Rating: 
Summary: Touching
Review: I somehow stumbled across this book today in B&N and devoured it all within the three hours after I arrived home. I am very familiar with Japanese classics but have never read current Japanese fiction. I was pleasantly surprised!Having lost my parents as a teenager I could relate to Mikage's plight and restlesness to find herself and a place in a world which has left her all alone. I also found myself longing for the experience Satsuki and Urara shared in Moonlight Shadow. What a refreshing read on a day when I miss my parents. I am definitely running to the B&N TOMORROW to stock up on Yoshimoto's other books. How fun to find a new favorite author :-)
Rating: 
Summary: perfection
Review: i have owned this book since it first came out in the states. a million lifetimes ago, i read it, and i keep reading it. this is my favorite book of all time. when i read banana yoshimoto, i feel as though i am sitting on the grass with a close friend, our heads pressed together, sharing secrets on a warm spring night. i feel like she is talking to me, in a whisper. it is this intimacy that makes me adore her and all of her books. kitchen was my first, though, and i will always love it for that. moonlight shadow is the gorgeous novella at the end of the book, tucked away when you are just recovering from the beauty of kitchen. it may not be as well written, but it speaks to me in a way that no other story has. a simple and glorious fairy tale, telling of young love and loss ... she is telling this story to us, like a perfectly wrapped present ... i reccomend this book to everyone i know. i love this book. i give it to people i love. i give it to people i think it can help. i have probably purchased more copies of this book than anyone in the world ... i think everyone should read it. and keep it's secret.
Rating:
Summary: moonlight shadow
Review: i bought this book when it first came out, a million lifetimes ago, and have read it approximately 150 times ... kitchen is a gorgeous story, but my favorite part of the book is when kitchen is all over and you get to moonlight shadow ... a short story of love lost and found ... that is what the book is all about ... i love this book. i buy it for people i love and adore ... i make everyone read it ... i reccomend it to everyone ... i reccomend it to you ... this book is beautiful. banana yoshimoto is beautiful. the story is beautiful ... i love this book. i can't say it enough.
Rating:
Summary: LOVED IT!
Review: This is really a great book! At first, it is a little strange at first because it is a translation but after a while, you really get into. Its very interesting how the author touches upon very emotional and thought provoking points but describes them in an almost emotional less way. In addition, the short story at the end was very touching. Normally I do not care for short stories because I dont feel that they give you enough time to get into the tale before it ends. But this one really touches you and ends perfectly. Highly recommend this book! In fact, Im starting to read Banana Yoshimoto's other books now because I liked this one so much!
Rating:
Summary: One of my favorite books-ever
Review: I will never loan out my copy of KITCHEN by Banana Yoshimoto. Both novellas are absolutely captivating. I have read this book 3 times, so far. I read several books a week on all subjects and this is not a book I would have chosen for myself. My husband had found it at the library & had read it and recommended it to me. I liked it so much I bought a copy of my own. Sometimes i prefer the 2nd novella ...both as i said before are captivating.
Rating:
Summary: Death and Redemption
Review: This was the second time I read this book. I enjoyed it the first time, but I read it so quickly that I did not let its beauty seep into me. This time I read it as slow as I could possibly read a 152 page book, and it left me greatly touched. The theme of the book is similar to that of Ms. Yoshimoto's other books: N.P., Amrita, and Asleep, (I really think that Lizard is the only book that deviates from the usual path): The death of a loved one, and overcoming that death. Although this seems to be a very simple and banal storyline, Ms. Yoshimoto weaves the story wonderfully so that the readed really feels the pain of lost suffered by Mikage, Yuichi, Satsuki, and Hiiragi. Very good stuff.
Rating:
Summary: Delightfully edible book
Review: The first book by Japanese author, Banana Yoshimoto is a wonderfully written work of art. "Kitchen," is not a traditional novel, but two novellas published together with a similar theme: kitchens. Looking at life, loss and relationships, the two long stories in "Kitchen," are placed in the lives of young women trying to get on in a difficult world, and how their kitchens reflect their lives. Yoshimoto's writing is the literary equivalent of the Chinese decorating style, "feng-shui." Yoshimoto's prose is straght forward and at first look, simple. The mastery of her style is that it sits at the edge, and is almost invisable to the reader. The prose flows and does not manhandle the reader; instead it gently takes the reader on a ride through amazing stories. The "Kitchens" are a theme that unites the two stories but there is a deeper connection as Yoshimoto speaks of the confussion and loss that many generation X'ers feel. Beautiful, seemingly simple but deeply profound.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant!!
Review: A wonderful, masterful story. KITCHEN is about what we all have to face, and that is death. It's also about recovery, and enlightenment. It's that simple, however Yoshimoto creates a beautifully woven narrative where indeed life evolves for each character. An unforgettable quick read. MOONLIGHT SHADOW, a short story included in the book focuses on the same theme. It is equally brilliant in its simplistic, surreal style. I promise you'll reach the end with a tiny rip in your heart.
Rating:
Summary: Wow
Review: I read this book a couple of days ago. being one interested in japanese culture and literature in the first place, I just thought the book was a necessary read because it was by one of Japan's most popular authors, but after reading it. It filled me with a great sadness, but also with the feeling that although life throws many obstacles in your way there is always a way to overcome these obstacles. I know what i wrote sounds very cliche, but this book is great. You will find yourself falling in love with this book, and wish that you had a friend like Urara.
Rating:
Summary: a fast and emotional read
Review: i read this book in three hours or less- i wasn't keeping track- as i flew from minneapolis to new york. i cried in the middle of the airplane. even if you have not lost someone in your life, this book will make you lonely and sentimental. i recommend a pause between the two "stories" for contemplation- they are not wholly related to one another. it captures the japanese aesthetic of both fleeting time and "in the middle of things" narrative style. beautiful as it is consumable.
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