Harada Hika
Hanover Square Press
30 September 2025 (2023)
320
eBook - PDF
Contemporary Fiction
ARC via Edelweiss
The Night Library on the outskirts of Tokyo isn't your ordinary library. It's only open from seven o'clock to midnight. It exclusively stores books by deceased authors, and none of them can be checked out -- instead, they're put on public display to be revered and celebrated by the library's visitors, akin to a book museum.
Otoha Higuchi, the newest employee, has been recruited to work at the library by the mysterious anonymous owner. There, Otoha meets the other staff, comprised of former librarians and booksellers who, like her, have been damaged in some way by the rocky publishing industry – yet none of them have ever given up on their dedication to books.
Night after night, Otoha bonds with her colleagues over meals in the library café, each of which are inspired by the literature on the shelves. When strange occurrences start happening around the library that may bring the threat of closure, it forces Otoha and the library staff to rethink their entire relationship with work and what they really want in life.
Dinner at the Night Library was a book that had a interesting premise on one hand but a confused focus on the other. On the plus side, the concept of the night library was a fascinating one, and I enjoyed hearing about the library, its staff and its visitors. What didn't work for me was the dinner/food focus, especially with how it featured in the title too. The dinners in question were meals reconstructed from or inspired by literature, which could have been a fun theme on its own but which didn't really gel in any meaningful way with the rest of the action. They felt more like unrelated asides and therefore I really couldn't see the point of that aspect, as it only seemed to distract from the rest. The story would have worked just as well without the meals described in such detail simply focusing on the night library and the interactions of the people there. I am giving it fours stars. The library part I really enjoyed, but the dinner aspect seemed extraneous. If you like this style of cost Japanese literature, you are certain to find something to like here too, but you can skim through the meal scenes and still enjoy the rest of the story.
I received this book as a free eBook ARC via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.
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