Abstract

“Fountain Pen Counseling: It will change your life.” Such is the message of the signboard which hangs outside Medico Penna, a pen shop in a corner of Kobe. The proprietor has shaggy gray hair and a brusque manner and no one knows his age—but when it comes to repairing old pens no one comes close to him. Moreover, simply looking at a pen is enough for him to grasp all the worries and difficulties of its owner and gently guide them to a solution. He hires Sawa, a university student struggling to find a proper job, as a part-timer at the store. As she engages with the store’s customers and their personal challenges, she gradually develops the courage to confront her own anxieties about life. A heartwarming, fountain-pen-inspired novel set in the city of Kobe.

Author’s Information

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