The Lantern of Lost Memories

 

The Lantern of Lost Memories / Sanaka Hiiragi
trans. from the Japanese by Jesse Kirkwood
NY: Grand Central Publishing, 2024, c2019.
208 p.

Another Japanese novel, in the genre of healing fiction, and I really, really liked this one. It's a little different, with a bit more darkness to it but an amazing arc to the storyline. It has that tinge of the extraordinary, but with less whimsy, more melancholy and pathos. 

Mr. Hirasaki owns a photo studio somewhere in limbo, between the living and the dead. When a person dies, they are escorted to his shop (or one of many like it) and given the chance to view their life again, choosing one memory to relieve before they go on to the other side. 

Mr. Hirasaki is swamped with other people's memories, but has no recollection of who he is or why he has this role. He just has one photo to try to help him remember. 

This short novel follows loosely connected characters - first, Hatsue, a 92 yr old woman who was a nursery teacher and wants to relive a day from her career. She's happy and so are her memories. Then we have Waniguchi, a yakuza who is also somehow empathetic and protective; his memories are conflicted. Finally Mr. Hirasaki meets Mitsuru, a young girl who has had a short tragic life. He hates when his clients are children, and in this case he engages more actively with her moment of revisiting a memory than he really should... 

I found this read touching, highlighting the best of people even amidst tragedy or squalor. The instinct to sacrifice, and care for others, comes to the forefront even in those you might not expect to see it from. The concept of the story was a bit unusual, fresh for the genre, and allowed for some philosophical talk on life and memory to be included. The characters were complex, even the mysterious Mr. Hirasaki, despite the blank slate of his past. 

I thought this was a particularly thoughtful and engaging read; some trauma is involved but not gratuitously. There is an edge of darkness and grief that fits the story of a world in limbo between life and death, but also a beautiful sense of transcendence of the banal and everyday. 

One of my favourites so far. Recommended.