If Cats Disappeared from the World

 

If Cats Disappeared from the World / Genki Kawamura
trans. from the Japanese by Eric Selland
London: Picador, 2018, c2012.
202 p.

I read this little book last week; I've owned for a long time but have just picked it up now. It's funny how many books like this I have on my shelves - ones that have been patiently waiting their turn, and once I open them I can't stop reading. 

This is a short novel, just 202 short pages. It is loosely in the form of a letter, written by a young man who is all alone in the world aside from his cat Cabbage. He's just found out that he has a brain tumour and only weeks to live. But his week turns surreal as the Devil appears to him and tells him that he can choose one thing to disappear from the world in exchange for another day of life. 

He gets a few extra days but the idea of exchanging things starts to pall. What is life worth living for and what parts make it all worthwhile? When the Devil suggests that cats disappear next, our narrator realizes he has a vital choice to make. 

Throughout this short narrative, told in a confessional, almost offhand style, deep questions are raised. We learn that the narrator's mother has died and that he is estranged from his father; he has a loose connection with an old girlfriend, which is important to the story. But his closest emotional relationship is with Cabbage. And through his reflections, we learn more about his past and his issues with his father. 

I found this a touching story, on the edge of being too sentimental but counterbalanced by the humour and irreverence of the Devil and the narrator's reactions. Even with the brevity and direct style, it causes the reader to think more deeply about what is worth cherishing in life, especially when you're about to leave it. I'm not sure why it hit me right now, but it did have an emotional impact. I thought the ending was perfect, resolving the interiority and isolation of this character's story with a resonant visual image of reconnection. Really interesting read, with some memorable moments.