Palaver

palaver (noun) :
1. unnecessarily elaborate or complex procedure
2. an improvised conference between two groups, typically those without a shared language or culture

There couldn't have been a better word to describe this story and I've come to wonder if it was built around the title.

Where do I even begin? Over the span of a few weeks where the mother and the son are together in Japan, we are told such a big part of their lives, it's hard to pick a starting point.

Notice how I said « the mother » and « the son », no names, no other qualifiers? That's how the main characters are referred to throughout the book and I have to say, I absolutely loved it. Some might hate it, but I felt like this was such a good addition to the story and the mother-son relationship. As I said before, we learn a lot about them as time passes, so much more than the fact that they are mother and son, because we learn about them as individuals, about the mother's life before the son and the son's life after he left, and what they do while both of them are in Japan. If they were real people, the first word we'd use to describe them would certainly not be their affiliation. Yet, no matter how much they have outside of each other, they are still the mother and the son. They will always be linked by these words.

There is one thing that bothered me in this book : the fact that we never actually see The Cause of the son's departure. Or if we do and I just misunderstood, it wasn't as impactful as it should have been. To me, it felt like we have the context and the aftermath but not The Cause. The catalyst for the son leaving and the two's broken relationship should have been a big thing, in my opinion.

Still, this was such a realistic and raw story. The character development and the healing shown on page is beautiful. I love family who have issues that do the work and get better. Sometimes, it takes decades to be able to forgive and to apologise, and that's okay.

The story unfolds in Tokyo, Japan. I have never been, but this book almost had me booking a flight. It is an ode to the city, punctuated by gorgeous pictures that make us even more immersed in the setting. They are much appreciated, although not necessary : the descriptions are more than enough to have us feeling like we're already there.

The city is made all the more alive by the supporting characters who accompany the son and the mother in their journey. I loved every single one of them, with their stories and their love and their kindness. Chosen family will always make me go weak in the knees and the people from Alan's bar are its very definition. Even the background characters are lovable : from the siblings of the slide to the lady who was smoking and not alright.

I read this book in one sitting, and I can't wait for it to come out so I have an excuse to do it again.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!