かがみの孤城 上

by Mizuki Tsujimura, 辻村深月, 禅之助 (Illustrator)

学校での居場所をなくし、閉じこもっていた“こころ”の目の前で、ある日突然部屋の鏡が光り始めた。
輝く鏡をくぐり抜けた先にあったのは、城のような不思議な建物。
そこには“こころ”を含め、似た境遇の7人が集められていた。
なぜこの7人が、なぜこの場所に――
すべてが明らかになるとき、驚きとともに大きな感動に包まれる。
生きづらさを感じているすべての人に贈る物語。
本屋大賞受賞ほか、圧倒的支持を受け堂々８冠のベストセラー。

Genres: Japanese Literature, Mystery, Fiction

415 pages, Paperback

First published March 5, 2021

About the author

Associated Names:
* Mizuki Tsujimura
* 辻村深月 (Japanese)

Tsujimura is an award-winning novelist, she is best known for her mystery and children novels. She studied at Chiba University and won the Naoki Prize in 2012 for Kagi no nai Yume wo Miru (I Saw a Dream Without a Key), and in 2018 she won the Japan Booksellers' Award for her novel Kagami no Kojo (Lonely Castle in the Mirror).

Japanese name 辻村 深月

Reviews

[Marta · Rating 2 out of 5]

jlpt level: lower n2
probably can be read by upper n3 too but might require a bit of looking up kanji and vocab.

went in with quite a few expectations because of the compelling blurb and stellar reviews. ended up feeling mildly bored a lot of the time.

unfortunately, the fantasy element really takes a back seat and it focuses a lot on the kids just hanging out at the castle. honestly, i think it's a realistic depiction of what would happen to a bunch of kids in that situation, but because of it not a lot happened.
at one point, i even found myself finding the "outside" world plot a lot more interesting. however it was picked up very little.

the characters also didn't speak to me in any way. it makes me feel mean saying this because they are clearly realistic characterizations of japanese middle schools students and situations. hell, i even had a kid like this in my high school class, so its not like the situation is completely detached from my reality.
but still, i didn't connect. so i'm inclined to think the prose just didn't do it for me.

for these 2 reasons, around 70% i put the book down and it took me months before i got myself to pick it up again.
truth is, i really wanted to like this. and i've notice most people who love it do so because of the ending, but at this moment i'm not sure i have it in me to pick up the last instalment.

[Yui Shimzu · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this book and am now willing to read the 2nd book. This book is about a girl who wasn't able to go to school, staying at home in her room all day but one day suddenly her mirror in her room was sparkling. When she went into that mirror with fear, there was a castle and other people too. This castle had a key leading into a room where your wish could come true but you must find the key. I really recommend this book to those who enjoy reading fiction, and fantasy books. This book is a really enjoyable book to read.