« Comfort at a time when the world seems unstable »: the books that heal the soul
« Before the coffee is cooling » by Toshikazu Kawaguchi, « Everything you are looking for, lies in the library » of Michiko Aoyama and « We will prescribe you a cat » of show is among the few published on Bulgarian books from the so -called genre Healing Fiction Or fiction that heals the soul. The novels in which the action is often developed in bookstores, diner or small cafes have long been widespread in Japan and South Korea, but in recent years have gained popularity worldwide.
| In times of intense stress and chaos, they not only offer escape, but leave the readers the most valuable feeling of all – hope, the newspaper said. |
Fans of the genre say that the touching, bizarre stories in them offer comfort at a time when the world seems unstable and chaotic with anxious news about wars, political hostility and environmental disasters, the New York Times notes. To the publication, Toshikazu Kawaguchi tells that readers often stop him and tell him how his books cured them.
The writer initially wrote « Before the coffee to cool » (« Hummingbird ») as a play until they persuade him to adapt it as a novel published in Japan in 2015. The book becomes a bestseller, is translated into over 30 countries, it is shielded on the big screen, and the Kavaguchi can go to the cafeteria. A series. The second part of it is expected to be released this year.
In the book « Everything you are looking for, lies in the library » (« Lokus Publishing ») Michiko Aoyama tells of a mysterious librarian in Tokyo, who has the ability to look at the souls of readers and knows exactly which book to choose for them to help them. The Japanese writer’s novel is also a bestseller translated into over 20 languages.
« We are definitely watching an increased demand for this type of literature in Bulgaria in recent years. Readers are increasingly looking for books that combine the warm atmosphere, human relationships and a slight dose of magical or unusual in everyday life, » Kremena Metodieva, manager of Lokus Publishing, commented on Dnevnik. In it, a young woman who still recovers from the loss of her brother falls into a coastal restaurant. Takahashi explores the healing power of love and memory, enriching the story with delicious descriptions of typical Japanese dishes and recipes.
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« These are stories that offer simultaneous escape from the stress of everyday life without being completely detached from reality, » says Kremena Metodieva. « These titles have attracted us with several aspects: first, they create worlds that are simultaneously known and magical, which is a lot of people who are available. Loss, finding your own path, a sense of belonging – topics that are always up -to -date.
| She says they plan to enrich the catalog of book publishing from this genre and are currently working on several new titles. |
Very often in novels, as well as their covers, cats are present. In the novel « We will prescribe a cat » the readers find themselves on the last floor of an old building on a small street in Kyoto, where « Kokoro/ Clinic for the Soul » is located. The mysterious psychiatric clinic offers its patients a lot of unconventional treatment – Dr. Kokoro prescribes them a cat, but only those who are willing to look within themselves are welcome, writes in the book’s synopsis.
It is rare to see a new genre of translation literature to attract such a large audience, and some publishers compare the growing interest in it to the success of the Scandinavian Noir along the Millennium trilogy of Stig Larson more than a decade ago, writes the New York Times. « This is the biggest translation boom we’ve had for some time, » said Sarah Nelson, editor at Harper Publishing House. She also believes that these novels resonate with readers because they promise an escape from turbulence and the uncertainty of the present.
« There is an aspect of care for themselves, » says Judith Ker, a publisher at Harper Collins. The First for Women edition describes them as comforting and invigorating, with no complex plot with characters that cause empathy and solidarity, so they always find themselves in ordinary places where they can more easily tell their stories.
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Korea Times also points out how last year Korean literature has been scheduled for popularity in the UK, in response to which « Pengin Randham House » has released several titles, including Marigold Mind Laundry by Jungun Yang, the Poot of Yang Huang and The Healing
« The most popular is the healing fiction from Korea, which was created to calm the reader by exploring the modern problems surrounding the mental health and the pressure of everyday life that are related to all cultures, » explains the Pengin Randham House, « Korea Times quoted. In an interview, Jungun Yang, the author of Marigold Mind Laundry, noted that she hopes to read her books to bring comfort and happiness, emphasizing the therapeutic effect of her novel.
A recognition of the South Korean literary was also the broadcast of Khan Kang as Nobel Laureate, although her books are not in this genre, which has been awarded for its « intense poetic prose that is confronted with historical trauma and reveals the fragility of human life. » She creates her own « striking literary aesthetics, » says Oh Hyun-Yup, a professor of literature at Korean University, quotes BTA. The only one published on her Bulgarian novel, The Vegetarian, brings the Korean writer and the « Me Booker » award in 2016.
Titles of the so -called literature that heals can be found on the shelves and at the Mahala bookstore in Sofia, which is distinguished by its selection of foreign language literature.
« And those, like a large part of our books at all, arrive at the request of clients. This allows us to keep track of the trends in literature and what changes to the readership flavors. It can be said that this type of novels are becoming more popular. Maybe after K-pop, Squid Game and » Parasite « was time. who is a translator and one of the creators of the neighborhood.
| Increasingly, readers are arriving for us looking for the titles of South Korean and Japanese authors, not any titles (because literature from this part of the world is vast), but precisely cozy, magical readings that have the gift of calming. Since Nobel Prize winner Khan Kang is South Korean, but her writing cannot by no means be assigned to the Healing Fiction category. « |
In recent months, there have been titles such as Asako Yuzuki’s « Oil », « Before the coffee cooled » and « Before we forget what the kindness » of Toshikazu Kawaguchi, the « Universal Dream Shop » of Lee Mie, « Sweet Business Pasta » by Durian Sukegawa and others.
« I suspect that as a whole night watching a person’s series, he may want to release a documentary about octopuses, so the trend of Healing Fiction at some point will lead to overdose and people will start looking for harsher readings. He is healing.
