Healing Fiction by Japanese and Korean Authors

After a long life with a loving human family, tabby cat Fuuta has passed into the afterlife, but he is not as far from his owner, Michiru, as it seems. Slight openings bridge the divide between the lands of the living and the dead, and they can be traversed. Eager to see Michiru again, Fuuta interviews for a position at Café Pont, a café that exists in the liminal space between the two worlds. It is a weighty task for an old tabby cat, but Fuuta is up for the challenge. After all, the job offers a special reward: The right to see Michiru. And he’ll do anything to reunite with his family.

Discover new delicious mysteries in this fourth installment in The Kamogawa Food Detectives series, the beloved Japanese bestseller and celebration of the healing power of food. Travel down the alleyways of Kyoto and you just might be lucky enough to find the Kamogawa Diner, where a father-daughter “food detective” duo help their clients discover memories lost to time through recreating delicious food from their past.

A quaint seaside town in Kitakyushu, Mojiko is full of hidden delights. And one unexpected treasure is the 24/7 convenience store, Tenderness. Tenderness stands firm and proud by its motto “Caring for People, Caring for You,” no matter the cause. And for the store’s manager, Mitsuhiko, dishing out delicious food is simply the appetizer to his unsolicited but hearty wisdom on the town’s shenanigans. The Convenience Store by The Sea tells the delightfully quirky and heartfelt stories of the store’s customers and employees, offering us all a unique recipe for a good, fulfilling life.

Welcome. We don’t get many humans here. In this charming, fable-like book from Japan, a fox spirit sells magical confections to troubled humans, only for them to get a little more than they bargained for.

Come along on a heartwarming, funny, and perfectly cozy voyage with the charming and relatable passengers — including one dashing dachshund — whose lives intersect and affect each other on one of Japan’s most romantic railway lines from international bestselling author Hiro Arikawa. With stories that crisscross like the railway lines, the Hankyu train trundles on, propelling the lives and loves of its passengers ever forward.

One dog changes the life of everyone who takes him in on his journey to reunite with his first owner in this inspiring novel about the bond between humans and dogs and the life-affirming power of connection.

Tucked away in an old building at the end of a narrow alley in Kyoto, the Kokoro Clinic for the Soul can only be found by people who are struggling in their lives and genuinely need help. The mysterious clinic offers a unique treatment to those who find their way there: It prescribes cats as medication. Patients are often puzzled by this unconventional prescription, but when they “take” their cat for the recommended duration, they witness profound transformations in their lives, guided by the playful, empathetic, occasionally challenging, yet endearing cats. As the clinic’s patients navigate their inner turmoil and seek resolution, their feline companions lead them toward healing, self-discovery, and newfound hope.

Born with mysterious powers she does not know how to control, young Jieun accidentally causes her family to vanish. She vows to live a million lives in search of them. Finally, one night, she brings the Marigold Mind Laundry into existence. Its service: To remove the deepest pain from our hearts. Jieun listens while customers share their unhappy memories. As they speak, she transfers their sadness onto T-shirts as stains. After a spin in the washing machine, the stains become flower petals that soar into the air, and Jieun’s customers find solace. As Jieun listens to each of their stories, she learns that the will to heal is not a rare gift but a power we all possess — if only we are open to it.

In Japan, cats are a symbol of good luck. As the myth goes, if you are kind to them, they’ll one day return the favor. And if you are kind to the right cat, you might just find yourself invited to a mysterious coffee shop under a glittering Kyoto moon. This particular coffee shop is like no other. It has no fixed location, no fixed hours, and it seemingly appears at random. It’s also run by talking cats. While customers at the Full Moon Coffee Shop partake in cakes, coffees, and teas, the cats also consult their star charts, offering cryptic wisdom and letting them know where their lives veered off course.

In a remote seaside town outside of Tokyo, Kotoko makes her way along a seashell path, lured by whispers of an enigmatic restaurant whose kagezen, or traditional meals offered in remembrance of loved ones, promise a reunion with the departed. When a gust of wind lifts off her hat, she sees a young man who looks like her recently deceased brother running after it. But it’s not her brother; it’s Kai, the restaurant’s young chef, who returns her hat and brings her to the tiny establishment, where he introduces her to Chibi, the resident kitten, and serves her steaming bowls of simmered fish, rice, and miso soup — the exact meal her brother used to cook for her. As she takes her first delicious bite, the gulls outside fall silent, the air grows hazy, and Kotoko begins a magical journey of last chances and new beginnings.

On the edge of Rainbow Town stands an old, abandoned house. It’s said that if you send a letter detailing your misfortunes, you’ll receive a ticket. On the first day of the rainy season, this ticket grants entrance to the mysterious Rainfall Market, where you can change your life. Serin, lonely and uncertain, receives a ticket and enters the market, guided by a magical cat, Issha. She has only one week to find her happiness or be doomed to vanish into the market forever. All the while, a shadow follows quietly behind them …

Nana the cat and his owner, Satoru, take to the road on a journey with no other purpose than to visit three of Satoru’s longtime friends. Or so Nana is led to believe … With his crooked tail — a sign of good fortune — and adventurous spirit, Nana is the perfect companion for the man who took him in as a stray. And as they travel in a silver van across Japan, with its ever-changing scenery and seasons, they will learn the true meaning of courage and gratitude, of loyalty and love.

Bullied to the point of dropping out of school, Kokoro’s days blur together as she hides in her bedroom, unable to face her family or friends. As she spirals into despair, her mirror begins to shine; with a touch, Kokoro is pulled from her lonely life into a resplendent, bizarre fairytale castle guarded by a strange girl in a wolf mask. Six other students have been brought to the castle, and soon, this marvelous refuge becomes their playground. The castle has a hidden room that can grant a single wish, but there are rules to be followed, and breaking them will have dire consequences. As Kokoro and her new acquaintances spend more time in their new sanctuary, they begin to unlock the castle’s secrets and, tentatively, each other’s.

A peculiar pet shop in Tokyo has been known to offer customers the unique opportunity to take home one of seven special cats, whose “magic” is never promised but always received. But there are rules: These cats must be returned after three days. They must eat only the food supplied by the owner, and they must travel to their new homes with a distinctive blanket. The “blanket cats” are mysterious creatures with unknowable agendas who delight in confounding expectations. And perhaps what their hosts are looking for isn’t really what they need. Three days may not be enough to change a life. But it might just change how you see it.