Book Review #2 - Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto

I love to cook. Ever since 2023, I have been helping out in a local Japanese restaurant kitchen, and it’s practically my second home! Making every single dish always brings a smile to my face after I see the final product. It’s hard to believe that so much work can turn into something so beautiful (and delicious)! Whenever I am in the kitchen, it is like I am living an entirely different life, and that nothing else matters. Kitchen, by Banana Yoshimoto, was extremely appealing to me because of the appreciation for kitchens and how the protagonist took great note of and detail in them.

Kitchen was published in 1988 by Banana Yoshimoto. Banana adopted her name while she was at Nihon University, admired by its cuteness and androgyny. As of 2025, she is 61 years old and has written around 13 books.

Kitchen is about a young adult female named Mikage Sakurai who has grown up as an orphan raised by her grandmother. However, her grandma dies and she is left all alone. Yuichi Tanabe, Mikage’s childhood friend, and his transgender mother, Eriko, take Mikage in. In the novel, I noticed how Yoshimoto highlights how Mikage Sakurai works in a kitchen and bonds that she grows with Yuichi Tanabe to help her heal.

  After Mikage’s grandmother dies, she is devastated. Eriko and Yuichi help her slowly heal after the toll that was taken on her mental health. One of the things that helped Mikage heal was the Tanabes’ kitchen. Anytime she sees a kitchen, she admires the organization and set up of it. Where the dishes, silverware, and appliances are placed are always different in each place in each kitchen she goes to, and it's fascinating to analyze the similarities and differences between them. Mikage believes that when she's in the kitchen, nothing else matters than organizing and enjoying time there. Throughout the novel, she also gets a job at a restaurant. Anytime she is stressed, the kitchen is always a safe haven for her. I relate to Mikage on a personal level because I also work in a kitchen. While it is extremely busy, the adrenaline rushes through my veins whenever we are filled with tasks to complete. It requires strong teamwork, and right when I’m finished doing something, there's always something else to do. In the kitchen, my stresses go away and the only thing that matters is perfecting the performance of the restaurant on a team level.

Mikage also heals with the support from Yuichi Tanabe. Because Mikage has a passion for cooking and the kitchen, they bond over making food. After her grandmother’s death, Mikage lost her appetite, which shows how much she was hurt. Even her most favorite thing in the world wasn’t enjoyable anymore because the person she would spend it with was gone. But Yuichi brought her out of the pain. Yuichi was able to cook in the kitchen with her, which sparked her love for cooking once again. They were able to bond over the kitchen, and her love for food was more apparent than ever. Near the end of the book, the roles are switched. After Yuichi experiences a tragic event somewhat similar to Mikage’s, she is found taking care of him. She cooks food for him and comforts him, just as he did for her when she was at her lowest. Their relationship has had many ups and downs, and how they come out of every conflict stronger than ever displays the stability of their bond. 

For me, Kitchen was an emotional rollercoaster. After experiencing grief and loss, the characters are able to bond together and comfort each other. Through sharing and cooking food, they can deepen their friendship and become even closer. Despite Yuichi and Mikage not even being family, they are each other’s emotional support systems. Kitchen emphasizes how comfort and love can sprout from people who aren’t blood-related. Even in the darkest moments of life, warm and sweet experiences can still prevail. Whether it's a small meal shared with others, cooking together, or even washing dishes, any act of bonding can make someone’s day. 

Happy reading!