[Book Review] Sweet Bean Paste by Durian Sukegawa, Alison Watts (Translator)

Synopsis (from Goodreads) :

Sentaro has failed. He has a criminal record, drinks too much, and his dream of becoming a writer is just a distant memory. With only the blossoming of the cherry trees to mark the passing of time, he spends his days in a tiny confectionery shop selling dorayaki, a type of pancake filled with sweet bean paste.

But everything is about to change.

Into his life comes Tokue, an elderly woman with disfigured hands and a troubled past. Tokue makes the best sweet bean paste Sentaro has ever tasted. She begins to teach him her craft, but as their friendship flourishes, social pressures become impossible to escape and Tokue's dark secret is revealed, with devastating consequences.

Sweet Bean Paste is a moving novel about the burden of the past and the redemptive power of friendship. Translated into English for the first time, Durian Sukegawa's beautiful prose is capturing hearts all over the world.

My rating :

4.2/5 stars.

My review :

The title says it all – you will crave for some sweet bean paste – and some dorayaki – only by reading this book.

This book tells readers about Sentaro, who thought failure was everything that he could have in his life. Happiness and dreams were impossible for a man like him. It all changed, after he met Tokue, an elderly woman with a troubled past. This is pretty much my brief summary of the story. Don’t forget to read the synopsis beforehand!

First of all, the plot was a bit heart-wrenching one. I loved how romance free and pure it was, mainly focusing on important aspects of life. You will find friendship, gratitude, moral lessons, all in one book. In my opinion, the plot went on beautifully with discussions of different topics here and there. The idea of letting Sentaro met Tokue who brought his life towards a transformation was alluring, as it allowed a raw mother-son relationship to come alive. As the story went on, there were conflicts and big bits of explanations along the way. I appreciated the flow of the story where readers would get to devour into the world of bittersweet and painful histories. There were times when I was able to reminisce some beautiful moments between the characters – not just the ones that I mention – and the relationship between them felt real and so parallel. I will not deny that the characters’ attempt in producing foods in this book made me swirl in hunger, though I have never tried sweet bean paste before.

Overall, the plot wasn’t that bad for me. It had almost everything that a good plot should have, so this fact itself deserves great points.

Secondly, Sweet Bean Paste has a cast of lovable characters. I really loved Tokue, who was an amazing old woman and definitely brought up about my late foster mother to my mind (I miss her so terribly). Tokue was the character who gave pretty much most of the moral values in this book. It was tough to know more about her past. It eventually reminded me to be more grateful with the worldly life I’m living in, and appreciate what Allah has for me. Sentaro was the definition of a normal human being who had a tough past with mistakes came along with it. He was someone who I could relate to as I’m not immune to mistakes making, either. Some other characters in this book were moderately acceptable for me. They didn’t get much attention, so I couldn’t really see big character improvements from them, whereas the two main ones were definitely unique with their own stories and character developments.

Durian Sukegawa’s writing style healed my heart, as if all of his emotions were poured into his writing. The author managed to make the story fill in the gaps of emotions – happy, melancholic, etc. etc. This book is just a translation from his Japanese work. I wonder how beautiful it would be to read his actual words in Japanese. I reckon the journey will be splendid.

Out of all my positive comments, there is a let down that made me rate the book in such a way. The ending wasn’t close to perfection – I was hoping for a proper conclusion for Sentaro and some other characters. There were things where I felt were left unanswered. It gave no justice towards other characters who played important roles in this book, too. I sincerely hoped for a proper ending just to give proper justice for the characters and of course, for the story.

Overall, Sweet Bean Paste was a magnificent read for me. I was definitely glad to pick this up to be one of my reads in this great month of June. If you’re looking for a heartfelt, romance free, vital moral values, do consider to insert this book in your TBR list.

My final rating for this book is 4.2/5 stars, and I’d surely recommend this!