Abstract

The legendary self-published essay collection that sold over 10,000 copies—
now commercially released with 17 brand-new essays!

A heartfelt tribute to everyone whose efforts to live earnestly always seem to go nowhere.

This collection of 40 essays follows the daily life of a young woman who moves to Tokyo’s 23 wards.
With a unique voice full of dry humor, she gently captures the fleeting emotions and subtle experiences that slip through the cracks of hectic urban life.
Each piece soothes the reader with its honesty, wit, and quiet empathy.

Illustrations & cover art by Mizuki Saji

[Table of Contents]

(Tokyo Life)
Please Don’t Eat Your Fried Chicken bentō Here 008
Early Summer at the Shibuya Dorm 010
Naps and Aoyama 013
Akasaka and God 015
Youth 019
Ginza, Just the Two of Us 025
Becoming an Adult 033
The Three of Us in a Summer Memory 037
The First Spring Storm 045
Conveyor-Belt Sushi and a Family of Four 048
Things That Suddenly Turn Cold 051
My Brother Walks Pigeon-Toed 055
The Sparkle of a Sleepless Night 061
Trois Chambres, Shimokitazawa 066
Matsuya at Twilight 069
I Want to Live by Baking Bread and Such 071
Good Coffee, Eggs, and Sausage Toast 075
Yes, There Is a Way to Relieve Stress 078
The Sentō, Limitlessly Alive 081
At the Chinese Restaurant in Shimokitazawa 084
A Spring Day and Short Night at Hanegi Park 087
Cheer Up at Yoyogi Park 090
Wandering into Satei Hatō 094
Fur and the Waiting Line 097
To the Sea on the First Train 101
Octopus and Fate 108
Three Living Together in Hatagaya 112
The Last Night and the Ambulance 117

(And Then)
Off to Kyoto 122
Flying Stars 125
Waiting Atop the Jungle Gym 127
A Boy and His Butt 130

(New Tokyo Life)
In a New Town 134
If Only I Had a Tail 138
My Animal 144
Hello Goodbye 146
My Senior 150
Drifting into Hidakaya 154
Super Sentō, Like a Heaven 157
Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter 165

Afterword from the Original Self-Published Edition Afterword 170
Afterword 172

Author’s Information

Born in Tokyo in 1996.
In 2022, she self-published a personal essay collection titled Please Don’t Eat Your Fried Chicken bentō Here.
In 2023, Is This What Life Is? from Daiwa Shobo.