Booksology Now I am a huge fan of generally cozy books, and since Murakami Haru’s work was first introduced, I have been hugging a soft spot in contemporary Japanese literature. However, Murakami’s spin in the surreal story lies in a totally other realm besides cozy novels heading towards the American bookshelves, not just Japan but Korea.
Needless to say, each of these books has its own storyline, style and character. But there’s something about the pace of these cozy books that differ from other cozy books.
To get into it, you may need to think about the meaning of “comfortable.” According to Book Riot, in the broadest sense, Cozies is “a book that feels solace like a warm embrace.” Author’s Digest The cozy book “describes it as something that generally features a cast of small characters, set in a small town and has a more optimistic and bright tone. Above all, it should have a satisfying happy ending. They provide a relief to the reader.
This is interesting to me. Because the idea that cozy books are optimistic, cheerful and comforting is undoubtedly part of my personal understanding of this subgenre. But while the cozy books on this list may be cozy, they are often deeply philosophical. This introspective bend is something like a trend I noticed in the cozy Japanese and Korean books I encountered, and I am not alone.
This is a trend that many people call “healing fiction.” Melissa D’Agnese says that Healing Fiction is “a new named genre, but these types of books have been popular in Japan and Korea for decades.” She continues to explain the focus of healing fiction to ordinary people who suffer from the consequences of breaking up and loneliness, a sense of magical realism, and the characters understand something about their lives and move towards healing.
Whether you’re comfortable or soothing it, it certainly doesn’t hurt that an astounding number of these books feature books, coffee and cats in an interesting way. For many readers, these are three elements that embody warm fuzzy.
Let me give you an example. What you’re looking for is in the library for Aoyama’s. It is written as a story cycle where the local library has a common thread that brings it all together. The librarian is a bit strange. Anyway, each character is lost in their own way and ends in this library where they ask about the book they think will help them. This mystical librarian helps them and prints each book list, but there is always one title out of place, mixed with the books they requested (for one woman, it’s a child’s picture book that has nothing to do with what she wanted). These books turned out to be something each character needs to find their own path. And there is a lot to look back on what makes a “good” life for readers.
So perhaps we will reach out before we forget about kindness (the fifth and latest book in Kawaguchi’s series) and Yagishi’s popular days at Morisawa Bookstore (there are sequels as of last year). Or maybe, maybe – you chase after me by blocking the mysterious rabbit hole in the cozy Japanese and Korean books. Whatever you decide, I hope you find something that will give you that delicious, cozy feel.
Smiley Laundromat by Kim Jiyun from Yeonnam-Dong
The laundromat seems to be an unexpected setting for a cozy book, but I hope you can smell this scent before you finish the first chapter. So, a coin laundry with a coffee station and bookshelves? Yes, please! And that mystical green diary on the table? Yes, that’s the key to the character’s struggle. When each character unexpectedly finishes in this special laundromat, they discover diaries and what other customers have written. What starts on the page will quickly advance into their real life in an impactful way. The bigger mysteries of the diary itself unfold the individual character’s stories in a rewarding way. Choose this – you will not regret it!
Lost recipe restaurant by Hisashi Kashiwai
This second book in the Kamogawa Food Detective series was released last fall (the third book to be scheduled for the upcoming fall, The Menu of Happiness). Like the first book, Nagare and his daughter Koishi are food detectives who help clients reconstruct their most memorable diet. Some clients are looking for healing, others suffer from regret, and others have different motivations, but all clients seek food from a past where they couldn’t replicate everything. What those meals give to the characters depends on who they are and how Nagare and Koishi prepare their meals. Regardless of the outcome, the outcome is constant. These books are thought-provoking and make you hungry more.
Rainfall market by Yeong-Gwang
What an attractive premise: You can enter the market on the first day of the rainy season (if you win tickets) (if you win tickets), but if you want to go back to life you have to go before the last day. Ah, but you’re in the market. Because you are struggling and want to choose a different life, so you are getting a cat to help you when you navigate the market. Are you still crazy about it? Well, young Serin has lived a tough life up until now, and the letter she wrote was enough to get her a special ticket to the rain market. She considers the life on offer and learns more about the dangers lurking in the market, so readers are taken on a meditative journey that keeps them on their toes.
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Dallergut Dream Department Store by Lee Miye
This story begins almost entirely from our world. Set on the land of dreams, it follows the young Penny when she begins her new job at the honorable department store. Wandering in this special place where customers can dream and access, Penny learns about the purpose and power of different kinds of dreams. She also has the opportunity to meet designers with different dreams, each creating with a different demographic in mind. As you can imagine, these dream designers are a quirky bunch, making this book so enjoyable to read, and the exploration of novels about the relationship between dreams and reality is fascinating. (Bonus: The second book in this series, Dallergut Dream-Making District, is scheduled for this summer!)
Prescribe Syou Ishida cat
The title of this is not a phor. Like many of the other books on this list, Ishida’s novels are essentially a story cycle. The lost characters in this novel stumble across the Kokoro Clinic for their souls. There, nurses Dr. Nicke and Titose will prescribe cats and help them deal with a variety of issues. Cats are not magic. As a cat owner, I felt they were fun and cats. They have a peculiarity and do everything a real cat does, but their presence in the temporary owner’s life is transformative. Whether it’s the cat itself or playing around with it, the characters get what they need from the cat medicine.
Welcome to Hwang Bo-Reum’s Hyunam-Dong Bookshop
Bookstores that lend their name to the book title are shelters of non-conformance. The owner, Yeongju, wandered out of the Pass Society. Recently divorced her husband and left her large caliber career to become a bookstore, she is as lost as the customers who frequently visit her bookstore. But as she tries to grasp her life, she gradually brings together a vibrant community of passionate baristas, lonely knitting, indifferent teenagers and amazing writers.
Sanaka Hiirgi’s Lantern of Lost Memories
This book is, in a nutshell, beautiful. It’s a bit in serious terms for a cozy book, but it’s worth it. The premise is attractive. Hirosa’s photography studio is the gateway to the afterlife. He collects daily photos of a person’s lives so that they can help them build lanterns of their most memorable moments. He can also help them revisit a particularly meaningful day so they can take new photos. In this way, he helps them move from this life to what awaits beyond it. The three characters we meet in this book are very different, and the rendering of Hollygi’s life and memories is deeply moving.
Full Moon Coffee Shop by Mai Mochizuki
A cafe run by a talking cat that appears only on the full moon? Please sign up. This story cycle is set in a mysterious, nonexistent, nonexistent coffee shop where selected lost souls can wander and read astrological charts by cats. Astrology plays a very central role in novels, but this is also unusual and interesting. Once each character is introduced, readers will learn about the challenges they face and the circumstances that led them to the coffee shop. Along the way, their storylines begin to overlap in the way I felt deeply satisfied. Fair warning: The description of delicious sweet treats is lovely, so keep something nice on your side as you read.
