The Miracles of the Namiya General Store Hardcover – September 24, 2019

I’m not usually a fiction or fantasy/time warping lover but this was a great book! Balanced realistic with fantasy.

In seriousness, I didn't really all out cry but there were a few moments in this book that brought me to the verge of tears. But they're touching, inspirational, moving happy tears, not sad depressive misery tears.The plot is really well thought out, the writing is very tight. I've read a few other Keigo Higashino books before but they were all detective crime novels. This is the first book he wrote that is is not a murder-mystery (that I know of). I read it over the course of a few days but if I could've probably read it in one sitting if I had 5 to 6 hours to spare. It's a short book.My wife actually read this first in Chinese, and she was positively glowing after she finished it. I've been eagerly waiting for this to be translated to English for a few years now! Worth the wait!Note: Do NOT watch the Chinese movie version of this book before reading it. It kinda missed the tone of the novel but will spoil you with all the major plot points that it might ruin your enjoyment of this story. I really wish I hadn't watched the movie first.

[Spoiler alert]What a delightful and pleasurable read. The novel is constructed in a very clever way, like you are peeling off layers of an onion but finishing the story with a whole onion and an understanding of how it all comes together.The premise of the story is about an old man who owns a general store and who starts answering people’s inane questions. But those questions become more serious over time, and the old man finds himself dispensing advice on some really difficult situations. He starts questioning himself as to whether his advice is helpful.The letters and the back and forth between the old man and the authors are vignettes of different Japanese people. It takes you through a little history of Japan, like the boycott of the Olympics, the Beatles’ performance in Japan, the housing bubble, the rise of the Internet.Every story touches you in a different way. The fencer who loved her trainer. The little boy whose corrupt parents killed themselves to erase his identity so he could have a chance at a new life. The young woman who started off as a hostess but thanks to the general store ultimately becomes a successful business woman. The floundering musician whose harmonica song makes an artist of the orphaned girl who heard it.Then there’s the awesome time travel element, where some young thieves rob a house and end up in a time warp and answering these letters on behalf of the general store.The novel comes a full circle when the thieves mistakenly harm one of the letter authors whose lives they had changed for the better by giving her enough information about future trends but not being too specific.There are also clever threads in the story to the orphanage whom every character has a connection to.A delightfully and ingeniously constructed novel that manages to confuse and thrill — and while being wildly mystical somehow seems like it could be a real story.

I found this very enjoyable. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I liked the writing and the message. At first, I thought how everything was tied together was too obvious, but it wasn’t. The writing and story telling were very clever.

A captivating and heart warming tale from the masterful Higashino, Although a departure from his extra crime novels, this is a fascinating and spiritual exploration of the human spirit and the values which bind us in today’s disconnected world. Although painted on a surreal canvas, Higashino quickly draws the reader into the complex and remarkable story as he always does. Part fantasy and part morality tale, this is indeed a “Miracle”.Bravo, Higashino.

A thoughtful story is told in a funny way. Everything is connected tightly like a spider web that I can’t pull myself off the book once I start. I would like to read it in one go if I have enough time to spare. Even the story has a bit a fairy-tale element inside, but everyone might find little of themselves in there. There might be devastation and disappointment sometimes, but there’s always hope also.

This is a very original story, unlike anything else I've read. I generally liked it, but I thought it read like a young adult novel. I've found this author's detective novels to be better written. I'd rate the book a 3.5 out of 5.

I have become very fond of translations of Japanese novels. This book does not disappoint.This Miracles of the Namiya General Store does have some fantasy which is the kind I wish could be true. No monsters or other worlds involved. Just people who could be real and time that doesn't follow a straight line.At first, the stories in this book don't seem to be connected, but gradually we start learning that these stories aren't random.This book is a little mysterious, a little dreamy, and has a store with an owner you wish could be in your town. An experience not a read.