Banana Yoshimoto's first published novella, "Kitchen", is the story of Mikage Sakurai and Yuichi Tanabe, both of whom lost parents at a young age. Mikage was raised by her grandmother, who passed away at the start of the story. When Yuichi's mother, Eriko, died, his father changed genders and raised him as a mother, while running in a drag bar.

The two young people attended the same university, but did not know each other well. However, Mikago's grandmother became close to Yuichi after patronizing the flower shop where he worked, so he came to her home to offer his condolences and invited her to move in with him and his "mother." The teenagers grow close until Mikage moves out, and reconnect shortly after the murder of Eriko.

The story deals with human relationships, grief, and expectations. The protagonists appear to be moving toward a romance that never occurs; ex-lovers drift in and out of the story; and we get glimpses of relationships through conversations and acts of kindness.

Although death is central to the story, it takes place "off-camera." The grandmother passes away in the first few pages. Neither the reader nor Mikage learns of Eriko's death until well after it occurs. Rather than focus on characters dying, Yoshimoto focuses on the reactions of those left behind.

The title comes from Mikage's comfort in the kitchen. She sleeps there after her grandmother's passing. She finds the act of preparing food therapeutic, so she cooks for Yuichi and Eriko, and eventually enrolls in culinary school.

The volume I read also included a second short story, "Moonlight Shadow," which also deals with death. When an automobile accident kills two young people, it brings together two others. Hiiragi was the sister of the boy killed and the boyfriend of the girl. Satsuki was the boy's girlfriend. Satsuki and Hiiragi connect and deal with their shared tragedy. These two stories do not connect directly, but both deal with death, grief, loneliness, and relationships.

Yoshimoto's style is concise and direct. Usually, this makes it easy to read, but she has the striking habit of revealing a significant incident in a single sentence, as in the death of a major character.

I read the English language version (translated from Japanese by Megan Backus) and enjoyed it very much. This touching story is well worth the time to read.