The aspect of the I-novel characterises the way the Japanese handle the ‘I,’ the way they submerge the subject in descriptions of nature and daily life. On the one hand, this genre invented a way to deal with transcendental matters such as death, the universe, and nature that lurk in the midst of Takashi Hiraide was born in Moji, Kitakyushu in 1950. He has published numerous books of poetry as well as several books of genre-bending essays, including one on poetics and baseball. He currently lives in the west suburbs of Tokyo with a cat and his wife, the poet Michiyo Kawano. Similarly, even though Chibi is a frequent visitor, she never becomes their cat (and their relationship with the cat does eventually become an issue of sorts with the actual owners) -- she is always just the temporary 'guest cat' of the title.

The language and descriptions are careful, elegant and lovely; while Hiraide’s book is ostensibly about a cat, it is more precisely about space and ownership. The book renders an unusually intimate, detailed and vivid picture of a place that is simultaneously private and open." - V. V. Ganeshananthan, The New York Times Book ReviewThere’s not really much more to say about the story, except that is a collection of fragments – of events that gradually change the couple’s lives. Chibi becomes a source of joy to them both and they began to see the beauty around them. There are passages about Chibi’s activities – her agility, her unexpected ways and playfulness. Lyrical and captivating . . . I will revisit The Guest Cat with pleasure, much as I return to favourite poems and paintings and memories, Huffington Post The Guest Cat’ is also, in some ways, a poetic ode to the cat lover. The narrator recalls feeling “absolutely disgusted” on witnessing the sweet affection oozing from his cat-loving friend’s eyes: “Having devoted themselves to cats, body, and soul, they seem at times utterly indifferent to shame.” With time, the narrator and his wife too, become cat lovers. I’m sure many fellow cat lovers will also be nodding in agreement when reading lines such as this: “For me, Chibi is a friend with whom I share an understanding, and who just happens to have taken on the form of a cat.”

An old friend dies the next year, while the old couple living on the property's main house (and from who the narrator and his wife are renting theirs) are also in decline, eventually moving to an old-age home, the man then dying and his wife wanting to settle the estate by putting the property on the market. This is a gentle, thoughtful and subtly profound work, utterly without pretension or pyrotechnics (.....) And at the end, you find yourself confronted with a mystery; a small mystery, perhaps, but one that certainly gives you pause to think. You will want to read The Guest Cat more than once, so you notice more details -- seeing as you can’t do this with life." - Nicholas Lezard, The Guardian Chibi remains a mystery -- and has definite boundary-issues -- so she remains unknowable in many respects, and the novel too keeps a certain distance (the narrator never even revealing his (or anyone's) name, for example). Chibi is a friend with whom I share an understanding, and who just happens to have taken the form of a cat.Moving to what used to be the guesthouse of a larger property, the nameless narrator soon later quits his job, in 1987, to dedicate himself to writing full-time. The Guest Cat is a rare treasure . . . beautiful and profound . . . whether you're a cat lover or not, don't pass this one up One day a cat invites itself into their small kitchen. She is a beautiful creature. She leaves, but the next day comes again, and then again and again. New, small joys accompany the cat; the days have more light and colour. Life suddenly seems to have more promise for the husband and wife; they go walking together, talk and share stories of the cat and its little ways, play in the nearby Garden. But then something happens that will change everything again.

The Guest Cat’ delves into how cats can teach us to take joy in each moment — and how if we can do that, we can make the most of the gift we call life.The long Shōwa era comes to an end with the death of emperor Hirohito in 1989, and the couple move out of the guesthouse soon later, just at the tail-end of Japan's property boom, which soon heads towards a big bust (first published a decade after the events of the close of the book, Japanese readers of The Guest Cat were well-aware of where things were headed in the story). And at the end, you find yourself confronted with a mystery; a small mystery, perhaps, but one that certainly gives you pause to think. You will want to read The Guest Cat more than once, so you notice more details – seeing as you can’t do this with life. And so the changes continued. The ending which gave me much pause (pun not intended) for thought, is ambiguous, a mystery left hanging for you to decide for yourself what had happened – inevitable, maybe. verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{