🚨SPOILER ALERT 🚨
The Cat Who Saved Books by Sōsuke Natsukawa, translated by Louise Heal Kawai
"Books have tremendous power."
Well, indeed they do. ❤️
The story follows Rintaro, a young book lover who has just lost his grandfather, the owner of a secondhand bookshop. While Rintaro is grieving, a talking tabby cat named Tiger suddenly appears and takes him on a series of strange journeys through four magical labyrinths.
In each labyrinth, Rintaro has to save books from people who have very different ideas about what books are for.
It sounds like a whimsical fantasy, but underneath the talking cat and magical labyrinths, I think the book is actually commenting on some very real problems with reading today.
The first labyrinth is about books being imprisoned. A man owns an enormous collection of books but treats them more like trophies than something to actually read.
The first labyrinth is about books being imprisoned. A man has an enormous collection of books, but he treats them more like possessions than something meant to be read.
I especially liked this one because it reminded me of myself. 😂
I buy lots of books, proudly put them on my shelves… and then sometimes don't actually read them.
Yet. 😂
It made me think about whether owning books is the same as actually appreciating them.
In the second labyrinth, Rintaro encounters a professor who cuts books into pieces and simplifies them so people can read them more quickly.
And honestly, I could kind of relate to this one too. 😂
There are definitely times when I look at a really thick book and think, “Is there a shorter version?”
But the story makes an interesting point: sometimes the effort of reading is part of the experience. If we remove all the difficult or challenging parts, we might also lose something important along the way.
The third labyrinth focuses on a publisher who sees books mainly as products.
Books that don't sell are considered worthless and are thrown away.
This one made me think about how easily books can become just another commercial product. We talk about bestsellers, sales figures and what everyone else is reading.
But does a book's value really depend on how many copies it sells?
Sometimes a book that sells very little might still have a huge impact on one particular reader.
And then comes the fourth and final labyrinth, which is probably the most personal one.
Rintaro has to rescue Sayo, and this time the challenge goes beyond simply saving books. He begins to understand that the real power of books isn't just in the physical books themselves.
It's in what they can do for people.
They can challenge us, change how we see the world and, most importantly, help us understand other people.
I think that's probably what stayed with me most.
This book also made me think a little more about why I read. Books aren't just something to collect, finish or tick off a reading list. They can make us think, make us feel, and sometimes help us understand people who are completely different from us.
At the same time, I have to admit that some parts felt a little too preachy for me. The message about the importance of books is quite clear, and sometimes I felt the book was trying a little too hard to make sure I understood the lesson.
And perhaps the biggest takeaway for me is that reading isn't really about how many books we read.
It's about what those books do to us.
If you love books about books, reading and the power of stories, this is definitely worth picking up. ❤️
May xx
