Sherif Dhaimish
Publishing Consultant Editor Project Manager
The Little House
By Kyoko Nakajima | Translated from Japanese by Ginny Tapley Takemori | Published by Darf Publishers, 2019
Role: Editorial Project Manager
320 pages | B-format | Softback
Set in the early Showa era (1926-89), The Little House follows Taki, a maidservant writing her nostalgic memories of life with the middle-class Hirai family in their modest European-style house on Tokyo's outskirts. Her journal captures refined middle-class life from her gentle perspective. However, a startling final chapter added after Taki's death reveals facts not described in her notebook, suddenly transforming what seemed like nostalgic memoir into a dramatic, flesh-and-blood story. Nakajima combines skillful dialogue with a dazzling ending in this polished, masterful work that won the prestigious Naoki Prize.