A heartbreaking portrayal of a middle school-aged boy as he navigates being bullied by his peers at school every day. Kawakami has proven herself to be an expert in all kinds of loneliness, and she's always interested in the one relationship or chance encounter that changes things for the better. On isolation, she poignantly writes, "It was like being a piece of furniture in a room no one uses." Absolutely.
— Peter
“I loved this book. Its portrayal of bullying is moving and intelligent. Kawakami gives us characters who speak to the heart and illustrate in one form or another the dilemma facing everyone in adolescence. Hopeful but chilling in equal measures.”
— Don Luckham, The Toadstool Bookshop - Keene, Keene, NH
SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2022 INTERNATIONAL BOOKER PRIZE
"A raw, painful, and tender portrait of adolescent misery... This book is very likely to make you cry."--Lily Meyer, NPR
With profound tenderness and sensitivity, Japanese literary superstar Mieko Kawakami turns her unique gaze onto the causes and effects of violence. Raw but revelatory, this novel stands as a dazzling confirmation of Kawakami's standing as one of her country's most insightful and compelling novelists.
In Heaven, a shy high-school student is subjected to bullying from his classmates and the only person capable of understanding his ordeal is a young classmate who suffers similar treatment at the hands of her tormentors. Each finds in the other a unique sensibility capable of offering not only solace but also a fresh perspective on their predicaments.