The Passengers on the Hankyu Line is the first book in the "healing fiction" genre that I've had the opportunity (and in this case, the honor) to read, and now I understand why it's classified that way: the book tells us, in a very entertaining way, the emotional drama experienced by a group of passengers whose only connection is that they boarded the same car on a Hankyu Line train, but whose stories, from that moment on, intertwine in a purely casual way, in some cases, and in others, form a relationship that I hope will be lasting.
The kindness and gentleness of our protagonists doesn't just remain in the pages of this book: they also leave a sweet feeling in the reader. It happened to me, and I hope other readers feel the same way.
I thank the author Arikawa-sama and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.
The opinion I have expressed above is based solely on what I think and feel about this book.

I received a copy of the book, "The Passengers on the Hankyu Line" from NetGalley. This book focuses on many characters ranging from children to adults in their sixties. Each character has a story. anywhere from a grandma and grandchild, a woman dressed in a white bride dress for revenge, college aged students and high school girls. The book covers about two years. Some characters are seen over the couple years. each are on the different train lines. I got a bit confused keeping track of the characters. I had hoped the Dog that was mentioned in the storyline would be in more of the book. I liked reading the stories of each character. I would give this book a 3.5.

4.25 ⭐️ I really enjoyed this! This story follows several different characters who all frequent the Hankyu Line in Japan. Each character on the train has their own unique story & I loved how it made me think about how everyone lives different lives around you that you don’t know about. This book is charming, heartwarming, interesting, & emotional at times.

I enjoyed reading about the different characters & each of their dilemmas. I thought that the translation at times seemed like it was a tiny bit off which made the writing less impactful. However, I still really liked this book’s contents & the overall ambience and atmosphere. Reading about the various stations (I’m excited to see the station images once the final edition has them inserted) added a lot to the story too!

Thank you to NetGalley & Berkley Publishing Group for sending me an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review!

The Passengers on the Hankyu Line follows several characters at different stages in their lives as they travel by train along the Hankyu Line. The chapters alternate between the characters who are all in different stages in their lives. As you learn more about them and eventually seeing these characters paths intertwine. I enjoyed learning about each character and seeing how their paths ultimately crossed with one another. I did have slight trouble remembering some of the characters because of how often you jump between perspectives, but overall, this was a fun, enjoyable read.

A slice of life story, without the life. I’m sure a lot got lost in translation, but this felt soulless. Or maybe I’m the soulless one, incapable of receiving a soulful story. Who knows?

I appreciated the premise, and I looked forward to reading a tale of mishmashed, interwoven lives being connected through the happenstance of pedestrian routine. But the way these lives were brought together felt inconceivable at best, and imposed at worst.

One of the biggest challenges with a vignette centered novella is breathing life into characters without much room to build back story. That lack of character depth pulled me out of the story, and made me question every character’s motivations, and made every interaction feel improbable.

This is why I am often wary of reading translated books because I am certain that the translation undermines the author’s true magic. The final product here fell short for me.

I had previously read and enjoyed two of this author's previous novels, The Goodbye Cat and The Traveling Cat Chronicles and looked forward to reading this one. However, the interaction of the various characters repeated in different situations made it hard to remember who's who. While it's an easy and fast read, the English translation often felt stilted.

The style of this book, The Passengers on the Hankyu Line, reminds me of a few of the writings of Stewart O’Nan. He the ultimate observer. In one book he watches a baseball game on TV and concentrates looking at the people behind home plate. In his book Last Night at the Lobster a reviewer said he’s able to “coax poetry from the prosaic". I apologize for the stark comparison but from the first page to the finish I was awed with author Hiro Arikawa’s ability to take everyday occurrences and make them personal to the reader.

The entire books takes place in and around the commuter trains that run in Japan. About a dozen characters are spotlighted. Students, lovers, and ladies who lunch pass in and out of the story line as they go about their mundane everyday tasks. As time passes the reader gets to know the characters and either cheers them on or hope for their exit to arrive quickly.

There is so much subtext in this book yet on the surface it’s a lot like an episode of Seinfeld – a book about nothing. I loved every page of this book. I liked the way the loves of the characters unwound. I liked the style in which it was written. 4.5 stars from me.

Arikawa uses a unique format for timing the separate stories together the different platforms on the Hankyu train. She intertwines the stories of all the different characters as they get on and off the train. Not only does the reader get to meet a variety of characters, the reader also gets a lo see the difference in the Japanese and American cultures. While I found this interesting, I felt the characters were not well developed and the explanations of all the different stops on the line very confusing. Also, while i like how some of the characters responded to nasty people and situations, I felt that the endings were too neatly wrapped up. To me, it sounded like the author was using the characters to teach the reader some life lessons.

While it was an easy read, I thought the English translation seemed too simplified. I found myself thinking would an adult really use some of the words and phrases. It seemed to me that the translator was trying too hard to relate to the American reader.

A lovely work of fiction with intersecting stories all centered around a train line in Japan. It has something of a gentle quality, though some of the stories do have a somewhat darker focus. Recommended.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC

I really enjoyed this sweet little book. I really do like this style of Japanese narrative and I found this book to be similar to Before the Coffee Gets Cold. The stories are simple, sweet and engaging. The characters are likeable. And I really liked the aspect of seeing them all at different stages of their lives out how their stories unfold along the way.

If you're looking for a quick, light, enjoyable easy read this is it.

On the train traveling between Takarazuka and Nishinomiya, five passengers'' lives are changed due to interactions
and observations on the journey. Details of the changes in their lives are detailed and the resolutions are revealed
six months later.
Stories featuring relatable characters, growth and moving forward.
#ThePassengersontheHankyuLine #Berkley #NetGalley

This is a quiet novel of interconnected short stories of people travelling on the Hankyu train line. We meet a whole host of interesting people, as well as a mini dachshund, that range in age from a young girl with her grandmother, elementary school kids, college students and a raucous group of older women among others. The stories deal with young love, loneliness, and even abuse and remind us of how even a fleeting encounter on a train can change someone's life.

I enjoyed starting each short chapter wondering which character was going to show up next and how they were going to connect, either on or off the train and also appreciated the Japanese culture that I was able to pick up. Thank you to net galley and Berkley publishing for this e galley in exchange for an honest review.

I received a free DRC of this book through Netgalley. I thought it was written in a very upbeat way even when the topic veers into domestic violence or pettiness. Most of the action is centered around trains in Japan where people cross each other's paths and sometimes have a pretty big effect on each other's lives. The people are ordinary, but the storytelling is extraordinary. I enjoyed this book.

I enjoyed the premise and setting of this book, with several different characters meeting and interacting with others on the same train. As the characters left the train we did follow them, learning about the settings around the stations as well as the homes of many of the characters, which added an extra enjoyable element, especially for myself, not having visited Japan. As an adult read, I particularly enjoyed the first half of the book but found it became too explicitly a lesson book in morals and values for young adults in the latter part of the book. Overall I enjoyed the book and found it refreshing.

The Passengers on the Hankyu Line is a novella by Hiro Arikawa. In only a smart amount of time, readers meet characters of all sorts boarding, riding, departing, and in general, revealing small parts of their lives. These passengers are mostly women of all ages, from child to grandmother. There is romance, friendship, life-changing developments, self reliance, and strength. The Passengers on the Hankyu Line consists of two sections. A variety of characters are introduced in the first section, and in the second section, 6 months later, readers observe how they have changed and what they have learned. The events that occur, include messages of strength, advice for success, and friendship of all ages. This train ride provides only a small slice of life. Readers can see we are all the same, no mater where we live. Women in Japan must meet the same challenges at women in Europe or in the U.S.

There are quite a few characters and some names are similar enough to be slightly confusing, but I think most readers can follow along without too many problems. Thank you to Berkley Publishing and NetGalley for providing this ARC for me to read and review. The above comments reflect my thoughts about The Passengers on the Hankyu Line.
4 stars

Overall, this book was a really sweet read. Through the different stations on the Hankyu line, we are able to learn about different passengers and their stories. Each story is interwoven with one another, making it easy to breeze through the book.

As someone who used to commute via the train during my undergraduate days for 3 years, I was able to enjoy this book more than the average person. However, anyone can have fun reading this book as the language is not too complicated. Essentially, if you enjoy the song Beautiful Stranger by Laufey, this book would be a joy for you.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for a free copy in exchange for an honest review!

many thanks to netgalley and berkley publishing group for the advanced copy of this book. my rating is a 3.5. i wanted to give it a 4 but the book left me wanting. it's a charming enough premise of a select group of commuters on a train line. there is overlap between these characters and it's creative and often poignant. as is true of other japanese novels i have read recently, there are always subtle and powerful messages threaded throughout, about finding ones way in the world through honesty and integrity and also standing up to bullies and unlovely people. perhaps essentially how to respect oneself and others. but i found the book a bit disjointed at times and i also cringed at some of the nastiness. it's an interesting adventure and very much details japanese culture, which i found very fascinating.

This is a lovely story that is impossible to set aside for mundanities
such as meals and sleep. I adored practicing the language as I
became a part of the adventure while on the lovely trains, leaving
me sad each time a part of the journey ended.
It seemed like the story of the fiancé and the bride (two different women,)
is the catalyst for the eventual evolutions of separate people~ most
of whom are met on the ubiquitous train lines.
There are some precious and funny scenes that are brilliantly written
and translated ~ the quality of the translation makes all of the scenes
read seamlessly with nothing lost. It’s really well done.
This story will be followed by every age of women. Married,
single, it does not matter, this book is for everyone. I highly
recommend this book.
My thanks to Berkley Publishing via NetGalley for the download
copy of,this book for review purposes.

The train sets off on its finite journey, transporting as many stories as passengers.

A sweet story about a group of passengers on a train, the ways their lives interact and affect each other. I really enjoyed this, and loved seeing the different ways these strangers impacted each other’s lives. I loved the author's last two books, so this book immediately shot to the top of my most anticipated reads. Her other books made me cry like a baby, but this one was more of a softer, comforting tale- a snapshot of these characters at a moment of change.

I really enjoyed this slice of life story from Hiro Arikawa. I loved seeing the different points of view from all the different characters, but also having them converge at different points. It was very interesting, and I loved all the characters. Very cozy.