Breasts and eggs - English

A captivating novel about three women struggling to define their destinies in contemporary Tokyo. Hailed by the New York Times as a "Notable Book of the Year" and included in Elena Ferrante's list of the 40 best books by female authors. On a hot summer day in a poor Tokyo suburb, we meet three women: Natsuko, thirty years old, her older sister Makiko, and her teenage daughter Midoriko. Makiko, an aging hostess worried about the loss of her beauty, has traveled to Tokyo in search of breast augmentation surgery. She is accompanied by Midoriko, who has recently stopped speaking, finding herself unable to cope with her changing body and her mother's self-obsession. Her silence dominates Natsuko's cramped apartment, forcing each woman to confront her fears and her relationships with one another. Eight years later, we meet Natsuko again. Now a writer, she finds herself on a return journey to her hometown, recalling the memories of that summer and her family's past, as she faces her uncertain future. In "Breasts and Eggs," Mieko Kawakami paints a radical and intimate portrait of contemporary working-class women in Japan, narrating the poignant journeys of three women in a society where difficulties challenge their fate. This is an unforgettable first experience in English from a major new international talent. 'Bold, modern, and surprising' - Ann Yu, author of Slow Cooked Pork
'Stunning and stimulating' - Naoise Dolan, author of Exciting Times

Shortlisted for the Warwick Prize for Women in Translation

Translated from Japanese by Sam Bett and David Boyd.