Make no mistake—Yoko Ogawa has a beautiful prose. Her descriptions, the care in every detail, and the way she stacks information and bits about these characters were so beautiful. Using Tomoko, who is reflecting back on her 11 year old self, was the perfect balance of child-like innocence and wonder, combined with the fleeting commentary from her older self.

While I found the novel beautiful, I did struggle a bit with how slow I felt it was. Ultimately, my rating has more to do with my own personal preference of wishing for a bit more *something*. If you are someone who is okay with a slower, meandering walk-through about an interesting family, I think you'll really enjoy it!

True rating: 3.5 stars

I need to preface this review with this: I struggled initially with this book, even with its outstanding writing, and I couldn't understand why [and I cannot even blame it on the book being literary fiction, which I typically dislike, because again, the writing is superb]. Then epiphany! - it was actually ME [go figure, LOL] and my current reading preferences. I have been reading so much that is filled with action [war NF, mysteries, etc], that to read a book that is simply [but in no ways simple] a story was just so jarring that it completely threw me off; once I figured all this out, I settled in and just enjoyed the story. And it is a very lovely story.

This is a slow, quiet, luminous story of two little girls [cousins] who are so dramatically different, yet love each other in spite of that [as often happens within families AND friendships], secrets that bind family together all while threatening to tear them apart, and surprisingly, a pygmy hippo who is an unexpected character that plays a bigger part in the story that your would think, and often moves the story along in ways you would not expect. It is just a lovely way to spend two days with a book.

If you are in desperate need [and you may not even know it until you start it] of a slow, languid, lovely story, this book may just be for you, I know it was for me.

Thank you to NetGalley, Yōko Ogawa, Stephen B. Snyder - Translator, and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Mina's Matchbox was an excellent read. I loved Ogawa's capturing one year that was so formative to the protagonist. I loved the sense of playfulness with the hippo and her cousin Mina. I appreciated her depiction of Tomoko being an outsider at first but then coming to be a part of the close, somewhat zany family.

This is the first book I have read from this author and I very much enjoyed it and want more. It was a coming of age of sorts where Tomoko goes to live with her cousin Mina for a year and becomes part of her unique existence. I am not going to offer a lot of description as I do not want to ruin it for anyone. Thanks for the ARC, NetGalley.

I genuinely wish that I had a more positive review for this one because I remember loving the Memory Police; however, because Mina's Matchbox was missing the speculative fiction aspect, I felt like it fell a little flat. Ogawa's writing is still introspective and soothing, but without a doubt the matchbox tales and the pygmy hippo were the highlights of the novel, and their page time was too few and far between. There was not a lot of character growth in this character-driven story, and while some other characters were given more depth on page, the titular Mina remained pretty elusive throughout the story.

Thank you to Pantheon for the opportunity to read and review!

This quiet tale is told by Tomoko, reflecting back 30 years to 1972 when, as a twelve year old, she went to live with her aunt’s family in Ashiya, an affluent coastal town, while her widowed mother pursued a course of study in dressmaking in Tokyo. Tomoko’s dashing uncle was the president of a beverage company founded by his father, and he and his reserved wife had two children, an 18 year old boy, Ryuichi, studying in Switzerland and a daughter, the titular Mina, who was a year younger than Tomoko. The household was rounded out by Mina’s German grandmother Rosa, the power-wielding housekeeper and Rosa’s best friend, Yoneda-san, the gardener, Kobayashi-san, and Mina’s pygmy hippopotamus, Pochiko, the sole survivor of a family zoo that was closed after World War II.

Mina was a lovely, asthmatic, bookish girl who carried matchboxes with whimsical drawings on their covers which were like her “talismans.” Tomoko recalls that Mina, the “darling of the family,” “gave me so much and asked nothing in return” other than to collect books for her from the library. As the girls grew closer, Tomoko learned that the family had secrets. Among them were the fate of Rosa’s twin sister who appeared in old family photos, her aunt’s secret drinking problem and her uncle’s prolonged absences, during which household items would accumulate on his desk in need of his attention.

“Mina’s Matchbox” lacks the intrigue of the author’s acclaimed surrealist American debut, “The Memory Police,” although Ogawa’s idyllic setting is interrupted by real-life tragedies, including the suicide of the Japanese writer Yasunari Kawabata, a Nobel laureate in Literature, and the massacre of Israeli athletes at the Munich Olympics. Ogawa’s unadorned prose elegantly evokes the secret crushes and crushing secrets of girlhood. Thank you Pantheon and Net Galley for an advanced copy of this unique coming-of-age tale.

Not for me. The primary issue I had was the pygmy hippopotamus. The initial poo-spray scene is so ridiculous and it made me instantly invest less in this novel. If everything in the novel was equally unlikely as that meant-to-be-lovable hippo-pet I would have been ok with it but instead the hippo was just another weird quirky choice, along with the matchboxes, and the elaborate baby strollers, and the many other quirky choices that seemed there just to provide quirky color. I liked the writing, I liked the tone, I liked the substance of the story and the idea of two girls having the relationship described in the novel.,,but then the story would be undermined by something that seemed absolutely arbitrary and just added to provide a level of cuteness, I guess, that didn't work for me.

A beautiful heartwarming story of two cousins and their Liberian pygymy hippo. The story is fraught with ups and downs but with the eventual groth of the girls into strong women. I recommend this to every woman who has spent time with a close female relative. Enjoy!

Yoko Ogawa is an author who can make the simple sublime through the magic of her language. Her other works The Housekeeper and The Professor and The Memory Police were exquisitely crafted stories that struck a deep chord with me. This ability to bring a certain lyrical, enchanting beauty to the everyday continues in Mina's Matchbox.

Translated by Stephen Snyder into English from the original Japanese, Mina's Matchbox is part coming of age narrative, part chronicle of a time, place, family and part reflection on the little things that stay with us forever no matter where life takes us. We follow a young girl Tomoko as she goes to stay at her mother's sister's house for just over a year after the death of her father because her mother is working in Tokyo and cannot afford a place for both of them right away. Mina is Tomoko's aunt's daughter and they form a bond of friendship and understanding as they spend time together and grow up in the same household for a while. Tomoko also bonds with all the other members of the household including a delightful non-human (slightly unconventional) Pochiko.

Much like in Ogawa's The Housekeeper and The Professor, it is not so much what happens as to how it is conveyed. The days go by, we get a sense of how the different members of the household interact and go about their lives. We spend time with Mina, Tomoko and Pochiko and see Mina give flight to her imagination through stories which she constructs taking inspiration from the images on matchboxes she collects. It is almost a motif for how through observation, the ordinary can metamorphose into something special and leave a lasting impression in our hearts for Tomoko always cherishes the time spent at her aunt's house.

A gentle, beautiful, often humorous novel and as is often the case with Ogawa's works, tinged with a slight sadness. I was transported to the world that Ogawa describes and completely immersed throughout the novel. When it ended, I was left with a wistful sense of something beautiful coming to a close. At the same time, Ogawa's writing (translated so beautifully by Snyder) brought me peace.

Mina's Matchbox is a quietly wondrous book. I recommend this to any reader interested in a slice of life narrative or a story with immense heart.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publishers Knopf, Pantheon, and Vintage for the eARC. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

If you every feel a longing to go back to your carefree childhood days, you must read Mina's Matchbox. If you grew up in a happy family environment enjoying the simple pleasures of life surrounded by loved ones - whether related by blood or not, you must read Mina's Matchbox. If you ever indulged in a hobby of collecting mundane stuff whether it be books or butterflies or seashells and experienced the joy of that collection, you must read Mina's Matchbox. Even if you have not had the pleasure of experiencing these ordinary joys of life you must read Mina's Matchbox, and it will transport you to a time when life was so uncomplicated and staying at home reading books was a done thing. The story follows one year in the life of a middle-schooler Tomoko as she is sent to her aunt's home in Ashiya for one school year while her mother pursues a course of her own. There she is exposed to so many new experiences as she bonds with her cousin Mina. While there is not much of a plot, the story is an absolute reading pleasure, and I loved all the characters. My favourite of course is Pochiko, the pygmy hippo. The book is brilliantly translated by Stephen B Snyder. It is definitely one of the most enjoyable books I have read in recent times. I loved it!!

Thank you Netgalley and Knopf Publishing group for the ARC.

Thanks to NetGalley for the eARC!

This is my first experience reading Yōko Ogawa's work, and I fell in love. I loved this book; it was such a cozy read and I quite enjoyed the story. I usually read in bed before I go to sleep, and this was a perfect read before bed. I can't wait to read her other previous works.

I’ve loved many books by this author, so it pains me to say this one was kind of mediocre. It follows a young girl over the course of a year while she’s moved in with her rich aunts family. She develops a close bond with her cousin that you see play out, as well as getting to know the other family members and house staff. The story has a slow, nostalgic vibe that felt relaxing to read. And there’s a pet hippopotamus which was awesome.

A thoughtful look at a year in the life of Tomato, sent in 1972 to live with her cousins in Ashiya. It's a very different world for the 12 year old. For one thing, there's a pygmy hippo, for another, there's lots of family secrets. She bonds with her cousin Mina, who has health problems and collects matchboxes. It's a gentle novel where nothing much happens and yet everything happens. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A good read.

As always, Yoko Ogwa has delivered a nostalgic story that feels like the inside of a cashmere sweater. Elements such as the close friendship between Tomoko and Mina, the tiny worlds living inside matchboxes, and the larger-than-life personality of the pygmy hippo living just outside all cement this novel as a whimsical slice of life that will surely remind anyone of their girlhood. However, while the side characters are charming and feel like flesh and blood, there is little payoff regarding the secrets held by Tomoko's uncle. I kept holding my breath, waiting for something more, and found myself disappointed when that "something" never arrived.

DNF @ 55%

It pains me to DNF this because i love so many other Ogawa books (The Memory Police and The Housekeeper and the Professor especially) but i’ve been reading this for 2 months and have no urge to keep going.

At least so far this is lit fic without much going on plot wise, and the lack of a rising climax paired with a pretty boring MC prevented me from feeling excited about continuing.

This may just be a DNF for now as I might not be in the mood.

-Thank you to the publisher for the gifted ARC in exchange for an honest review!

A curious, delicate, understated piece of work. At times it seemed more like a children’s book, but at others it took on a poignant kind of insight, into unexplored lives grouped quietly together. A modest novel but with a lingering mood.

“But even if they appeared to be nothing more than unadorned paper boxes from the outside, they exuded a beauty equal to anything created by a sculptor or potter. Even though the meaning of the words printed on their pages was so profound it could never have been contained by those boxes, the books never let on to their depths. They waited patiently until someone picked them up and opened their covers. I came to have enormous respect for that patience.” Yoko Ogawa. Mina’s Matchbox
Many thanks to Netgalley and Pantheon Books for allowing me to preview Yoko Ogawa’s amazing new book Mina’s Matchbox. The book follows Tomoko, a young girl, who goes to live with her cousin Mina and her family while Tomoko’s mother studies design. Mina’s family, who run a beverage company called Fressy, live in a luxurious mansion built by Mina’s grandfather. Among other trappings, the mansion includes the sole inhabitant of the Fressy Zoo: Pochiko, a pygmy hippo from Liberia. As the quote suggests, this unique story is much more than the “words printed on their pages”, and thankfully, Stephen Snyder’s poetic translation helps to elevate Ogawa’s beautiful story of memory and meaning to artistic realms. I’ve Ogawa’s other books, but nothing is quite like this one. Where her other books like The Memory Police are somewhat restrained in their descriptions and allegorical, this book revels in the memories of the past as Tomoko recalls the year she spent with Mina’s family. Early on in reading, the book seemed more like a narrative about this time in her life, but as I read on, the book takes on more significance and readers learn how Tomoko’s experiences during this time helped shape her ideas about relationships, love, death, and life. Furthermore, we gradually learn how each of these aspects of life affects the other. While there is some ambiguity in the relationships, like the relationship between Tomoko’s uncle and aunt (or Mina’s parents), we can also see their dedication to keeping the family together and despite some absences, Mina’s uncle does seem to care for his family. However, I also wondered about whether the uncle helped to highlight some of the concerns Mina recognized with Japanese women’s rights and voice in marriage. She characterizes her aunt as a good listener who doesn’t talk much, but who also drinks whiskey daily and smokes heavily, especially when her husband is away. Mina, likewise, is viewed as weak due to her asthma, and while she gets to ride Pochiko to school (to avoid bus/car fumes), her movement and decisions are largely restricted due to her perceived frailty. Yet, Mina and Tomoko find ways to create their own voices, even if it involves collaborating with one another. Tomoko frequents the library for Mina, searching for books not in her vast home library. Tomoko impresses the librarian with her search for and recitation of the books from Mina’s list; however, he doesn’t know that these are Mina’s summations. Similarly, Tomoko seeks out more matchboxes for Mina from a young delivery driver from the Fressy factory, and eventually tries to get them to view a meteor shower together. While the plans do not necessarily work, Tomoko’s insistence in viewing the meteor shower allows Mina to spend the night away from home, outside under the stars. These evets and others in the book show how Tomoko and Mina are trying to establish their identities, looking for connections and relationships beyond the mansion and the family.
The book also features instances of death, most notably using the suicide of Nobel winning Japanese author Yasunari Kawabata to explore the relationship between death and memory. The girls learn about Kawabata’s death from the newspaper, and although Tomoko did not know this writer, Mina explains that despite not knowing him personally, she developed a strong relationship with him through his writing. Mina later reveals her matchbox stories to Tomoko, who falls in love with these brief, but alluring tales based on the artistry of the matchboxes that contain them. Much like allegories or fairy tales, these stories seem to impart some kind of cultural message or knowledge, focusing on the outcomes of the characters. I also enjoyed them, and I think they function as both entertainment and a kind of symbol of the girls and their development and learning about life, love, and death. The concern about Mina’s health also places her close to death, and her kind of frailty seems to differentiate her from Tomoko. Tomoko often describes Mina as skinny and underdeveloped, her beautifully formed face not matching her skinny body. I really liked this description of Mina from Tomoko as well

If you wanted to describe Mina in a few words, you might say she was an asthmatic girl who loved books and rode a pygmy hippopotamus. But if you wanted to distinguish her from everyone else in the world, you’d say that she was a girl who could strike a match more beautifully than anyone.
I think it shows how even something so mundane and simple as striking a match can be elevated to artistry and beauty. In fact, others noticed this about Mina and her match lighting skill is what allows her to carry around these matchboxes. Throughout the book, Tomoko’s observations (or maybe the reflections and memories) also elevate daily tasks and simple objects to art. Cooking, cleaning, even drinking Fressy all have incredible descriptions that heighten the senses and create a sense of wonder and joy in these daily rituals we often overlook.
As I mentioned, death is a frequent event in this book, but throughout the deaths that are recounted or remembered, there is often meaning to be found in the lives of those who are gone. There is an interesting story about Saburo, the Taiwanese Macaque who drove a small train at the Fressy Zoo. I won’t get into the story, but it helps to show how each life is important, and someone has something to contribute. Grandma Rosa is another character, originally from Germany, who doesn’t initially share that she lost her siblings in the Holocaust and was the only family member spared because she was in Japan at the time. She keeps pictures of her sister out but doesn’t really talk about her. Yet, during a broadcast of the 1972 Olympics, she hears her native German and Tomoko describes her as animated like never before. In addition, the Olympics feature prominently in the book. These were the Black September attacks. Tomoko watched it unfold with her family, and the scene of bloodshed upset Grandmother Rosa, probably bringing back memories of the family she lost. Tomoko acknowledges that Grandmother Rosa’s grief at these events prompted her to view the events differently:
Just as Grandmother Rosa learned the meaning of the Japanese word for rosary beads, in watching that ceremony, I understood for the first time the significance of a flag flown at half-staff. The five rings of the Olympic banner fluttered forlornly, halfway up the pole.
It’s reflections like these and Tomoko’s growing awareness of both death and life that make this book so incredible. I also think that this kind of reflection and the subtle sadness and well as the gratitude and appreciation for life make this book different from Ogawa’s other books like Revenge, Hotel Iris, and The Memory Police. While those are great books, they are also dark and somewhat brooding. Mina’s Matchbox is fine art, carefully cataloguing and revisiting important memories to better understand how events and relationships have affected our own views and understandings of the world. I highly recommend this book and look forward to reading it again. This book would make a great choice for a book group as well.

A spare and moving novella about a young girl's year with her wealthy cousins, featuring a memorable pygmy hippopotamus.

this book had such a nostalgic feel to it that i really enjoyed. i love the way yoko ogawa writes characters and conveys emotions.

thank you netgalley for the e-arc!

I’m fairly certain this incredible story could quite easily be made into a Studio Ghibli film, which is to say that Mina’s Matchbox, by Yōko Ogawa, translated by Stephen B. Snyder, is a beautiful tale full of vivid scenery, memorable characters, and whimsical experiences.

A miniature hippo, a frail yet vivacious young girl who collects matchboxes, a colorful, diverse family who owns a soda company, obsession with the Japanese volleyball team competing in the Munich Olympics…I marvel at the intricate weaving of so many fascinating components! Every aspect of this story was depicted so intimately that I felt like I was watching it play out in my mind’s eye.

I enjoyed the theme of childhoods lost in this story, as it was not traumatic and sudden, but more gradual and a culmination of multiple events with a natural sense of aging and life lessons learned. Our narrator for the story, young Tomoko, is sent into a world of much more privilege than she is accustomed to and through the changing seasons with her aunt’s family she grows amongst her relatives as she describes for us how they are all changing with the passing of time. It is poignant and bittersweet.

The only aspect of Ogawa’s story that I wasn’t particularly fond of was the use of the death of animals. I’m not a squeamish reader, but I just wonder if the description of a violent death of a domesticated wild animal is necessary within the story. The other death was less graphic and more peaceful/natural, and possibly signified quite a turning point in the family’s existence as a group of unified individuals. Yes, it certainly wasn’t enjoyable reading this second death of a domesticated wild animal, given to a child as a wealthy person’s play thing and status symbol, but it felt more integral to the story and less like an unnecessary shock and awe moment.

I can’t not mention it…if you enjoyed watching Studio Ghibli’s When Marnie Was There, I’m fairly certain you’ll love Mina’s Matchbox. Please, enjoy both and tell me I’m not wildly off base!

This book certainly won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but I’ll be recommending it most everyone I know, if just to get their thoughts.

A huge thank you to NetGalley and Pantheon for allowing me the opportunity to read and review this memorable story. I adored it and look forward to getting my hands on a physical copy for my bookshelf.

Mina’s Matchbox, by Yōko Ogawa, translated by Stephen B. Snyder, is set to be published August 13, 2024.