Title- Sweet Bean Paste
Author- Durian Sukegawa
Publisher- Oneworld
Format- Kindle Edition
Pages- 186
Rating- 3.5/5
Author- Durian Sukegawa
Publisher- Oneworld
Format- Kindle Edition
Pages- 186
Rating- 3.5/5
Summary- Sentaro works at Doraharu, a dorayaki shop in the Cherry Blossom Street. He spends his days standing in front of the hot griddle making pancakes and using readymade sweet bean paste to fill them for the dorayaki. His life is a mess as he had been in jail for a while and he is also addicted to alcohol. He also doesn't like his job as his dream was to become a writer. Then he meets Tokue Yoshii, an old woman who wants to work in the shop. Her sweet bean paste is the best he has ever tasted, however, her fingers are bent which makes him a little sceptical about hiring her. Finally he decides that she will only make the bean paste and not come in front of the customers in case they grow suspicious about her appearance. He thinks that as old as she is, she won't be able to continue for long and in the meantime, he will learn the secret of the recipe from her. However, as he is learning, a friendship also starts to grow between them. Her delicious sweet bean paste starts attracting a lot of customers and business at Doraharu blooms like never before. Eventually she also engages herself in attending to the customers due to which words of her appearance spread amongst the people, leading to the shop's dwindling sales and revealing a secret which she had kept from him.
Review- This is a touching story about friendship between two people of dissimilar age groups. It teaches us the magic of loving and caring. It clearly proves that one's past can have devastating consequences on one's present even if it was destiny's role. It also throws light on the ill effects of social stigma. The mental state of those people who had stayed in confinement has been perfectly portrayed here. It also conveys the message that "You should either love what you do or do what you love."
Sentaro is the protagonist in this story. He is a young man who had been in jail for some crime. Doraharu's owner had bailed him out for which he is forced to work there to repay his debt. Tokue on the other hand is an old woman with a dark secret who loves to cook so much that she is ready to work at Doraharu in exchange for a very meagre pay. Though they are so different from each other, after working together for a while, they become friends. Tokue starts treating Sentaro like her son which she never had and Sentaro also always thought about his lost mother when he looked at her. Wakana is another character in the story who arrives at Doraharu as a customer but eventually becomes attached to Tokue.
Though this is quite short a book, but, the pace of the story is very slow and it is also quite descriptive which was a bit tiring for me at some points. Though the author addresses serious topics like disability, social stigma, etc. still the description of changes in nature as one season rolls into another, makes it a cozy read perfect for a lazy afternoon. It is a story that proves that, in this evil world, there is still some goodness left.
Sentaro is the protagonist in this story. He is a young man who had been in jail for some crime. Doraharu's owner had bailed him out for which he is forced to work there to repay his debt. Tokue on the other hand is an old woman with a dark secret who loves to cook so much that she is ready to work at Doraharu in exchange for a very meagre pay. Though they are so different from each other, after working together for a while, they become friends. Tokue starts treating Sentaro like her son which she never had and Sentaro also always thought about his lost mother when he looked at her. Wakana is another character in the story who arrives at Doraharu as a customer but eventually becomes attached to Tokue.
Though this is quite short a book, but, the pace of the story is very slow and it is also quite descriptive which was a bit tiring for me at some points. Though the author addresses serious topics like disability, social stigma, etc. still the description of changes in nature as one season rolls into another, makes it a cozy read perfect for a lazy afternoon. It is a story that proves that, in this evil world, there is still some goodness left.
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