Book Description
"Ms. Yoshimoto's writing is lucid, earnest and disarming. . . . [It] seizes hold of the reader's sympathy and refuses to let go." —Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times
 
An orphan finds comfort in the kitchen, and in her chosen family, in this classic of contemporary Japanese literature
 
With the publication of Kitchen, the dazzling English-language debut that is still her best-loved book, the literary world realized that Yoshimoto was a young writer of enduring talent whose work has quickly earned a place among the best of contemporary Japanese literature. Kitchen is an enchantingly original book that juxtaposes two tales about mothers, love, tragedy, and the power of the kitchen and home in the lives of a pair of free-spirited young women in contemporary Japan. Mikage, the heroine, is an orphan raised by her grandmother, who has passed away. Grieving, Mikage is taken in by her friend Yoichi and his mother (who is really his cross-dressing father) Eriko. As the three of them form an improvised family that soon weathers its own tragic losses, Yoshimoto spins a lovely, evocative tale with the kitchen and the comforts of home at its heart.
 
About the Author
 
Banana Yoshimoto was born in 1964. Her other books include Kitchen, N.P., Lizard, Amrita, Asleep, Goodbye Tsugumi, and Hardboiled & Hard Luck. Her stories, novels, and essays have won numerous prizes both in Japan and abroad. She lives in Tokyo, Japan