May You Have Delicious Meals by Junko Takase, translated by Morgan Giles (Hutchinson) ~Ernie Hoyt

Junko Takase is a Japanese writer whose first novel was 犬のかたちをしてるもの (Inu no Katachi wo Shiteru Mono) (Things with the Shape of a Dog), won the Subaru Literary Prize, a literature prize sponsored by the publisher Shueisha. The book was published the following year. 

Takase was nominated for the Akutagawa Prize, one of Japan’s most prestigious literary awards, along with the Naoki Prize, for her book 水たまりでいきをする (Mizutamari de Iki o Suru) (Breathing in a Puddle) in 2021 and won the Akutagawa Prize the following year for May You Have Delicious Meals.

May You Have Delicous Meals which was originally published in the Japanese language as おいしいごはんをたべられるますように (Oishii Gohan wo Taberareru masu yo ni) and was serialized in the magazine 群像 (Gunzo) in 2020. The English edition was translated by Morgan Giles who also translated Yu Miri’s Tokyo Ueno Station (Asia by the Book, May 2021).

The story centers around three main characters - Oshio, Nitani, and Ashikawa. They all work for the same company in Saitama Prefecture. Their company produces labels and packaging for food and beverage products. Oshio was hired right out of university five years ago. Ashikawa was hired a year before and Nitani was hired a year before Ashikawa although he worked at a different branch for six years before being transferred to the Saitama branch. 

The story is narrated by Oshio. She and Nitani were heading back to the office after taking part in an off-site training course. It was already five thirty in the evening so they decided to grab a bite to eat and have some drinks at a local izakaya. Once the booze starts flowing, Oshio says to Nitani, “Do you know who I can’t stand? Ashikawa.”

As Oshio explains why she doesn’t really like Ashikawa, Nitani discovers that it wasn’t anything Ashikawa did or said to Oshio. He surmises, “you don’t like her because she’s not competent?”. Oshio’s response is, “More like, because everyone knows she isn’t, I guess.” 

When Nitani joined the Saitama office, Ashikawa was supposed to show him the ropes. But after two weeks, Nitani had the thought, “I’m gonna overtake her in no time at all, easy. It’s hard to respect someone after that”. 

Nitani gave up respecting Ashikawa “the moment the thought she lacked a backbone came to the surface of his mind”. However, he is attracted to her weakness and they begin dating. However, there is one thing that really annoys him - it is her love of eating proper food. Nitani is happy with instant pot noodles. He wished he could “eat pot noodles three meals a day and still meet all the dietary requirements for a healthy life”. 

The story is an interesting take on office dynamics. I’m sure many people can relate to disliking a co-worker either because they are incompetent or because they have annoying habits or maybe a bit of both and yet they tolerate their presence to keep harmony in the office.. I’m no different. There are co-workers in the past I did not particularly enjoy working with but I didn’t go out of my way to get them fired. 

You can’t help but wonder what will become of the trio. Will Nitani end up marrying Ashikawa? And what will happen to Oshio? Was she also in love with Nitani? You’ll just have to read and find out.