Wonderfully different and rather beautiful, this book sits between the world of the living and the dead, and explores the special nature of memories. Author Sanaka Hiiragi gently and with great empathy takes the reader on a potential road to travel after death. She writes with an eloquent yet provocative pen, allowing words to float into vivid meaning. I’ve read a fair few novels from Japanese storytellers, from crime right through to science fiction and I absolutely delight in the thought-provoking tales that sit on the quirky side of life. Translator Jesse Kirkwood, enables you to not even consider the translation but just sink straight into and become enveloped by the words. Several stories slide into place, with one person shepherding the souls through their task of reliving a special memory. I found myself transported into the locations and times that meant so much, able to emotionally connect with each person. I loved how it made me think and feel, so had to include this as not only a Liz Pick of the Month, but also a LoveReading Star Book. Warm, wise, and unique, The Lantern of Lost Memories is a rewarding read. Highly recommended,
One photograph, one treasured memory, one chance to go back . . .
In a cosy photography studio in the mountains between this world and the next, someone is waking up as if from a dream. A kind man will hand them a hot cup of tea and gently explain that, having reached the end of their life, they have one final task.
There is a stack of photos on their lap, one for every day of their life, and now they must choose the pictures that capture their most treasured memories, which will be placed in a beautiful lantern. Once completed, it will be set spinning, and their cherished moments will flash before their eyes, guiding them to another world.
But, like our most thumbed-over photographs, our favourite memories become faded with age, so each visitor to the studio has the chance to choose one day to return to and photograph afresh. Each has a treasured story to tell, from the old woman rebuilding a community in Tokyo after a disaster, to the flawed Yakuza man who remembers a time when he was kind, and a strong child who is fighting to survive.
Extraordinarily moving and wise, The Lantern of Lost Memories is a beautiful Japanese tale about the people that make us and the moments that change us.
