More Days at the Morisaki Bookshop

More Days at the Morisaki Bookshop is the sequel to Satoshi Yagisawa’s Days at the Morisaki Bookshop. The novel was originally published in Japanese in 2011 by Shogakukan, Inc., and was published by Harper Perennial in English in 2024. More Days at the Morisaki Bookshop directly follows the events of Days at the Morisaki Bookshop. Takako explores the dynamics of her new relationship with Wada, and Takako, her uncle Satoru, and his wife, Momoko, face the return of Momoko’s cancer. Takako must learn how to trust Wada, overcoming the trauma of her failed relationship in Days at the Morisaki Bookshop. As in the prequel, the setting of the Morisaki Bookshop and the Jimbocho neighborhood are central to the plot, and books and reading play key roles in uniting characters. The novel features themes like The Personal Nature of Reading, The Impact of Time on Healing From Grief, and Growth Through Friendship and Familial Relationships. 

This guide refers to the 2024 Harper Perennial paperback edition translated by Eric Ozawa.

Content Warning: The source material and guide feature depictions of illness, death, and pregnancy loss and termination.

Plot Summary

On days off from work, Takako visits her uncle Satoru and her aunt Momoko at their bookshop, the Morisaki Bookshop, in Jimbocho. Jimbocho is a neighborhood in Tokyo that is mostly comprised of used bookstores. Years ago, after a bad breakup, Takako moved into the rooms above the shop. While there, she experienced deep depression, but with guidance from Satoru and a newfound love of reading, she healed and moved out. When Takako left the Morisaki Bookshop, Momoko returned to Satoru after a years-long separation. She’d had a private battle with cancer.

While Takako visits with her aunt and uncle, she sees many of the regulars come into the store, including the “paper bag man,” who silently fills up his paper bag with books. Sabu, another customer, comes in every day, rarely buying books but chatting with Satoru and Momoko. He teases Takako, and when she asks what he does for work, he refuses to tell her, joking that he wants to remain mysterious. Takako stays at the shop all day and tries to read, though Satoru interrupts her to ask what she is reading. They talk about her book, discussing how authors write impactful works that last through time.

After leaving the Morisaki Bookshop, Takako goes to the Saveur, a local coffee shop that she frequented while living at the Morisaki Bookshop. She met her friends Takano and Tomoko (“Tomo”) there. Now, she meets her boyfriend, Wada. While staying at the Morisaki Bookshop, Takako opened herself up to love again and met Wada, a regular at the bookshop and the Saveur, who was also navigating a breakup. They bonded over books and eventually began a relationship. Now, with their jobs and busy schedules, they struggle to see each other, and Takako often wonders what Wada sees in her.

As fall turns to winter, Takako enjoys the weather. She works at a design firm and keeps to herself. When a superior, also named Wada, forces her to have lunch with him and harasses her over her lack of socialization, Takako seeks Momoko’s advice. Momoko tells Takako to make it known that she does not want anything to do with this man and advises surrounding herself with people who value her. Afterward, Takako goes to the Saveur, where she and Sabu talk about how hard Satoru works. Sabu says that Satoru needs a vacation, and Takako decides to offer to watch the shop.

When Takako suggests that Satoru and Momoko go on a trip, Satoru fights her, saying that he does not want to leave the shop. The next day, Takako meets Wada at the Saveur and feels uneasy when he asks if they can discuss something serious. She is relieved when he reveals that he is writing a novel set in the Morisaki Bookshop. The day after Takako sees Wada, she returns to the Morisaki Bookshop and explains to Satoru that she wants him to take the trip so that he and Momoko can protect their health and keep the store open in the long term. She wants to thank them for their support of her. Satoru finally agrees to go, although reluctantly.

When Satoru and Momoko leave, Takako moves into the rooms above the Morisaki Bookshop and watches the store. It is a slow day with few customers. That night, in the room above the shop, she remembers the heartbreak she felt when she last stayed there and how Satoru helped her heal. She remembers how close they were when she was a child. Satoru understood her and gave her a space to be herself.

The next day, Takako is preoccupied at the shop: Tomo is coming over that night for dinner. Tomo once worked at the Saveur but now works as a librarian. As they eat, the two friends catch up, and Tomo asks Takako about her relationship with Wada. As Takako explains that they are doing well, Wada texts her, asking to come to the shop, and Tomo encourages Takako to invite him. When he arrives, he seems uncomfortable, knowing that Satoru does not like him. When Tomo leaves, Wada tells Takako that he found Tomo odd and guarded. Takako is disappointed that they did not get along better.

On her final day watching the store, Takako’s friend Takano comes in. Takano works at the Saveur and has a crush on Tomo, though he tells Takako that she does not respond to his texts and has his number blocked. Takano cannot think of anything that would prompt her to do that. He explains that he wants to find a novel, The Golden Dream, to thank Tomo for making his days at the Saveur happy. Takako agrees to help him. When Momoko and Satoru return, Momoko tells Takako that the trip was great. Despite this, Takako notices that Satoru seems unhappy.

Takako and Takano begin searching for The Golden Dream, even venturing to Jimbocho’s famous Book Festival, but they have no luck finding it. Takako promises Takano that she will convince Tomo to invite him to her birthday party. Takako visits Tomo at her apartment for the first time and notices that she reads primarily foreign authors and fantasy series. When she brings up Takano, Tomo admits that she blocked his number because she is afraid of romance. She explains that when she was younger, she had a crush on her sister’s boyfriend. When her sister died, Tomo couldn’t help feeling happy, believing that the boyfriend might choose her. Tomo’s guilt haunts her, and she avoids her sister’s former boyfriend and romance in general, escaping through reading.

Two days later, as Takako is walking down the street, she sees Wada. As she runs to catch up to him, a woman, whom Takako recognizes as Wada’s ex-girlfriend, joins him. Takako does not know how to feel or what to do, and she asks Momoko. Momoko tells Takako that Wada would not hurt her and that she needs to open up to him if she wants Wada to reciprocate. Takako realizes that she struggles to trust others after her last relationship.

Tomo’s birthday party arrives, and Takako hosts Tomo and Takano in the rooms above the Morisaki Bookshop. It is awkward, and when Takako reveals that they tried to find The Golden Dream for Tomo, Tomo admits that it is a fictional book from a novel called A Moment of Twilight. It is the book that a woman reads to a blind man. When the woman finishes reading it, the man realizes that he loves the woman. Tomo’s older sister told her that the book was real, and even though she knows it is fictional, Tomo searches for it, hoping that it will induce a change in her like it did for the blind man. Takano tells Tomo that she has a positive influence on his life. Overwhelmed, she sits down and begins reading. Takano joins her and tells her that if she needs anything, he will be next to her. Takako is impressed by Takano’s patience, realizing that she must do something similar with Wada.

Takako meets with Wada and admits that she saw him with his ex-girlfriend. Wada explains that she was simply returning a book, but Takako stops him, saying that she trusts him and needs to be more open with him. They take a walk, and Wada admits that he is jealous of Takako’s family and support group: That is why he wants to write about the Morisaki Bookshop. She realizes that he is opening up to her and feels their relationship strengthen.

In December, Takako visits the Morisaki Bookshop, and Satoru asks to go for a walk. He tells Takako that Momoko’s cancer has returned and advanced. Takako does not believe it, thinking that Momoko seems healthy, but Satoru tells her that Momoko told him on their trip. At first, Momoko continues working, but soon, she is splitting time between home and the hospital. She insists that Satoru and Takako treat her normally, as though nothing is happening. Despite knowing she is sick, Takako refuses to believe that Momoko will die, as she seems healthy and normal. That summer, Momoko suddenly collapses. She goes to the hospital for the last time, and Satoru warns Takako that the end is near. The last time Takako visits Momoko, Momoko makes her promise to force Satoru to cry. She worries that her husband will be trapped in his grief until he does.

At the funeral, Satoru acts normally and does not cry or show emotion. He tells Takako that he is briefly closing the Morisaki Bookshop, but this closure spreads into weeks. Takako’s worries grow, as she believes that Satoru is wallowing in his grief. When she visits to cook him dinner, she finds both him and his house a mess. She tries to encourage him to reopen the shop, but he tells her that he cannot because of the memories he has of Momoko there. He does not want them to fade. As the weeks go by, Takako begins visiting the shop to clean it. One night, Tomo joins her and reveals that she is meeting her sister’s boyfriend to apologize for avoiding him, telling Takako that her and Takano’s support inspired her to move on.

Near Christmas, Takako stays late at the shop and finds a journal from Momoko. Satoru surprises her, having come into the shop when he saw the lights on. He thought that Momoko might be there. In the journal, they find a note from Momoko, encouraging Satoru to remember their happy times together and to move on with his life. She does not want him to be trapped in his pain. Satoru finally cries. The next day, Wada calls to tell Takako that Satoru reopened the Morisaki Bookshop and that he went in after walking by.

Time passes, and Takako feels confident that Satoru will heal. Business picks up again once he opens the shop, as his regulars are excited to be back. Meanwhile, Takako and Wada are engaged to be married, and she goes to visit her uncle on a day off. While there, the “paper bag man” arrives and speaks for the first time. He tells Takako and Satoru that he had believed that the Morisaki Bookshop had closed. He leaves, and Takako and Satoru watch him walk away.