, whether I would get involved in trouble, and whether I would be worried about myself by now. I even blamed myself for leaving the house without saying anything.
But it was all in vain.
It took my mother a week to realize that I had left home.
--- p.121
Forsythia, chickpea, banana, lemon.
There were many shades of yellow.
But what they all had in common was that they were all yellow, and yellow, by its very nature, was a special color that gave us courage and a sense of relief.
--- p.125
Momoko Tamamori, as if making a small resolution, grabbed the thick karaoke playlist and turned the pages with a serious expression, wrote down the number on a piece of paper, and handed it to Ran.
After a while, the words 'X JAPAN Kurenai紅' appeared on the karaoke screen, and a heavy and sad ballad-like intro flowed out.
Soon, the English lyrics slowly appeared and Momoko Tamamori began to sing.
At that moment, Ran and I found ourselves looking at each other.
It was a voice so beautiful that it made me exclaim, “Wow.”
--- p.176
Come to think of it, it wasn't just my family, Kimiko didn't talk about herself, and I felt like I had nothing left to say about myself.
What kind of stories did we usually share?
I thought about it for a while, but I couldn't figure it out.
We just ate together, worked together, came back and slept together, Ran and Momoko joined us, chatted and laughed, but that alone was enjoyable enough.
--- p.199
Why can't they even do that? How many times do I have to tell them to understand? Other people's kids are doing well. Their mom works so hard in an environment where nothing is lacking, but why are they like this?
He often causes hysteria and really gets people caught up in it.
What good is it that I gave birth to you with so much pain, and poured so much time and money into providing meals for you? I feel bad for those dumb, useless kids who can't do anything but be a good mother. I put in all my effort just to make sure my beloved daughters have a bright future, so why don't I get anything in return? And then I cry like this. Isn't that funny?
--- p.165
I was eating takoyaki in a distant summer night.
Every summer, that summer, sparkling candy apples and cotton candy, red goldfish swimming in the water, colorful rubber balls, the smell of dirt, the smell of sauce.
The night grew endlessly with the rising smoke and the cheers of the people.
--- p.237
Oh, so it's because of the money.
I stared at the browned oolong tea left on the floor.
I felt a little funny.
It's not like she's asking me to live with her or come back, and it's not like she's seriously ill or anything important to talk about, which is fortunate enough, but still, I see, Mom came to see me for money.
--- p.288
I didn't realize that he was going into specifics, that he was talking so fast that I couldn't even guess the amount of information, or that he was testing my comprehension, reflexes, or even my brain.
This person must not give the impression that he is wrong.
You have to appeal to their motivation and show that you can sprout.
I said this with as much composure as I could muster.
--- p.284
"Hello, Mom? Mom, I'm in trouble. I don't know what to do." I said to her, caught between dream and reality.
You know, Mom, how did you, how on earth did you survive until now? When I was little, still a child, with no money, how did you survive? I don't know how everyone else lives every day, I don't know, Mom.
--- p.437
Publisher's Review
A new work by Mieko Kawakami, a Japanese author who is attracting worldwide attention!
Nonstop noir novel, The Yellow House
The 75th Yomiuri Literary Award Novel Prize
2023 TBS King's Brunch Book Award Winner
2024 Kinobes! 2nd place
2024 Japan Bookstore Awards 6th place
Why are people so obsessed with money that they commit sin?
― A festive story intertwined with money, crime, and a girl's life.
In the spring of 2020, the protagonist, Hana Ito, who works as a clerk at a side dish shop, accidentally discovers an internet news article about a woman in her 60s who was arrested and is on trial for confining and assaulting a woman in her 20s, causing serious injury.
The reason why this short news article, which had been out for three months and had no follow-up articles, caught his attention was because of the defendant's name in the article.
'Hana' intuitively feels that the defendant 'Kimiko Yoshikawa' is the 'Kimiko' she knows, and thinks she will never forget, but she recalls the time she spent at the 'Yellow House' 20 years ago.
The meeting with 'Kimiko' took place on a summer day in 1995 when 'Hana' was fifteen years old.
The mother went to her boyfriend's house to play, leaving her fellow hostesses, Kimiko and Hana, behind.
For 'Hana', who lives alone in an old house because her mother does not take care of the household properly, the presence of 'Kimiko', who eats fried chicken with her, sleeps under the blanket in the same room, and listens to her stories while walking, is special.
With this special one-month summer vacation as an opportunity, 'Hana' wants to work hard to earn money and live with her loved ones.
But in the midst of a life that swirls without adults to protect her, a stable 'home' becomes distant, and in the end, 'Hana' is forced to make an irreversible choice... What should she have done to be happy and live with her loved ones?
Illuminating a Different Landscape of 'Family' and 'Home'
― The story of a girl who wants to live a stable life with her family at home.
For humans, 'home' is a physical space that protects them from danger, and 'family' is a social group that provides psychological comfort.
It is said that especially for young people who have difficulty becoming independent, home and family should be a safe and solid foundation as they become the first society where they form the roots of their personality and learn discipline.
However, 'home' can also be a space of violence and the smallest unit of a system that restricts human happiness.
The story of the protagonist, Hana, begins in this context.
One is a character who grew up alone with a hostess mother who loves alcohol and friends too much and invites all kinds of strange adults into the house. At school, she is teased for being poor, and she never received proper care, eating convenience store food alone for every meal, so she has never been able to form an attachment to anyone.
Yet, his single-minded desire to be happy has led him to work tirelessly day and night to become independent, and his dream of leaving home and becoming a family with people who grew up in different environments is an unfamiliar sight that breaks from common sense, and provides us with an opportunity to think about what a true 'home' and 'family' are.
The personalities of the characters in the work also help to portray a life scene that we have never imagined before.
Kimiko, an adult who seems to be watching over the children but has a mysterious side; Ran, who makes a living by working at a cabaret club while lying about her family; Momoko, who dreams of an escape because she feels suffocated by her family's pretense of a happy home; and Youngsoo, who makes a living by helping with various crimes and odd jobs.
The process of forming a bond by sharing pain, filling in what is lacking, and connecting with those who may seem “useless” in the eyes of society also resonates warmly.
A nonstop, irresistible noir novel that will have you turning the pages.
― Mieko Kawakami, an artist who illuminates the human facets as if crafting them
"The Yellow House" is a collection of novels serialized in the Yomiuri Shimbun for a year by Mieko Kawakami, an author who rose to fame with her own unique world of works such as "Heaven" and "Summer Gate."
The author, who has allowed us to look into the dark sides of society by portraying various female characters in his works that we may have encountered at least once in our lives, has presented the fifteen-year-old runaway youth 'Ito Hana' as the narrator in this work.
And it received favorable reviews from readers for its calm and profound portrayal of the voices of minors struggling to survive and grappling with life's problems.
The author, who revealed that he wanted to create a protagonist that readers would "root for" while pondering "why readers read long novels," tells the story in vivid detail, using vivid words, of how a character faces ethical issues as he commits crimes big and small, and gradually loses his moral compass as he rationalizes his choices.
This is not simply an attempt to persuade people on the margins of society that their choice was an 'inevitable' one that forced them into a difficult situation.
The idea is to free readers from their own standards of value judgment, such as not falling into sexual crimes, participating in crimes that deceive others, or lying in their fast-paced lives.
This allows us to consider how we should approach the countless problematic situations faced by young people in a world that cannot be divided into black and white, good and evil.
Watching and cheering on the choices made by someone who wants to "live a life that has already begun with all their might" will be a thrilling and fascinating reading experience that will keep you turning the pages.
Moreover, as the narrative unfolds quickly and densely, readers will find themselves knocking on the door of the yellow house before they know it.
Nonstop noir novel, The Yellow House
The 75th Yomiuri Literary Award Novel Prize
2023 TBS King's Brunch Book Award Winner
2024 Kinobes! 2nd place
2024 Japan Bookstore Awards 6th place
Why are people so obsessed with money that they commit sin?
― A festive story intertwined with money, crime, and a girl's life.
In the spring of 2020, the protagonist, Hana Ito, who works as a clerk at a side dish shop, accidentally discovers an internet news article about a woman in her 60s who was arrested and is on trial for confining and assaulting a woman in her 20s, causing serious injury.
The reason why this short news article, which had been out for three months and had no follow-up articles, caught his attention was because of the defendant's name in the article.
'Hana' intuitively feels that the defendant 'Kimiko Yoshikawa' is the 'Kimiko' she knows, and thinks she will never forget, but she recalls the time she spent at the 'Yellow House' 20 years ago.
The meeting with 'Kimiko' took place on a summer day in 1995 when 'Hana' was fifteen years old.
The mother went to her boyfriend's house to play, leaving her fellow hostesses, Kimiko and Hana, behind.
For 'Hana', who lives alone in an old house because her mother does not take care of the household properly, the presence of 'Kimiko', who eats fried chicken with her, sleeps under the blanket in the same room, and listens to her stories while walking, is special.
With this special one-month summer vacation as an opportunity, 'Hana' wants to work hard to earn money and live with her loved ones.
But in the midst of a life that swirls without adults to protect her, a stable 'home' becomes distant, and in the end, 'Hana' is forced to make an irreversible choice... What should she have done to be happy and live with her loved ones?
Illuminating a Different Landscape of 'Family' and 'Home'
― The story of a girl who wants to live a stable life with her family at home.
For humans, 'home' is a physical space that protects them from danger, and 'family' is a social group that provides psychological comfort.
It is said that especially for young people who have difficulty becoming independent, home and family should be a safe and solid foundation as they become the first society where they form the roots of their personality and learn discipline.
However, 'home' can also be a space of violence and the smallest unit of a system that restricts human happiness.
The story of the protagonist, Hana, begins in this context.
One is a character who grew up alone with a hostess mother who loves alcohol and friends too much and invites all kinds of strange adults into the house. At school, she is teased for being poor, and she never received proper care, eating convenience store food alone for every meal, so she has never been able to form an attachment to anyone.
Yet, his single-minded desire to be happy has led him to work tirelessly day and night to become independent, and his dream of leaving home and becoming a family with people who grew up in different environments is an unfamiliar sight that breaks from common sense, and provides us with an opportunity to think about what a true 'home' and 'family' are.
The personalities of the characters in the work also help to portray a life scene that we have never imagined before.
Kimiko, an adult who seems to be watching over the children but has a mysterious side; Ran, who makes a living by working at a cabaret club while lying about her family; Momoko, who dreams of an escape because she feels suffocated by her family's pretense of a happy home; and Youngsoo, who makes a living by helping with various crimes and odd jobs.
The process of forming a bond by sharing pain, filling in what is lacking, and connecting with those who may seem “useless” in the eyes of society also resonates warmly.
A nonstop, irresistible noir novel that will have you turning the pages.
― Mieko Kawakami, an artist who illuminates the human facets as if crafting them
"The Yellow House" is a collection of novels serialized in the Yomiuri Shimbun for a year by Mieko Kawakami, an author who rose to fame with her own unique world of works such as "Heaven" and "Summer Gate."
The author, who has allowed us to look into the dark sides of society by portraying various female characters in his works that we may have encountered at least once in our lives, has presented the fifteen-year-old runaway youth 'Ito Hana' as the narrator in this work.
And it received favorable reviews from readers for its calm and profound portrayal of the voices of minors struggling to survive and grappling with life's problems.
The author, who revealed that he wanted to create a protagonist that readers would "root for" while pondering "why readers read long novels," tells the story in vivid detail, using vivid words, of how a character faces ethical issues as he commits crimes big and small, and gradually loses his moral compass as he rationalizes his choices.
This is not simply an attempt to persuade people on the margins of society that their choice was an 'inevitable' one that forced them into a difficult situation.
The idea is to free readers from their own standards of value judgment, such as not falling into sexual crimes, participating in crimes that deceive others, or lying in their fast-paced lives.
This allows us to consider how we should approach the countless problematic situations faced by young people in a world that cannot be divided into black and white, good and evil.
Watching and cheering on the choices made by someone who wants to "live a life that has already begun with all their might" will be a thrilling and fascinating reading experience that will keep you turning the pages.
Moreover, as the narrative unfolds quickly and densely, readers will find themselves knocking on the door of the yellow house before they know it.
GOODS SPECIFICS
- Date of issue: October 15, 2024
- Page count, weight, size: 616 pages | 690g | 142*210*35mm
- ISBN13: 9791171311422
- ISBN10: 1171311427
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