Discover this utterly charming, vibrant celebration of the healing power of cats in the award-winning, bestselling Japanese novel that has become an international sensation.
Tucked away on the fifth floor of an old building at the end of a narrow alley in Kyoto, the Nakagyō Kokoro Clinic for the Soul can be found only by people who are struggling in their lives and who genuinely need help. The mysterious clinic offers a unique treatment to those who find their way there: it prescribes cats as medication. Patients are often puzzled by this unconventional prescription, but when they “take” their cat for the recommended duration, they witness profound transformations in their lives, guided by the playful, empathetic, and occasionally challenging yet endearing cats.
Throughout these pages, the power of the human-animal bond is revealed as a disheartened businessman finds unexpected joy in physical labor, a middle-aged man struggles to stay relevant at work and home, a young girl navigates the complexities of elementary school cliques, a hardened handbag designer seeks emotional balance, and a geisha learns to move on from the memory of her lost cat. As the clinic’s patients grapple with their inner turmoil and seek resolution, their feline companions lead them toward healing, self-discovery, and newfound hope."
We'll Prescribe You a Cat is a lovely little collection of interconnected stories set in Kyoto, Japan. My husband and I just recently visited Japan and stayed in Kyoto (an explanation for my lack of posting last week), so I decided to save this one because I thought that this would be the perfect book to read while there–and it was! This was a delightful read that has a perfect balance of light and 'cozy' vibes mixed with some explorations of more meaningful and thoughtful themes.
The Nakagyō Kokoro Clinic for the Soul is located in a hard to find, narrow alley within Kyoto,and typically only appears to those who are in need of its assistance. Within the walls of this clinic are an aloof receptionist and somewhat eccentric doctor who does not seem to do anything 'by the book' of a traditional doctor. Still, patients that enter this clinic are typically desperate enough to go along with things and try out what's advised–which just happens to be that of a prescription cat meant to help them solve their problems.
There are five short stories within this book, all focusing on a different patient and the cat prescribed to them. As we follow along each patient's journey, we slowly learn a bit more about this mysterious clinic and the doctor and receptionist who work there, though sometimes the things we learn only add to the mystery. With each new story, we are taken into the lives of new characters and learn about their daily lives the variety of things that are plaguing them, as well as how they find their way to the clinic. I loved this concept of patients being prescribed cats (I mean, who doesn't?) and really enjoyed the execution of it as well, as I felt the author used a lot of creative techniques and storytelling ideas to show the effectiveness of the cats in a variety of different ways.
After the first story, I was a little worried that this concept and general setup would become a bit repetitive as the stories went along, but I was pleasantly surprised to find that the author actually develops each story in ways that advances an overall story and understanding of the clinic, so you're really getting some new and interesting things added to the story as you go along. I was consistently impressed by the ways in which the author brought the stories together, and was immensely pleased by the culmination of the fifth story by what was learned about the clinic by then.
I also appreciated the thoughtfulness behind the author's exploration of each character and the various troubles they have; there's a lot of quiet consideration for why people are unhappy with various aspects of their lives, as well as what can be done. Some people even discover problems they didn't realize they had and learn to overcome them through the bond developed with an animal that relies on them.
*I received a copy of We'll Prescribe You a Cat in exchange for an honest review. This has no affect on my rating.*
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