The devil affords him a final phone call, and in facing the question of who his last phone call should be, the narrator – even in subsequent days with other items – goes into introspection about what these objects mean to humans and how life might change if they’re taken away forever. In the course of the novel, the unnamed narrator is given some extra days in exchange for agreeing to the disappearance of certain objects from the world. I could be completely wrong about all this considering I haven’t read many cat depictions by non-Japanese writers. Perhaps, it is that the Japanese are confident enough in the sociable and oft-misunderstood nature of cats to attempt to involve them in their craft, in a way that writers from other cultures haven’t managed.
There’s a comfortable coexistence between humans and cats that is reflected in their writings which makes it’s heartwarming to read. In my experience with books like THE GUEST CAT by Takashi Hiraide (which Eric Selland also translated to English), THE TRAVELLING CAT CHRONICLES by Hiro Arikawa, and several Murakmi novels, I’ve come to think that no one writes about cats the way the Japanese do. I knew IF CATS DISAPPEARED FROM THE WORLD would be an interesting novel. With this knowledge comes the question – what other things disappeared that we never noticed? And what does this say about the nature of the objects that human beings create? To this end, even the concept of measuring time is questioned. The devil, a seemingly amiable character, has beach-worthy style and aesthetic, and is pretty intent on sealing deals with the main character, who is his 107th client.
That is the kind of deal the narrator is offered when the devil appears to him, after he’s been told he’s at the very last stages of cancer and has no more than six months to live. IF CATS DISAPPEARED FROM THE WORLD has a scary title, but it is a poignant tale about what it means to be alive and what things we’d be willing to give up in exchange for just one more day. Now that his own death is near, the narrator is faced with the finality of life. A postman by profession, it’s been four years since his mother died, leaving their cat Cabbage in his care.
In this novel set in Japan, the unnamed narrator’s days are numbered. They simply allow us the pleasure of their company.” – IF CATS DISAPPEARED FROM THE WORLD by Genki Kawamura And what you realize when you’ve lived with a cat for a long time is that we may think we own them, but that’s not the way it is. “Cats and humans have been partners for over ten thousand years. IF CATS DISAPPEARED FROM THE WORLD by Genki Kawamura, translated by Eric Selland
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