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Asleep

By Banana Yoshimoto
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Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Asleep by Banana Yoshimoto explores the intertwined lives of three women trapped in a mystical slumber. Mourning, love, and haunting memories blur the lines between wakefulness and sleep in this subtly surreal tale. Yoshimoto's narrative gracefully blends ghost story elements with Kafkaesque surrealism, crafting a quietly enchanting meditation on loss and desire.
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Format: Paperback / softback
$2599
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This book will appeal to readers who enjoy contemplative literary fiction with a touch of the mystical and psychological depth, particularly fans of contemporary international literature.

Book Hero thinking about your next read

"Asleep" tells the stories of three women, all bewitched into a spiritual sleep. One, mourning a lost love, finds herself sleepwalking at night. Another, embarking on a relationship with a man whose wife is in a coma, finds herself unable to stay awake. The third finds her sleep haunted.

An enchanting book from the bestselling author of Kitchen: three love stories each sly and mystical as a ghost story.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Banana Yoshimoto has a magical ability to animate the lives of her young characters, and here she spins the stories of three women, all bewitched into a spiritual sleep. One, mourning a lost lover, finds herself sleepwalking at night. Another, who has embarked on a relationship with a man whose wife is in a coma, finds herself suddenly unable to stay awake. A third finds her sleep haunted by another woman whom she was once pitted against in a love triangle.

Sly and mystical as a ghost story, with a touch of Kafkaesque surrealism, Asleep is an enchanting book from one of the best writers in contemporary international fiction.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

New York Times praises Yoshimoto's style as "lucid, earnest and disarming," comparing her emotional insight to Jane Smiley and her readability to Anne Tyler.

Book Hero reading reviews

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780571205370

Publisher: Faber & Faber

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 03 September 2001

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Faber & Faber

Edition: Main - Re-issue

Contributors:

  • Translated by Michael Emmerich
  • Translated by Michael Emmerich

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 11.0mm

Width: 126.0mm

Height: 198.0mm

Weight: 160g

Pages: 192

Collections

Banana Yoshimoto Fiction General Fiction Literary Fiction

About the Author

Banana Yoshimoto was born in 1964. She is the author of Kitchen, N.P., Lizard, Amrita, Asleep and Goodbye Tsugumi. Her writing has won numerous prizes around the world.

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    Kitchen presents a compelling narrative that intricately explores themes of grief, family, and personal transformation in contemporary Japan. The story follows a young woman named Mikage Sakurai, whose life is upended by the death of her grandmotherβ€”her last remaining relative. As she grapples with heartache and loneliness, Mikage finds solace in the warmth and familiarity of kitchens, spaces that symbolize...
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    A celebrated actress who has died in mysterious and shocking circumstances leaves behind an unconventional extended family. This family includes an older sister, a woman in her 20s through whose eyes the story unfolds; a young brother who possesses mystical powers; and a fiancΓ© who is writing a novel with uncanny parallels to his own story. Together, they embark on...
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