The Kamogawa Food Detectives is a charmingly diverting example of the Japanese food story genre by Hisashi Kashiwai. Due out 13th Feb 2024 from Penguin Random House on their Putnam imprint, it's 208 pages and will be available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout.
This is such a comforting, nostalgic, and sweetly uplifting collection of related stories. Originally published in Japanese in 2013, the translation work by Jesse Kirkwood is seamless and manages to flow very well in English without losing the indelible Japanese cultural and food-related nuances.
The stories are related by a common thread: seekers find the restaurant run by a father and daughter duo who specialize in recreating meals for their clients from the clients' own memories and recollections.
Despite the lack of danger or dramatic tension, the stories are moving and told effectively. Food manga and food-centered narrative is a popular subgenre in Japan, and this is a wonderful collection.
Four and a half stars. Utterly charming.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
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