Sentaro, a middle aged man, had wanted to become a writer, but he’s failed at that. He now works in a tiny confectionary shop making and selling dorayaki, a type of pancake filled with sweet bean paste. One day, an elderly lady comes into his shop. Tokue’s hands are disfigured due to Hansen’s Disease but she makes the most incredible sweet bean paste. Sentaro offers Tokue a job in the shop making adzuki bean paste for his dorayaki.
When people realise Tokue’s disability is caused by leprosy (Hansen’s Disease) they stop coming to the shop. Then Tokue stops coming to work.
This is a lovely book / novella. There’s a lot of information about how Hansen’s Disease was handled in Japan. The unlikely friendship betweek Sentaro, and Tokue, and a teenage girl is described wonderfully.
The ending almost made me cry.
I do recommend this book!
Read for the PopSugar Reading Challenge 2025
Prompt 28: A book that features an unlikely friendship
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
