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AbstractHistoryArchive Description
'Mai and Hikaru went to school together in the city of Nagoya, until Hikaru disappeared when they were eighteen. It is not until ten years later, when Mai runs into Hikaru's mother, Hiromi Sato, that Mai learns he became a hikikomori, a recluse unable to leave his bedroom for years. In secret, Hiromi Sato hires Mai as a 'rental sister', to write letters to Hikaru and encourage him to leave his room.
'Mai has recently married J, a devoted salaryman with conservative ideas about the kind of wife Mai will be. The renewed contact with her old school friend, Hikaru, stirs Mai's feelings of invisibility within her marriage. She is frustrated with her life and knows she will never fulfill J's obsession with the perfect wife and mother. What else is there for Mai to do but to disappear herself?' (Publication summary)
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Other Formats
- Large print.
- Dyslexic edition.
Works about this Work
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In 'The Shut Ins', Australian Novelist Katherine Brabon Examines Loneliness, Isolation and Japanese Hikikomori
2021
single work
review
— Appears in: ABC News [Online] , August 2021;
— Review of The Shut Ins 2021 single work novel 'Over the last 18 months we've all felt shut in at times, but a new Australian novel explores an extreme version of that feeling: hikikomori.' (Introduction) -
The Best New Books to Read in July as Selected by Avid Readers and Critics
2021
single work
review
— Appears in: ABC News [Online] , July 2021;
— Review of The Shut Ins 2021 single work novel ; The Others 2021 single work novel ; She Is Haunted 2021 selected work short story'Just in time for the latest lockdown, ABC Arts is trialling a monthly book column. Each month, we'll present a shortlist of new releases read and recommended by The Bookshelf's Kate Evans and The Book Show's Claire Nichols and Sarah L'Estrange — alongside freelance writers and book reviewers. This month, we're thrilled to present recommendations from Declan Fry and Khalid Warsame.' (Introduction)
-
The Best New Books to Read in July as Selected by Avid Readers and Critics
2021
single work
review
— Appears in: ABC News [Online] , July 2021;
— Review of The Shut Ins 2021 single work novel ; The Others 2021 single work novel ; She Is Haunted 2021 selected work short story'Just in time for the latest lockdown, ABC Arts is trialling a monthly book column. Each month, we'll present a shortlist of new releases read and recommended by The Bookshelf's Kate Evans and The Book Show's Claire Nichols and Sarah L'Estrange — alongside freelance writers and book reviewers. This month, we're thrilled to present recommendations from Declan Fry and Khalid Warsame.' (Introduction)
-
In 'The Shut Ins', Australian Novelist Katherine Brabon Examines Loneliness, Isolation and Japanese Hikikomori
2021
single work
review
— Appears in: ABC News [Online] , August 2021;
— Review of The Shut Ins 2021 single work novel 'Over the last 18 months we've all felt shut in at times, but a new Australian novel explores an extreme version of that feeling: hikikomori.' (Introduction)
Awards
- 2022 longlisted Voss Literary Prize
- 2022 winner New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards — People's Choice Award
- 2022 longlisted ASAL Awards — ALS Gold Medal
- 2022 shortlisted New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards — Christina Stead Prize for Fiction