These zones however draw speculation and intrigue, and this is how Sora makes her income: taking people into these forbidden zones so they can quench their desire for the unknown, until one day her father learns of what she has been doing and leaves her with little choice but to move away leaving him alone when perhaps that isn’t the wisest idea. Inspired by the fate of Penelope’s maids in Homer’s The Odyssey, this is a lavish epic of power, vengeance, love and fate. But for some reason my brain couldn't quite convey what I was reading which affected my emotions regarding this. Metaphors create a song of magical realism that is interwoven into the experience of Catfish Rolling.

Catfish Rolling reminded me a bit of Mike Chen's books, mostly his first, Here and Now and Then, which also dealt with time. Since then, the hardest-hit areas have fractured into zones, each flowing at a different pace of time.Ever since the earthquake that changed her life forever, she has been stuck between past and present, unable to move on. Generational gaps, family dynamics and a young-adult protagonist navigating desolate and haunted landscapes, mindscapes and combinations of those two. For those who tend to enjoy more action and adventure, it's on the slow side, and there are still many questions left open at the end about the fantastical aspects. The earthquake had strucked the largest city in Tohoku region which also caused tsunami that shocked the whole world.

Sora is sensitive to the shifts, and her father recruits her help in exploring these liminal spaces. Not only do we experience Sora's grief for her mother, her family, and her life that was, but shared loss and a community's grief. Some side notes: the book is written in British English (was published first with a UK publisher) and has a British narrator (Susan Momoko-Hingley) that does a good job, however, Sora isn’t British, so it was a little jarring and had to remind myself a few times while listening, so it was a minor distraction.Overall, an enjoyable coming of age story that I would recommend to those who like contemplative, character-driven books. It was wonderful to read that last third of the book, especially when the author started to include more fantasy aspects, including Japanese folklore. Early recruit Seb is determined to make his parents proud, but when he meets the enigmatic Finn, the boys begin to question the true nature of the institute and the challenges they must complete. It’s not easy to pen a novel swimming in magical realism and dream-logic that is also highly influenced by science and philosophy- but that’s exactly what Clara Kumagai has done. The Japanese culture is gently interwoven between scientific explanations and coming-of-age romance to make an enchanting.

That catfish took everything dear to Sora: her beloved home, her sense of happiness, and most devastating of all, her mother.

This review was written by Kelly Ashley With over 20 years of education experience in both the US and the UK, Kelly Ashley currently works as an independent consultant, providing training and support for primary schools across the UK.

Some of the Japanese people she encounters just assume that she's a foreigner who doesn't speak Japanese. Catfish Rolling was a book with a fascinating and original premise, and I enjoyed the combination of science and Japanese myth. I think I first read about this Japanese mythology when I was reading Ruth Ozeki’s “A Tale for the Time Being”. On a larger scale, we also see the rippling effects the earthquake has had in shaping Japan and its culture as a whole. I personally could imagine especially the last part of Sora’s personal adventure transformed into a Ghibli’s animation vividly.But Sora must be swift for anyone who spends too much time in these zones are seldom seen ever again, and with her father already showing signs of such damage, she must push herself further than she ever has before.