Talent (Complete 2 Volumes)
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Summary
Told through interwoven past and present timelines—the "past" of protagonist Minori's university days in 1999 and the "present" from 2019 to 2020—the book follows Minori's perspective through stories involving her nephew, her grandfather, and her university club friends, exploring what "talent" truly is.
For most of her life, Minori has been trapped in a vortex of self-doubt. She envies friends whose work is both meaningful and challenging, while she herself falters after setbacks and cannot recover. Overwhelmed by others' talents, she concludes she has none and feels deeply inferior. But after learning her grandfather's story, Minori finally realizes that talent is something that varies from person to person—ever-changing, without fixed form—and that each person must actively spend a lifetime seeking and exploring it, rather than simply defining it as present or absent.
Editor's review
Who it's for
A good fit for
- Readers in their twenties to thirties grappling with career confusion and peer pressure
- Literary readers who enjoy Japanese coming-of-age novels and women's self-identity themes
- Those moved by caregiving for elders or time spent with younger relatives
- Educators and counselors seeking a fictional case for understanding "talent anxiety"
Not a good fit for
- Readers expecting fast-paced suspense or genre fiction with strong plot twists
- Practical-minded readers wanting clear methods and career-planning steps
- Readers who find dual timelines confusing and prefer linear narration
Reading tips
- Read in table-of-contents order; as past and present chapters alternate, note how Minori's emotional shifts echo across timelines.
- Slow down when the grandfather recounts his past—that is the key to the book's redefinition of "talent."
- Pause after finishing Volume One; recall a time you were crushed by someone else's "talent," then begin Volume Two.
- After closing the book, write a self-account of under 300 words listing only things you have done but never credited yourself for.
About the publisher
Founded in 1987, Qingdao Publishing House has long focused on education, science and technology, children's books, and lifestyle titles, while steadily publishing classical and foreign literature. Its 827 titles in the catalog reflect a balance between making classics widely accessible and serving young readers. They include the four great classics of Chinese literature—Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Water Margin, Dream of the Red Chamber, and Journey to the West—as well as foreign literary translations such as Sei Shōnagon's The Pillow Book, works associated with Zhou Zuoren, and Victor Hugo's Les Misérables. The press also offers a color-illustrated series of recommended classics for primary and secondary school Chinese curriculum reading, using pictures and text to support student readers. Its common categories cover classical literature, essays and miscellaneous writings, folk literature, and foreign literature, with authors including Luo Guanzhong, Shi Nai'an, Cao Xueqin, Gao E, Wu Cheng'en, Sei Shōnagon, Zhou Zuoren, and Victor Hugo. Public information is limited, so this profile emphasizes the publishing directions shown by the catalog.
Contents
- 版权信息
- 上
- 译序 关于才能
- 序章
- 第一章 回乡
- 第二章 出发
- 第三章 旅途
- 第四章 旧友
- 第五章 追寻
- 下
- 第六章 坎坷
- 第七章 低谷
- 第八章 向前
- 尾声
FAQ
Is this a practical self-help book?
Can I read this without having read other works by Mitsuyo Kakuta?
How should I pace my reading across the two volumes?
What conclusion does the book reach about "talent"?
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About the author
Mitsuyo Kakuta is a Japanese novelist and translator, born in 1967 in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, and a graduate of Waseda University's School of Letters, Arts and Sciences. She made her debut in 1990 with The Game of Happiness, which won the Kaien Newcomer Literature Award, and received the Naoki Prize in 2005 for Her on the Other Shore. Her work focuses largely on the struggles of contemporary women and on family relationships, told with delicate prose that reveals her characters' inner conflicts and struggles within everyday settings. The collection includes 13 of her works, such as The Invisible Woman (6 volumes), Air Garden, Her on the Other Shore, The Silent Garden, The House on the Slope, Night Flight, Talent (2 volumes), and What Is Love, spanning foreign literature, social fiction, and youth literature. Her acclaimed works The Eighth Day's Cicada and Paper Moon have also drawn wide attention.
Hou Wei is a translator and author credited by name in Chinese book records, though reliable public information about his life is limited: his nationality, dates of birth and death, and educational background are not documented. Judging from the thirteen titles listed in the database, his work centers on translating Japanese literature. His representative translations include Toyoko Yamasaki's The Great White Tower and her trilogy dissecting the dark side of reality, as well as Yasunari Kawabata's Snow Country, The Master of Go, Thousand Cranes, and The Dancing Girl, along with The Evil Sect and In a Grove and Talent. These works fall mainly under foreign literature and social fiction, with some essays and miscellaneous writings. Their themes range from the medical system and journalistic ethics to family fate and the subtleties of human nature, reflecting a sustained engagement with long-form narrative and socially critical texts. His translations are known for staying close to the originals and preserving their narrative rhythm, offering Chinese readers fairly complete access to modern and contemporary Japanese fiction.
