Takeout Sushi - Christopher Green - ★★★★
PUBLICATION DATE: May 2, 2024
RATING: 3.9 stars.
RATING: 3.9 stars.
In a Nutshell: An interesting collection of stories, with most of them set in Japan. Loved the writing style and enjoyed the diverse emotions. Much recommended!
This story collection has, as the title suggests, a strong Japanese flavour. So let me begin by confessing that I am not a fan of Japanese literature. Most Japanese fiction that I tried hasn’t suited my reading tastes, so I generally keep away from this genre. The reason I picked this collection up is... No, no, the sushi had no role to play in my decision; I can’t stand even the thought of sushi! The reason I wanted to read this is that the author is NOT a Japanese! 😁 I know this sounds quite silly to declare, but had the author been Japanese, I would have resisted opting for this. But by virtue of his being an “outsider”, I thought it was a great opportunity to get a look at Japan without risking the writing style’s not working for me yet again.
Usually, I avoid cultural fiction by non-OwnVoices writers as they often tend to be stereotypical. However, author Christopher Green has been a long-time resident of Japan, so his view of Japan has to be somewhat genuine. This factor also worked in favour of my interest.
“Takeout Sushi” is Green’s debut adult fiction collection, with some of the stories being inspired from his own experiences. The tales offer a memorable medley of both nihon-jin (Japanese resident) as well as gaijin (non-Japanese outsider) points of view, possibly due to the author’s dual perspective into the country of his residence.
The seventeen stories in this book are divided across two sections: “Stories of Japan, today”, which has thirteen stories, and “Stories of Other Places and Times”, which has the remaining four stories coming from non-Japanese settings. While I enjoyed most of the tales, the Japanese ones were superior to the rest.
Most of the Japan-centric stories in this collection have the main character as a non-Japanese settled in the country. They are ordinary characters living ordinary lives until one decision of theirs takes a turn for the extraordinary. The stories thus evoke a variety of emotions, ranging from hope to panic to fear to laughter. Each of them impacts the head and the heart!
It would have been easy to write every Japan-based story as a set of experiences of immigrant settlers. However, the stories in this book are absolutely varied in theme, never feeling repetitive or stereotypical, and none of them are about adjusting to the Japanese way of living i.e. the immigrant perspective. I appreciate this writing choice because it gives the book a far widespread range of topics and emotions to explore, and also makes it stand out in the plethora of similar-sounding immigrant narratives.
The stories in the second section offer a slightly different experience. Though these also had variety in content and intriguing characters, somehow they left me wanting more. Again, they aren’t bad stories at all. But in comparison with the outstanding Japanese set, the non-Japanese ones don’t leave as much of an impact. I wouldn’t even have minded if these stories had been skipped in favour of more Japanese experience tales.
Regardless, the writing in both sections is impeccable. Most stories have a clear flow, and whether written in first person or third person, you actually *feel* the narrator’s emotions. The author’s writing seems almost effortless, whether he is penning something funny or serious. The emotions spring genuinely from the situation and don’t feel shovelled into the narrative.
The endings of some of the tales felt a little abrupt. Thankfully, a majority of the stories reach a more realistic finish, if not a perfectly happy one. I like such endings better, but those who want a short story to seal off neatly might be dissatisfied.
Every story is introduced with a little illustration that represents the upcoming tale nicely. These add to the allure.
As always, I rated the stories individually. Of the seventeen stories, nine stories reached or crossed the 4 star mark. All the remaining stories got between 3-3.5 stars. In other words, not a single bad story for me; all were either good or great. My top favourites were:
🌸 Swallows - The emotions in this tale are stunning. It has a subtle kind of frustration and a hope that stems from nature. I have rarely seen male writers capture women’s feelings so well. (Sorry, that’s gender-biased, I know! But still…) - ⭐⭐⭐⭐✨
🌸 Burned - Easily, the best story of the book. The title made me assume that it might be a story of a disaster. Well, there was a disaster, but a man-made one. A MAN-made one! 😉 I laughed harder than I should have at this tale. My female-identifying friends, you will have a blast reading this. My male-identifying friends, this might be painful to read, but I hope you will learn a lifesaving lesson from this story. 😂 Fingers crossed that ‘Burned’ wasn't one of the stories inspired by the author's experiences! 😬🤭 - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
🌸 Spinning Wheels - Corporate culture at its best, and worst. Loved how well this incorporates Japanese work ethic into a futuristic premise. All those worried about AI and its repercussions might enjoy this story. - ⭐⭐⭐⭐✨
🌸 The Jogger - Another story that didn't go the way I expected it to, and ended in an even more memorable way! The ending elevated my rating. - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
🌸 Plastic Irises - This one really took me by surprise because I just didn’t figure out where it was going. The titular plastic irises are a nice metaphor to the content. - ⭐⭐⭐⭐✨
All in all, I loved this unusual story collection. While the setting is primarily Japanese, the stories are more about the people than the place, and the human emotions are universal.
Heartily recommended to all lovers of short fiction and East Asian fiction, and to those who enjoy the journey more than the destination. This is one sushi (and the only sushi) that I’d love to try again!
3.9 stars, based on the average of my rating for each tale.
My thanks to TheWriteReads, Neem Tree Press, author Christopher Green, and NetGalley for a complimentary copy of “Takeout Sushi”, and for allowing me to be a part of this blog tour. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.
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Blurb:
Takeout Sushi is a collection of 17 illustrated short stories set mostly in contemporary Japan that explore feelings of belonging, displacement, and the strangeness of everyday human interaction.
In an innovative, fast-paced company, a man’s job comes under threat when a team of robots are brought in to replace the HR department. A husband’s search for shortcuts to his domestic tasks goes painfully wrong. Overwhelmed by the hustle and bustle of Tokyo, a foreigner takes a weekend break and discovers something other than solitude in the mountains.
Marking Christopher Green’s debut adult fiction and inspired by his own experiences, these whimsical slice-of-life tales are full of heart and humour—perfect for fans of Convenience Store Woman and Before the Coffee Gets Cold.
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Author Christopher Green:
A long-time resident of Japan, Christopher lives near Tokyo with his wife and daughter. Christopher writes short stories and children's stories. His first collection of short stories Takeout Sushi is due for publication by Neem Tree Press in May 2024.
Connect with him on:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/green_in_japan
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/green.in.japan/
For a little more about Christopher and his books, please visit:
For Christopher's Goodreads page for his children's books, please visit:
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This has been a stop on the #TakeoutSushi blog tour conducted by TheWriteReads (@The_WriteReads). Thanks for stopping by!
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