Hollow Inside by Otani, Asako
Hollow Inside by Otani, Asako

Hollow Inside

A witty, deadpan novel about modern relationships, pets, and living as a single woman; for fans of...
$20.34 USD
$20.34 USD
Please hurry! Only 7 left in stock
Author: Asako Otani
Format: Paperback
Language: English
Subtotal: $20.34
Hollow Inside by Otani, Asako

Hollow Inside

$20.34
Hollow Inside by Otani, Asako

Hollow Inside

$20.34
Author: Asako Otani
Format: Paperback
Language: English
Description
A witty, deadpan novel about modern relationships, pets, and living as a single woman; for fans of Sayaka Murata, offbeat humor, and sharp social observation

In this skewed, mordantly funny Japanese novel, two women navigate aging and relationships in divergent ways.

Hirai, 38, has recently started living with her colleague Suganuma, 42. Both women are single and feel ambivalent at best about the prospect of marriage. Stuck in bland jobs that don't pay enough for them to afford one-bedroom apartments in the city, they defy social expectation and create their own domestic routines, allowing space for Suganuma's side-hustle--3D-printing figurines of beloved dead pets for their grieving owners.

Though initially united by their resistance to romantic love, the pair begin tentative forays toward partnership. Suganuma strikes up a secret affair, which shocks Hirai into action and back into the world of dating apps. As she drifts through painfully adequate dates and endures intrusive questions at office socials, Hirai frets over whether she really needs to freeze her eggs again. In a dating world sapped of genuine connection, where can she turn to feel less hollow?

The debut novel by a bright new voice in Japanese fiction, Hollow Inside won the prestigious Subaru Prize. With a dark, deadpan tone and sharply witty observation, Asako Otani satirizes the myths and pressures of contemporary romantic love, as Hirai and Suganuma try to chart their own paths in a precarious world.

Author: Asako Otani
Publisher: Pushkin Press
Published: 05/05/2026
Pages: 112
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.22lbs
Size: 7.65h x 5.05w x 0.56d
ISBN: 9781805680017


Review Citation(s):
Library Journal 02/01/2026 pg. 52

About the Author
Asako Otani was born in Chiba Prefecture in 1990. Her debut novel, Hollow Inside, won the 2022 Subaru Literary Prize.

Ginny Tapley Takemori is the prize-winning translator of Sayaka Murata's Convenience Store Woman, Earthlings, and Life Ceremony, as well as many of her short stories, and other celebrated authors including Kyoko Nakajima and Ryu Murakami.
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