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Hikikomori and the Rental Sister Audiobook
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(3.04) - 326 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
Thomas Tessler, devastated by a tragedy, has cloistered himself in his bedroom and shut out the world for the past three years. His wife, Silke, lives in the next room, but Thomas no longer shares his life with her, leaving his hideout only in the wee hours of the night to buy food at the store around the corner from their Manhattan apartment. Isolated, withdrawn, damaged, Thomas is hikikomori.
Desperate to salvage their life together, Silke hires Megumi, a young Japanese woman attuned to the hikikomori phenomenon, to lure Thomas back into the world. In Japan Megumi is called a “rental sister,” though her job may involve much more than familial comforts. As Thomas grows to trust Megumi, a deepening and sensual relationship unfolds. But what are the risks of such intimacy? And what must these three broken people surrender in order to find hope?
Revelatory and provocative, Hikikomori and the Rental Sister tears through the emotional walls of grief and delves into the power of human connection to break through to the waiting world outside.
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"I REALLY enjoyed this book! Author has great style. It is one of those stories that makes you think about how events out of our control can change our lives and how when you meet people on the street you just never know what they are dealing with and for me a reminder to try and always show compassion and not judge."
— Eric (5 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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“[A] strange and tender debut novel…His writing, which is as clear and direct as flowing water, convincingly portrays the deepening connection between Thomas and Megumi.”
— Wall Street Journal -
“One remarkable debut.”
— Toronto Star -
“Written deeply, cleanly, sparely, and gently, like fingers playing over the strings of a harp.”
— St. Louis Post Dispatch -
“Required reading.”
— New York Post -
“A mesmerizing debut at once sorrowful, intimate, and optimistic…Told in crisp and lyrical prose and a nontraditional narrative that shifts between first- and third-person, Backhaus’s novel is courageous and spare, an enthralling success.”
— Booklist (starred review) -
“[A] quiet but poignant exploration of loneliness and self-discovery.”
— USA Today
Awards
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Selected for the January 2013 Indie Next List
Hikikomori and the Rental Sister Listener Reviews
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" this was lovely, so strange and touching. i cringed a little at the descriptions of sex from a woman's point of view (by the male author) but it was a great book. "
— Leah, 2/14/2014 -
" Maybe this happens in Japan, but the premise was too unbelievable for an american man. If Silke was this dynamic career woman, as the author implies, she would never have put up with Thomas' shenanigans. If it had been me, I would have committed him. I only finished the book to find out who the winner was. (If you can call Thomas a prize) "
— Nancy, 2/9/2014 -
" Beautiful, taut and almost impossible for me to put down. Maybe just a tiny smidgen of hackneyed language in the final chapters and their arc, but it would be churlish to complain. "
— Morgana, 1/24/2014 -
" Boring. None of the characters had any life to them. "
— Kris, 1/23/2014 -
" What a waste of 3 hours of my life. One of the lightest, sketch-like, unsatisfying, and at times cloying (in its perpetuation of "inscrutable Asians") books I have read. Like a sitcom, or a "sit-tragedy". "
— Pik, 1/17/2014 -
" This was a nice, quick read. It's one of those books that seems like there's nothing going on but there's really quite a bit happening. You only learn as much about the characters that you need. Which is nice. Not a lot of details to bog things down or get forgotten. "
— Teawench, 1/11/2014 -
" Sweet and sad, beautifully written. "
— Laura, 1/10/2014 -
" Beautifully written, character of Megumi intriguing, interesting premise, quietly tender "
— Melissa, 12/3/2013 -
" Thomas withdraws to his room following the death of his son. The wife hires a Japanese woman to help draw him out. Different sort of story, but interesting. A quick read. "
— Sandy, 11/17/2013 -
" Poetic short novel. Sometimes claustrophobic but that adds to the plot. Like one of the main characters Megumi, we observe a Japanese drama played out on a Manhattan stage. "
— Judith, 11/15/2013 -
" Second half dynamic. Best line- "...maybe you just pretend and pretend, little by little, until it's real." "
— Jerry, 10/5/2013 -
" Love, love, love this book! Once started, I couldn't stop until I finished the entire book. "
— Keri, 9/2/2013 -
" This book took me through a gamut of emotions. I didn't like these emotions and yet I couldn't put the book down. Definitely a must read! "
— Asha, 8/24/2013 -
" I enjoyed this novel tremendously. "
— Deborah, 7/11/2013 -
" the most beautifully written book I've read in a long time "
— Jenn, 5/28/2013 -
" Tearful & joyful at the same time. I so love Japanese characters. "
— Samantha, 1/20/2013
About Jeff Backhaus
Jeff Backhaus has been a cook, an art director, and a professional pilot. He lived and worked in Korea and now lives in New York.
About Stephen Bowlby
Stephen Bowlby has worked as a professional voice actor for more than forty years. His experience spans animation, character work, commercials, and narration. He has read numerous audiobooks throughout his career, including titles by Harold Robbins, Stuart M. Kaminsky, John Sculley, William P. McGivern, and Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz.