Dazzling and ravishingly funny, The Pine Islands is a moving exploration of friendship and trust in contemporary Japan. A poetic blend of humour and melancholy, Poschmann’s novel charts two strangers’ pilgrimage to the pine islands of Matsushima and their concurrent personal transformation.
Shortlisted for the Man Booker International Prize 2019
When Gilbert Silvester wakes one day from a dream that his wife has cheated on him, he flees - immediately, irrationally, inexplicably - for Japan. In Tokyo he discovers the travel writings of the great Japanese poet Basho.
Suddenly, from Gilbert's directionless crisis there emerges a purpose: a pilgrimage in the footsteps of the poet to see the moon rise over the pine islands of Matsushima. Along the way he falls into step with another pilgrim: Yosa, a young Japanese student clutching a copy of The Complete Manual of Suicide. Together, Gilbert and Yosa travel across Basho's disappearing Japan, one in search of his perfect ending and the other a new beginning.
Serene, playful and profound, The Pine Islands is a story of the transformations we seek and the ones we find along the way.
Publisher: Profile Books Ltd
ISBN: 9781788160926
Number of pages: 192
Weight: 160 g
Dimensions: 196 x 128 x 16 mm
Edition: Main
Miraculous ... Poschmann has all the air of uncovered greatness - John Self, Guardian
A remarkably tender exploration of modern life ... Poschmann reveals the still beauty to be found in life beneath a mask of black humour. - Mia Colleran, Irish Times
A blackly funny novel, in which the rhythms of modern life slowly give way to the restorative poetry of the natural world. - Claire Allfree, Daily Mail
If you've ever wondered how a writer of imagination and wit might blend Murakami-style mysticism with black-humoured realism, this diverting novel will tell you everything you need to know. - Big Issue
Funny, strange and sad ... a refreshing book for the curious reader - Herald
Really fascinating ... on the face of it a simple story with a sort of surreality to it, a playfulness as well ... interesting, left-field ... we absolutely loved it ... a comic confrontation with mortality - Bettany Hughes, chair of the 2019 Man Booker International Prize judges
Absurdly delightful - Straits Times
A masterpiece - Die Zeit
Clever, poetic, funny - Tagesspiegel
A dazzling little novel - Süddeutsche Zeitung
Profoundly serene, flawlessly beautiful - TAZ
Ravishingly funny - Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung
Simply wonderful - Stern
This book’s main characters are an odd pair. Gilbert, leaving his wife behind in Germany, flies to Japan and Yosa, a young Japanese man on the verge of suicide. They travel to Matsushima following in the footsteps of... More
I always love the picks on the Man Booker International Longlists and this novel stood out for its brilliant cover and quirky plot.
However, the book was so much more than I’d thought it’d be. Poschmann creates two...
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One day Gilbert Silvester ups and leaves his home in Germany, abandoning his wife Mathilda as she sleeps, and takes a flight to Japan. This is as spontaneous as it gets! He checks into a hotel in Tokyo with the works... More
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