Papas: That was a good book, Dad. I liked it a lot. Especially the parts about the cat and the yummy fish.
Dad: I'm glad you liked it. It made me a little wistful, though. It made me miss Bernard. Not in a sad way, really, but in a good way. Happy memories.
Papas: Me too. I miss the little booger. Do you think we could have a remembrance meal for Bernard?
Dad: I suppose we could, but I don't know if there's any restaurant around here that could do a kagezan.
Papas: Our readers might be wondering what we're talking about. And why we're missing Bernard. They've not heard from us in three years.
Dad: Yes, of course. I had a job change, got busy, Bernard passed away, kids moved in, kids moved out, we started raising chickens ... It's been crazy busy. And while I was still writing, I wasn't blogging.
Papas: I'm glad you're writing and blogging again.
Dad: I have to. You and Mom keep pestering me.
Papas: It is our duty. You would feel unloved if we didn't.
Dad: True, I would. For our readers, the book we are talking about today is "The Curious Kitten at the Chibineko Kitchen" by Yuta Takahashi, published in Japan in 2020 and translated into English in 2024 by Cat Anderson. It's a fairly quick read under two hundred pages, and a little over four hours in the audio version, engagingly narrated by Hanako Footman, who in the last year has become one of my favorite narrators. I encourage our readers to support independent bookstores. You might pay a bit more than the big retailers, but the money stays local.
Papas: The story opens with almost-twenty-year-old Kotoko grieving her brother Yuito, who had died three months earlier. She is looking for a restaurant recommended to her by her brother's friend. He's told her that the Chibineko Kitchen, in addition to regular meals, offers traditional remembrance meals known as kagezan. These meals are prepared to pray for the safe return of loved ones away from home. Kagezan is sometimes the food offered to the deceased at Buddhist funerals. Those who have eaten at the Chibineko Kitchen have reported hearing the voices of and, in some cases, seeing and conversing with their departed family and friends.
Dad: And that is why Kotoko wants to go. She deeply loved her brother and blames herself for his sudden death. She isn't certain the restaurant or the meal has this kind of power, but she must go and see. While searching for the restaurant, a gust of wind snatches her hat away. She chases it down the beach and meets Kai, the restaurant's chef, who has been expecting her since taking her reservation the day before.
Papas: Don't forget the kitten! And the seacats!
Dad: How could I forget either one? They are very important to the story. Chibi is the restaurant's resident white-with-ginger-spots kitten, and the sea cats are the black-tailed gulls, which make cat-like sounds. When the kagezan is served, and the world around Kotoko fades into mist, and all sound stops save for the sea birds, Chibi is still there, a link between her world and the world where the clock has stopped ticking. Yes, her brother does appear, which is unlikely to surprise any reader, but I won't spoil the story by repeating their conversation.
Papas: Does anyone else come to eat kagezan at the Chibinoko Kitchen?
Dad: You know they do. There is a young boy who lives in Kotoko's neighborhood, who regrets his unkind words to a classmate who abruptly left school, and he didn't know why. There is Kai's mother, the restaurant's owner, whose husband was lost at sea when Kai was too young to remember, who has prepared the meals but never experienced the magic. There is an old man who was in the hospital at the same time as Kai's mother, who is missing his long-deceased wife, as he knows his own time is short. And finally, there is Kai himself. Their stories are connected in ways they don't fully understand, and each experiences their grief and healing as their stories intertwine.
Papas: I liked the recipes in between the chapters.
Dad: Yes, that was a nice addition. Each recipe was a part of each character's remembrance meal, some important to the diner, others important to the departed. Seasoned minced fish served over rice, omelette sandwiches, pickled plum jam, and beef hotpot.
Papas: I'd like to try that minced fish. Hint, hint.
Dad: I'll see what Mom and I can come up with. So - how many paws up?
Papas: Two, of course.
