Ep. 07 Sampo Mugimoto’s Favorite Things
In this episode, we are going to talk about a novel called 麦本三歩の好きなもの(Sampo Mugimoto’s Favorite Things by Yoru Sumino.)
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In their sixth novel, writer Yoru Sumino tells stories about a fun young lady named Sanpo Mugimoto. 麦本三歩の好きなもの(Sampo Mugimoto’s Favorite Things). So far, two volumes are published. Book one was published in spring 2019, and book two was published in the winter 2021. Before reading, I noticed many people shared how they were touched, moved, cried, or annoyed by the book on Twitter and Amazon.jp.
I first met this book on the new arrivals, unprocessed acquisitions bookshelf at the library I worked at. I passed by the bookshelf, spotted the book, and was attracted by the title. At the time, I wondered about the name, thinking, Sanpo? Sampo…was that a name? Oh, it is a name, what an interesting name. Then I found out that the character Sanpo in the book works at a university library, the same as me.
Sanpo’s daily life episodes. If you are a person like Sanpo who loves her job and life or tries to make a life you want, you would be touched and might feel like it you could live again after reading.
How can a novel about daily life make someone so emotional? The author uses almost a documentary filming style to present Sampo’s stories. Simply traces the everyday life of Sampo in the words of herself. And while the stories are unfolding one after another, readers would find themselves in the documentary film with Sampo, going to work together, working at the university's library together, talking to her co-workers together, and going on a date together. The readers are not in the audience seats in the distance, but up close in every scene with Sampo, and finding any small blessings in life together. Besides Sampo, all the other characters don’t have a name, in the book Sampo calls them by names like the kind senior co-worker, the frightening senior co-worker, the weird senior co-worker, the cute junior co-worker, or even you (a childhood friend of Sampo), and the friend. The storyteller shows their generosity by inviting you as a part of the story, not inserting any judgements but giving the reader full access to experience and project their life into Sanpo and the people around her.
Each volume is broken up into 12 chapters with the themes and the notion that Sanpoo likes; for instance, these are the chapter titles:
Sampo Mugimoto likes to Walk (麦本三歩は歩くのが好き)
Sampo Mugimoto likes the Library (麦本三歩は図書館が好き)
Sampo Mugimoto likes You (麦本三歩は君が好き)
Sampo Mugimoto likes Kiki’s Delivery Service (麦本三歩は魔女宅が好き)
Sampo Mugimoto likes Today (麦本三歩は今日が好き)
Sampo Mugimoto likes to Sleep
Sampo Mugimoto likes Tokyo Tower
Sampo Mugimoto Like Tomorrow
About the Author
I didn’t know a lot about the author, Yoru Sumino. I only heard that several of their works were adapted into movies.
Based on the research I did, Sumino started writing in high school. And debuted with the novel I Want to Eat Your Pancreas in 2015. Yoru Sumino is a pen name, which means, based on the writer, “that there should be creativity in a child's night in the corner of the classroom.”
In writing class, my professor often talks about how an excellent setting provided by the storyteller can bring life to the story. Yoru Sumino did it perfectly for the Sanpo Mugimoto novels; because even with no plot, they only give a setting, which is the key to the story.
Before starting, the writer needs to have a picture in their brain. Then provide the time and space, and describe where the actions take place when something changes. For example, it could be at a church, forest, restaurant, or street; even overdoing this part is okay; just bring the picture in your head onto the paper. Then, give a sense of time, such as morning or evening, and a sense of season not by saying but by showing. Then, give a sense of community, geography, and culture.
Because this book hasn’t been translated into English, in the next part I will share some scenes I found interesting in the book, and translate into English here to share with you.
In book two, in a chapter titled Sanpo Mugimoto Likes to Sleep, Sumino invites us to Sanpo’s apartment before dawn. Sanpo sleeps in her bed with her full PJ set; we listen to what she says in her dream, go into her dreams, watch her neighbourhood, feel the sunlight coming in, and hear the bike passing outside the window.
Here is how the chapter goes:
“…
“Mmm”
Sampo releases a groan. Wearing in a long navy polka-dot T-shirt and grey sweatpants. She is sleeping on a bed in a dark room. When she turns over, the alarm falls next to her pillow, and gets stuck to her face.
…
At this moment, no humans or animals live with Sampo. The only sounds in the room come from her breath and the rustling sound of her clothes. Occasionally, there are the sounds of cars passing by in front of the apartment and cats fighting outside, but nothing can disturb Sanpo’s deep sleep.
…
After a while, Sampo escapes from her strange dream and lies on her back with a calm expression. Her legs are spread out like the shape of the number eight in the futon, and she is feeling satisfied.
…
Gradually, the sounds of a bike and garbage truck pass by outside. And then, there is the sound of the next-door neighbour opening the window.
Time passes by as usual; it is about time.
”
Some people on a Japanese book tracker and review site, called Bookmeter, comment that they cannot work or bear with a person like Sanpo, because her positive attitude is annoying. Yeah, maybe that is the case, but, I consider these kinds of comments to be jealousy.
Again, nothing much really happens in the novel, just like how the earth is running in its path in the universe peacefully. But, happiness is in every single moment.
Sampo’s daily life has many notions of being appreciated, like the smell of books and the library, the morning, the food, the pudding, and the people. She wishes to be alive, lives well, sleeps well, and eats well. That's why for most of the time, I find Sanpo’s stories to be comforting to read and enjoy. Meeting a good book that speaks to one’s heart is a blessing.
To end this off, here ismy translation of the last chapter of book one, Sanpo Mugimoto Likes Today:
“Sampo thinks about the day ahead of her. She wonders whether she will make no mistakes and if the senior co-worker will not scold her today.
Later, she is excited, breathing in the fresh morning air at the library.
She is excited about what to eat for lunch.
She is excited to see the elegant way her frightening senior co-worker uses chopsticks, even when they are mad at her.
She is excited about what to eat for dinner.
She is excited to get a pudding and eat it later that night.
She looks forward to watching Music Station on TV tonight, because she realizes that her favourite artist will be on there.
With all those notions running through her head, she forgets all the unwillingness she had to go to work that morning. Because she realises that there are so many small but interesting things to look forward to in an ordinary day.
”
Ending
Meeting a good book that speaks to your heart is a piece of luck. This book comforts a reader like me; and makes an ordinary day seem brighter. On the last page, the author writes that “Mugimito Sanpo’s life goes on,” and that is the same for everyone who strives to live.
"Sanpo Mugimoto's life goes on." That is the same for many of us. We should be alive for a little longer and enjoy daily life a little more. No matter what happens, it will all lead to a good result. If we are still alive, some tiny and good things may happen to us one day, very soon.
Reference
Publisher's Special Website: https://www.gentosha.co.jp/s/mugimotosampo/
