Nishino has no independent voice he is described only by the women with whom he interacts and who, more often than not, are the ones to finish the affair. But this novel is far more than a tirade against bad male behavior. The Ten Loves of Mr Nishino, Hiromi Kawakami, Allison Markin Powell (trans) (Granta, Europa editions, June 2019) Kawakami states the obvious with such acuity that her prose becomes resonant. Instead of a reconciliation, he embarrasses both women and hastens their joint departure. For example, he two-times his girlfriend Subaru with her flatmate while, on another occasion, he invites a former lover to dinner with his current partner. As to be expected, Nishino often torpedoes his chances with one girl by courting another. The following stories go on to examine how this issue impacts the nine other women who become involved with Nishino. Herein lies the clue to Nishino’s lack of success: he cannot commit.
She admits that, although she was madly in love with Nishino, their relationship ultimately failed because she believed he was never “serious” about it. Natsumi naturally is unenthusiastic about entertaining a phantom and leaves Nishino to continue his path to the next life alone. He has returned to visit a former lover, Natsumi, to fulfil a promise he made to her when he was alive. Nishino’s first appearance is as a ghost. Sadly, despite his notable talents as a lothario, Nishino cannot make any of these trysts last. Each encapsulates one of ten affairs Nishino conducts through his life ranging from schoolboy romance to extramarital liaisons. First published in Japanese in 1995 and now in English translation, The Ten Loves of Mr Nishino by Hiromi Kawakami takes the form of ten short stories linked by a central character, the titular Mr Nishino.
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