Day Five
How Do You Live by Genjaburo Yoshino
Originally published in 1937
Translated into English in 2021
Hailed as a classic in Japan, it is a story about a boy called Copper (Named after the famous astronomer Nicholas Copernicus), who lives with his widowed mother and an uncle. He learns about life as he navigates between classes, friends, and the day-to-day angst a middle schooler experiences.
The book was written for young boys to learn about the ways of life. It is similar to Aeshop's Fables. Genjaburo was meant to write a novel for a magazine but could not do so because of his illness. Instead, came up with the idea to write this one. He discussed topics like imperialism, capitalism, and bullying.
What I loved about this book was the narrative structure. Every time Copper experiences an event in one chapter, his uncle who is also acting as his mentor, writes to him a letter, either explaining or consoling about the event.
I admit the only reason I was interested in this book was because of Hayao Miyazaki’s Academy Award-winning film of the same name, which was thought to be based on the book but later it was told to be merely an inspiration, Which you should watch (don't hold any high expectations though!). The melancholic, reflective tone does show how this book inspired the film.
The downside of this book is it relies too much on philosophy. A little bit of philosophy can be eye-opening. But too much is just skull-shattering. With that said, I do hope you own a copy of this book, if not for the content then at least for the title. It is an experience to look up at your stack of books and read the spine, ‘How Do You Leave?’