The narrator of this story is a young boy who forms an affection/attraction for the lady who sells pre-made sandwiches at a local shop. He goes there and doesn’t interact much with her other than to place his order but the reader can see just how much he is affected by her. He draws her portrait and he thinks of her often.

While there aren’t a lot of dramatic moments or grand events in this novella I really enjoyed the quiet exploration of a boy who is entering adolescence and the relationships he has with the other women in his life. There is some humor but best of all is that this was a sweet story without it being over the top. I would certainly love to read more by this author.

A little boy in fourth grade becomes enamored with the woman who sells sandwiches at the supermarket. He nicknames her, Ms Ice Sandwich. Over the summer, he finds himself going to the supermarket every day to buy a sandwich or two from her. He is obsessed with her huge eyes and blue eyelids. And he loves how she doesn't talk or smile with her customers - she just takes their order, puts the sandwich in a bag and takes their money. He is smitten. Of course, his life can't just be about Ms Ice Sandwich. There's his mom, who works from home telling fortunes - or in his eyes, talking and crying with women all day long. She's always busy or on the phone, so they don't really talk anymore. His grandmother, who's house they live in, is slowly dying in her bed. He visits her daily and talks to her about Ms Ice Sandwich. He draws pictures of Ms Ice Sandwich. He wants to paint a picture one day. Oh, and there is Tutti, his friend from school who watches movies with her father all the time, and whom he confides in about Ms Ice Sandwich. As the story unfolds, you learn about this little boy's life, his family, his friends, and the ways in which he views the world. Its sweet, heartwarming, sad, and such a treat to read. I absolutely LOVED Ms Ice Sandwich.

Thank you to Pushkin Press for providing me with a copy of Mieko Kawakami's novella, Ms. Ice Sandwich, in exchange for an honest review.

PLOT - A young boy going through puberty develops a crush on a quirky woman who sells ice sandwiches at a local grocery store.

LIKE/DISLIKE- Ms. Ice Sandwich is part of Pushkin Press' series highlighting Japanese authors. I love reading writers from other countries, but I have to admit that I felt like a lot of this novella was lost in translation. Actually, I'm left unsure whether or not it was lost in translation or just not a complete story. Or perhaps, it was brilliant writing, because it kept me thinking about it long after I put it down.

The most intriguing aspect was the character, Ms. Ice Sandwich. She is a very unusual woman, who wears thick blue eye-shadow and is mocked by many people in the town. The protagonist, is fascinated by her and goes out of his way to visit her sandwich stall. I'm not sure that I quite understand what an ice sandwich is, but I think it was more of a Japanese treat, than a savory or meal item. She, being an adult, has no idea that this kid has a crush on her. Knowing that she is older and the town-weirdo, he keeps his obsession fairly hidden, only spilling partial truths to his friend, a girl he has nicknamed Tutti-Fruiti. I wasn't sure how this crush was going to play out. I kept thinking with the way that the town treats Ms. Ice Sandwich, that she may have been transgendered, but this never came about in the story. It seems her treatment is solely because she dresses quirky and wears too much make-up. This wasn't a strong character or story choice. I was let-down when my anticipation of a greater reveal, never came to fruition.

Kawakami captures a young boy's first crush very well, with plenty of realism. He goes through so many emotions as he is trying to process this new feeling. He also has awkwardness with his peers and is dealing with caring for his sick grandmother. 

The end of Ms. Ice Sandwich was a let-down, with a dull resolution with regard to both the crush and Ms. Ice Sandwich's future. I was wanting a more dramatic or unexpected resolution, but the story just ended on a dull note. It fizzled.

RECOMMEND- Maybe. If you can read Ms. Ice Sandwich in Japanese, I think you might have a better experience. Overall, I enjoyed the story, but I don't think it will be memorable when I look back over my favorite books that I read in 2018.

This novella was charming, if bizarre. A young boy (who really seems pretty gender neutral) is obsessed with a woman who sells sandwiches at the supermarket and goes to visit every day over summer. He never speaks to her or even makes eye contact with her, but rather draws portraits endlessly of her, attempting again and again to get her stunning eyes perfect. 

Once school starts up again, he still goes to visit when he can, but doesn't go nearly as often. He begins developing a friendship with one of the girls there who he has nick-named Tutti Frutti. She encourages him to introduce himself rather than just obsessing from afar. 

Although this novella is short and simple, a lot is conveyed about the nature of relationships as well as the importance of reaching out to others before we lose our chance to talk with them. The main character I found to be charming, and in a way, he reminded me a lot of the students I work with. He has a strange way of arriving at his logic, and it often doesn't make sense to others. Kawakami has given this character great depth in such a short amount of writing, and I found this novella to be overall quite lovely. 

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is a charming and gentle Japanese novella about a young boy’s infatuation with a sandwich seller at his local supermarket, and his gradual understanding that the world around him isn’t quite as simple as it sometimes appears. As he navigates the complexities of relationships – with his mother, his grandmother, his friend – he learns more about people and the differences between them. An enjoyable, if fairly inconsequential read.

First published in Japan in 2013 (in a literary journal) and in 2014 (as part of a novel); published in translation by Pushkin Press on January 23, 2018

Ms. Ice Sandwich is the name bestowed upon a sandwich seller with large eyes and a damaged face by the novel’s young narrator. The narrator is fascinated by Ms. Ice Sandwich; he has a crush or the first experience of love from afar. He sketches her endlessly but never speaks to her except to order a sandwich.

Other kids, and some adults, view Ms. Ice Sandwich as a monster or a freak. She is apparently a victim of surgical malpractice, but whatever the cause of her unusual appearance, the young narrator feels saddened by the meanness that surrounds her. At the same time, when other kids question his obsession with the woman, he stops seeing her, a solution that saddens him until his new friend Tutti gives him some worldly advice that she figured out in the first grade. I won’t spoil the advice, but it is the kind of wisdom that is easily forgotten and from which everyone would benefit.

The novella offers the narrator’s amusing insights into his fourth-grade life as he reacts to a world he is trying to comprehend. His grandmother is dying. He isn’t sure what to make of concepts like aging and death. Girls and adults are mysterious, but Ms. Ice Sandwich is the most mysterious of all.

The story is obviously about growing up, but it is also about friendship. The narrator’s blossoming friendship with Tutti contrasts with the infatuation he feels for Ms. Ice Sandwich. Part of growing up is learning the value of genuine friendship, as is learning that physical appearance is not the standard that should be used to select friends — a lesson that comes late in life to many, if it comes at all.

Ms Ice Sandwich brilliantly captures the wonder and puzzlement of childhood, the burning desire to figure things out and the sense of loss when reality replaces imagination. Learning to say goodbye and coping with loss, real and imagined, is another important part of growing up, one that Mieko Kawakami illustrates in a variety of contexts. But for every loss there is a gain; for every goodbye, there is a hello. That’s another lesson that comes as we experience life, and one that the narrator’s experience will eventually cause him to recognize.

Ms Ice Sandwich is a story of emotions and feelings more than events. The novel’s limitations are also its strengths. The novella uses no more words than it needs. It does not pretend to be epic. Its focus is narrow, but the small world that the narrator inhabits is rich with the kind of details that children notice and that adults take for granted, like the sensation of falling snowflakes. The story is small but the novella’s lessons are large. That’s quite an achievement.

RECOMMENDED

I received an advance copy of this novella through netgalley in exchange for a review.

This was a short but cute novella about a young boy who is fascinated and perhaps a little obsessed with the woman behind the sandwich counter. I think things sometimes get lost in translation, at least for me, because I didn’t find it profound in any way. It wasn’t really a love story as advertised but rather a story about loss. One of the messages I got out of it was not to ask people for granted because they might not be there the next day. Anyways though, cute short read

I had never read anything by Kawakami Mieko before, but I have to admit that this novella caught my interest from the outset. It might have been very brief and left me yearning for more, but I developed an instant liking to her quirky yet utterly captivating writing style. Ultimately, this is not at all a love story and it was never supposed to be one. Instead, it is a fascinating, touching and quiet coming-of-age story with a plethora of lessons to be taught and inspiring passages.

Another issue this short novella tackles is, of course, difference and how people and the society deal with people who are "different". While I felt that the author could have expanded a lot more on this issue rather than just leaving it as a side-issue, perhaps nothing more was needed to be said. One thing I have definitely learned from reading Japanese literature is that, sometimes, subtlety is much more powerful The translation was excellent and flowed very naturally, so very much so that at some point I forgot I was reading Japanese and not Anglophone literature. Not having read the original, I cannot know whether that was a feature of the original text itself or whether it was the translator's magic, but I was quite satisfied with it.

Overall, Ms Ice Sandwich is a very heart-warming and quiet novella about growing up, first love, loss and learning to cope with all these new feelings which inundate kids at that age all of a sudden. I would definitely recommend this to anyone with no exception, as you are certain to gain something upon reading it regardless of your literary preferences.

An absolutely charming novella. A young boy is obsessed with a woman who works at the local sandwich shop. I loved stepping into his world and watching his long-term friendship with Tutti and his close relationship with his Grandmother. So tender and true.

This was a short, sweet novella about a boy (seems like he might have Asperger's) who is fascinated by a sandwich seller and her big eyes, which he things are beautiful. This book is advertised as a love story but I didn't see it that way--more like a coming-of-age. I really enjoyed the voice of the main character and the way he saw things. I which the book would have gone on longer. It was a fun but very quick read that seems like something teens would enjoy.

This was a quick read. Written through a child's perspective, this fell a little flat in conveying the warmth that I felt was intended. Perhaps something was lost in the translation?

This was a great short read. A coming of age and first love story that will resonate with everyone. Loved seeing the dynamic with Tutti unfold. The prose here was beautifully done.

I quite enjoyed this book. It's short and simple enough- a young boy obsesses over a sandwich seller and isn't quite sure how to react when others don't see her the same way as he does.
I liked the other characters introduced into the story and how they interacted with the boy. The relationship between him and his grandma was particularly sweet. It would have been nice if this had been expanded on a bit more.
It did take some time to get into the writing, but once I got used to it, it was a sweet read.

1.5 stars

I enjoyed the bumbling narrative but I'm either too thick to 'get' this or it just didn't translate into the humorous love story it was supposed to, for me at least.