More Days at the Morisaki Bookshop

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of illness and death.

Takako is the protagonist and narrator of More Days at the Morisaki Bookshop, and just as in its predecessor, she struggles with love. Though Takako heals from the heartbreak she experienced in Days at the Morisaki Bookshop and begins a new romance with Wada, she still finds herself uncomfortable in love. This time, she finds that her issues lie within, related to her own inability to trust anyone: “After what happened with my previous boyfriend, I had unconsciously been avoiding trusting anyone completely. And I was scared, scared because I’d been careless in trusting someone before, scared of being hurt again” (100). The heartache of her previous relationship stays with her and hinders her from opening up to Wada, letting him in, and truly forming a romantic bond with him. Due to this, she finds the relationship lacking and yearns for a deeper connection with Wada. For much of the novel, Takako struggles to find a solution to her relationship troubles. As she helps her friends Takano and Tomo rebuild their own relationship, she takes cues from their care for one another to finally act with Wada.