quiet chapters

The Convenience Store by the Sea

Sonoko Machida • 2025

I Who Have Never Known Men

Jacqueline Harpman • 2025

<p><b>SISTERHOOD. SECRETS. SURVIVAL.</b><br> <br> <b>Discover the haunting, heart-breaking post-apocalyptic TikTok sensation, now available in a beautiful hardback gift edition.</b><br> <br> Deep underground, thirty-nine women are kept in isolation in a cage. Above ground, a world awaits. Has it been abandoned? Devastated by a virus?<br> <br> Watched over by guards, the women have no memory of how they got there, no notion of time, and only vague recollection of their lives before. But, as the burn of electric light merges day into night and numberless years pass, a young girl - the fortieth prisoner - sits alone an outcast in the corner.<br> <br> Soon she will show herself to be the key to the others' escape and survival in the strange world that awaits them above ground. The woman who will never know men.<br> <br> <b>WITH A NEW INTRODUCTION BY SOPHIE MACKINTOSH, BOOKER PRIZE-LONGLISTED AUTHOR OF THE <i>WATER CURE</i><br> <br> **<i>Orlanda</i>, the next sensation from Jacquline Harpman, is available now**</b></p>

The Memory Police

Yōko Ogawa • 2019

My Year of Rest and Relaxation A Novel

Ottessa Moshfegh • 2019

Named a Best Book of the Year by The Washington Post, Time, NPR, Vice, Bustle, The New York Times, The Guardian, Kirkus Reviews, Entertainment Weekly, The AV Club, & Audible A New York Times Bestseller • New York Times Readers Pick: 100 Best Books of the 21st Century “One of the most compelling protagonists modern fiction has offered in years: a loopy, quietly furious pillhead whose Ambien ramblings and Xanaxed b*tcheries somehow wend their way through sad and funny and strange toward something genuinely profound.” — Entertainment Weekly “Darkly hilarious . . . [Moshfegh’s] the kind of provocateur who makes you laugh out loud while drawing blood.” —Vogue From one of our boldest, most celebrated new literary voices, a novel about a young woman's efforts to duck the ills of the world by embarking on an extended hibernation with the help of one of the worst psychiatrists in the annals of literature and the battery of medicines she prescribes. Our narrator should be happy, shouldn't she? She's young, thin, pretty, a recent Columbia graduate, works an easy job at a hip art gallery, lives in an apartment on the Upper East Side of Manhattan paid for, like the rest of her needs, by her inheritance. But there is a dark and vacuous hole in her heart, and it isn't just the loss of her parents, or the way her Wall Street boyfriend treats her, or her sadomasochistic relationship with her best friend, Reva. It's the year 2000 in a city aglitter with wealth and possibility; what could be so terribly wrong? My Year of Rest and Relaxation is a powerful answer to that question. Through the story of a year spent under the influence of a truly mad combination of drugs designed to heal our heroine from her alienation from this world, Moshfegh shows us how reasonable, even necessary, alienation can be. Both tender and blackly funny, merciless and compassionate, it is a showcase for the gifts of one of our major writers working at the height of her powers.

Cleopatra and Frankenstein

Coco Mellors • 2023

More Days at the Morisaki Bookshop

Satoshi Yagisawa • 2024

Days at the Morisaki Bookshop

Satoshi Yagisawa • 2023

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow

Gabrielle Zevin • 2022

Kairos

Jenny Erpenbeck • 2024

The Tree Doctor

Marie Mutsuki Mockett • 2024

The Tatami Time Machine Blues

Tomihiko Morimi • 2023

Tatami Galaxy

Tomihiko Morimi • 2024

A Tale for the Time Being

Ruth Ozeki • 2013

The Wall

Marlen Haushofer • 2022

The Bell Jar: The Illustrated Edition

Sylvia Plath • 2022

The Practice of Not Thinking A Guide to Mindful Living

Ryunosuke Koike • 2022

The Days of Abandonment

Elena Ferrante • 2005

Breasts and Eggs

Mieko Kawakami • 2021

All the Lovers in the Night

Mieko Kawakami • 2023

Happy Hour

Marlowe Granados • 2020

Stargazer

Laurie Petrou • 2022

Dear Dolly On Love, Life and Friendship

Dolly Alderton • 2023

Days at the Torunka Cafe

Satoshi Yagisawa • 2025

Tom Lake: A Novel

Ann Patchett • 2023

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn

Betty Smith • 2009

My Brilliant Friend

Elena Ferrante • 2020

Blue Sisters

Coco Mellors • 2025

The three Blue sisters are exceptionaland exceptionally different. Avery, the eldest and a recovering heroin addict turned strait-laced lawyer, lives with her wife in London; Bonnie, a former boxer, works as a bouncer in Los Angeles following a devastating defeat; and Lucky, the youngest, models in Paris while trying to outrun her hard-partying ways. They also had a fourth sister, Nicky, whose unexpected death left the family reeling. A year later, as they each navigate grief, addiction, and ambition, they find they must return to New York to stop the sale of the apartment they were raised in. But coming home is never as easy as it seems. As the sisters reckon with the disappointments of their childhood and the loss of the only person who held them together, they realize that the greatest secrets theyve been keeping might not have been from one another but from themselves. Imbued with Coco Mellorss signature combination of humor and heart, Blue Sisters is a story of what it takes to keep living after lossand, ultimately, to fall in love with life again.[Bokinfo].

The Lantern of Lost Memories

Sanaka Hiiragi • 2027

Almond: A Novel

Won-Pyung Sohn • 2021

Lonely Castle in the Mirror

Mizuki Tsujimura • 2023

Everything I Know about Love: A Memoir

Dolly Alderton • 2021

Lost Souls Meet Under a Full Moon A Novel

Mizuki Tsujimura • 2025

The Healing Hippo of Hinode Park

Michiko Aoyama • 2025

The enchanting new novel by the multimillion-copy bestselling author of What You Are Looking For Is in the Library, about five strangers who each seek comfort from a healing hippo ride. Nestled at the bottom of a five-story apartment block in the community of Advance Hill is the children's playground in Hinode Park. If you look to the side, standing on stubby legs, is a hippo. Its upturned eyes give it a teary look, yet for decades, its quiet power has sustained the hearts of one community. According to urban legend, if you touch the exact part of the hippo where you have an ailment or wound, you will see swift signs of recovery.  Meet the apartment residents who each find their way to Kabahiko: Kanato, who hopes in vain to recover the stellar marks he once scored; Sawa, a new mother with no friends, wishes to be able to communicate as she once did when she was an award-winning retail assistant; Chiharu, off work as a wedding-planner, longs to listen better for the happiness of others; Yuya avoids sports day with a fake injury, only to find he really is in pain; Kazuhiko, despite his fading eyes, seeks to see life's everyday wonder. A quietly powerful story of hope, friendship and connection, Michiko Aoyama's beloved bestseller is a celebration of everyday encounters. Its subtle portrayal of the magic of community will lodge itself in every reader's heart as the eclectic cast of characters find healing in their lives—though they may not always find it in the ways they expect.

Tokyo Ueno Station

Yu Miri • 2020

What You Are Looking For Is in the Library

Michiko Aoyama • 2023

THE NATIONAL BESTSELLER * A TIME BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR * A WASHINGTON POST BEST FEEL GOOD BOOK OF YEAR<br><br>What are you looking for? So asks Tokyo’s most enigmatic librarian. For Sayuri Komachi is able to sense exactly what each visitor to her library is searching for and provide just the book recommendation to help them find it.<br><br>A restless retail assistant looks to gain new skills, a mother tries to overcome demotion at work after maternity leave, a conscientious accountant yearns to open an antique store, a recently retired salaryman searches for newfound purpose.<br><br>In Komachi’s unique book recommendations they will find just what they need to achieve their dreams. What You Are Looking For Is in the Library is about the magic of libraries and the discovery of connection. This inspirational tale shows how, by listening to our hearts, seizing opportunity and reaching out, we too can fulfill our lifelong dreams. Which book will you recommend?<br>

Dinner at the Night Library

Hika Harada • 2025

<b>The Night Library is no ordinary library. </b><b>Within it are found the rarest and most unusual collections - the books of deceased famous writers:</b><br> <br> <b>the books they wrote;</b><br> <br> <b>the books that inspired them;</b><br> <br> <b>the books they loved.</b> All Otaha Higuchi wants to do is work with books. However, the exhausting nature of her work at a chain bookstore, combined with her paltry salary and irritating manager quickly bring reality crashing down around her.<br> <br> <br> <br> She is on the verge of quitting when she receives a message from somebody calling themselves 'Seven Rainbows', inviting her to apply for a job at a library with no name, a place referred to simply as 'The Night Library'.<br> <br> <br> <br> After successfully passing the interview, Otaha arrives at The Night Library and her sunny personality immediately earns her comparisons with Anne of Green Gables. For the very first time she feels she has found her place in the world. As well as a treasure trove of books, the library houses a group of likeminded literary misfits, including a legendary chef who prepares incredible meals for the library's employees at the end of each day.<br> <br> <br> <br> Together they embark on a series of bookish adventures. But when the library's mysterious owner decides to temporarily close the library, Otaha and her friends fear that it may not reopen and that the peace they have found there will forever be lost to them. <br> <br> <br> <br> Is their friendship and their faith in the value of books strong enough to save it? And what will remain if it isn't? <br> <br> <br> <br> <i>Dinner at the Night Library</i> is a heartwarming literary mystery translated by Philip Gabriel, the translator of <i>IQ84</i> and <i>The Travelling Cat Chronicles</i>, filled with quirky characters, Japanese culture and mouthwatering meals. It asks why books matter and offers a cheer of encouragement to everybody who believes they do. Ultimately, it is a paean to reading and the relevance of books through the ages--past, present, and future.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br>

Tender Is the Flesh

Agustina Bazterrica • 2020

Yellowface

R. F. Kuang • 2024

Rouge

Mona Awad • 2023

Babel

R. F. Kuang • 2022

Instant #1 New York Times Bestseller from the author of The Poppy War   “Absolutely phenomenal. One of the most brilliant, razor-sharp books I've had the pleasure of reading that isn't just an alternative fantastical history, but an interrogative one; one that grabs colonial history and the Industrial Revolution, turns it over, and shakes it out.” -- Shannon Chakraborty, bestselling author of The City of Brass From award-winning author R. F. Kuang comes Babel, a thematic response to The Secret History and a tonal retort to Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell that grapples with student revolutions, colonial resistance, and the use of language and translation as the dominating tool of the British empire. Traduttore, traditore: An act of translation is always an act of betrayal. 1828. Robin Swift, orphaned by cholera in Canton, is brought to London by the mysterious Professor Lovell. There, he trains for years in Latin, Ancient Greek, and Chinese, all in preparation for the day he’ll enroll in Oxford University’s prestigious Royal Institute of Translation—also known as Babel. Babel is the world's center for translation and, more importantly, magic. Silver working—the art of manifesting the meaning lost in translation using enchanted silver bars—has made the British unparalleled in power, as its knowledge serves the Empire’s quest for colonization. For Robin, Oxford is a utopia dedicated to the pursuit of knowledge. But knowledge obeys power, and as a Chinese boy raised in Britain, Robin realizes serving Babel means betraying his motherland. As his studies progress, Robin finds himself caught between Babel and the shadowy Hermes Society, an organization dedicated to stopping imperial expansion. When Britain pursues an unjust war with China over silver and opium, Robin must decide… Can powerful institutions be changed from within, or does revolution always require violence?

The Only One Left

Riley Sager • 2023

Elsewhere: A Novel

Gabrielle Zevin · 2007

A TIME MAGAZINE BEST YA BOOK OF ALL TIME<br/><br/>Beloved by generations of readers, Elsewhere is an original, moving novel about love, loss, and the meaning of it all from the New York Times–bestselling author of Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow and The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry.<br/><br/>Is it possible to grow up while getting younger?<br/><br/>Welcome to Elsewhere. The beaches are marvelous. It’s quiet and peaceful. You can’t get sick, and you’ll never turn even a day older . . .<br/><br/>This is where fifteen-year-old Liz Hall ends up, after she has died. It is a place so like Earth yet completely different. Here, Liz will age backward from the day of her death until she becomes a baby and returns to Earth.<br/><br/>But Liz wants to turn sixteen, not fourteen again. She wants to get her driver’s license. She wants to graduate from high school and go to college. Now that she’s dead, though, Liz is forced to live a life she doesn’t want with a grandmother she has never met before. And it isn’t going well. How can Liz let go of the only life she has ever known and embrace a new one? Is it possible that a life lived in<br/>reverse is no different from a life lived forward?<br/><br/>A book that transcends genre and category, Elsewhere is a modern YA classic.

Loved One: A Novel

Aisha Muharrar • 2025

Hunchback

Saou Ichikawa • 2025

Butter

Asako Yuzuki • 2024

Strange Buildings

Uketsu • 2026

Strange Houses

Uketsu • 2025

Strange Pictures

Uketsu • 2025

When the Museum Is Closed

Emi Yagi • 2026

Beyond the End of the World

Amie Kaufman • 2022

<p>Perfect for fans of Brandon Sanderson and Laini Taylor, this much-anticipated sequel to New York Times bestselling authors Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner's The Other Side of the Sky is a thrilling race against time--with a tantalizing star-crossed love and an electric conclusion.</p> <p>Time to find a way between worlds. Time to find each other again. Time to do the impossible.</p> <p>Above, in the cloudlands, Nimh has no memory of her past, only an aching, undying certainty that she has left something--someone--behind. But while she struggles to recall her identity, an imposter wields her name with deadly purpose.</p> <p>Below, on the surface, North looks to the sky, desperate to join the person he loves and return to his world. But with only a traitor willing to help him, and others clamoring for him to take Nimh's place, his home seems more unreachable than ever.</p> <p>Tragedy looms as the cloudland engines falter and mist rains terror on the surface, and in their desperation to reunite and save their people, Nimh and North face one ultimate question: can they defy their love and their destiny to save their homes?</p> <p>Or will the spark between them ignite their worlds, and consume them all together?</p> <p>Praise for The Other Side of the Sky:</p> <p>"Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner prove they are two living goddesses of writing, creating two compelling worlds with high stakes and gripping emotions." --Sarah Rees Brennan, New York Times bestselling author of the Demons Lexicon trilogy and the Lynburn Legacy series</p> <p>"A vivid and compulsive thriller set in a beautiful, perilous world of myths and treachery. You won't want to put it down." --Laini Taylor, New York Times bestselling author of the Daughter of Smoke and Bone series</p> <p>"I was left breathless by the book's twists and turns, and was unprepared for the ending--it blew me away. Stop everything and read it!" --C. S. Pacat, bestselling author of Dark Rise</p> <p>"A book that absolutely shimmers with beauty." --Buzzfeed</p>