My thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for my free digital ARC! I requested this one because which bookworm doesn’t love a good book about books? The premise of this memoir is Nanako recently separating from her husband, finds her career stagnating, reaching a turning point in her life. So she signs up to PerfectStrangers to meet new people and give them book recommendations. While I did enjoy the book recommendations aspect (such a shame that so many of them are not yet translated into English!) I thought overall it felt a bit superficial. I’m finding that unfortunately with a few of the memoirs I’ve picked up this year - too much telling and not enough showing, and too much ‘this happened then this happened then this happened’ without the author taking time to ruminate and reflect on those events. I learned at the end that a good chunk of the book had first been published online, and that made sense. Some sections just have that quick-read quality of an online article, and I sped through the book as a whole.

There were some good parts about navigating online spaces and meet ups as a woman (one part made my jaw drop, the audacity of men). And I also liked the emphasis it placed on platonic friendships - I’m so glad Nanako was able to form such relationships as a middle-aged woman, as sometimes it seems like it’s impossible to make friends after your twenties!

A little underwhelming, but wholesome enough and obviously a testament to the power of a good book recommendation.