How Books Can Make an Awkward Encounter Slightly Less Awkward
“Ah, you must be Nanako?” the tall man said as soon as he entered the café. He looked like he was in his early forties, and had a calmer, more relaxed vibe than I was expecting.
PerfectStrangers is a social platform designed for meeting new people in person, similar to a dating app but without the romantic focus. Users create profiles and can either post a 'chat listing'—a public invitation to meet at a specific time and place (e.g., 5pm in Shibuya)—or respond to others' listings. The article mentions that users can add hashtags like #reading or #travel to their profiles to find like-minded individuals. Popularity rankings and featured users are displayed, with new or online users highlighted at the bottom. The app encourages real-life meetings rather than online interactions, unlike social media platforms such as Facebook or Twitter. In the story, the narrator, Nanako, is a new user who hesitates to post her own listing due to fear of no responses or meeting unsuitable people.
Nanako, the narrator, feels nervous about using PerfectStrangers and avoids posting a listing for a while. She browses the site but finds it unengaging since it lacks the entertainment value of platforms like Facebook. She worries about rejection or encountering 'weirdos' if she posts a listing. The turning point comes when Tsuchiya, a user who works in advertising, messages her directly on Facebook Messenger. He explains how the app works, including how to check a user's social media profiles (via Facebook or Twitter icons) to verify their identity. Tsuchiya offers to respond to Nanako's listing as her first meeting, suggesting she post one for practice. This interaction reassures her, and she decides to give it a try.
Nanako and Tsuchiya meet at a café in Tokyo’s Oku-Shibuya district. Nanako arrives first, feeling anxious, but Tsuchiya’s calm demeanor helps ease her nerves. They order coffee and cheesecake, and the conversation flows naturally. Nanako learns that Tsuchiya has been using PerfectStrangers for a while, finding it a refreshing alternative to solo coffee outings. He also mentions that talking to younger people sometimes sparks new ideas for his work in advertising. When Nanako reveals she is separated from her husband, Tsuchiya asks about her reasons, showing empathy. Nanako feels comfortable discussing the topic with him because he is a stranger and won’t share her story with others.
Tsuchiya makes comments about sex and relationships that make Nanako uncomfortable. He suggests that women might miss physical intimacy after separation and implies that women benefit from having a man in their lives. Nanako responds vaguely, trying to steer the conversation elsewhere. Tsuchiya then jokes about wanting to take her out to dinner to discuss her separation, including the topic of sex. Nanako deflects his advances by humorously suggesting he resembles Pierre Taki, a Japanese actor, and insists she wants to meet many different people rather than focus on one. Despite the awkwardness, she acknowledges that the meeting helped her take the first step in using the app.
At the end of the meeting, Nanako asks Tsuchiya about his reading habits to find a book to recommend. She learns he doesn’t read much recently and isn’t familiar with contemporary literature. Despite his pushy behavior during the conversation, she notices his sensitivity when discussing his work in advertising. She decides to recommend Sex in Japan, a recently published novel about a couple exploring swinging, which evolves into a story about violence, courtroom drama, and love. The title is intentionally provocative to pique his interest, and she hopes the book’s absurdity and entertainment value will appeal to him. She sends the recommendation via Facebook Messenger a few days later with a brief thank-you note.
The book *Sex in Japan* is written by an author the narrator recently discovered, Takehiro Higuchi, known for his innovative use of language and fresh perspectives. The narrator initially considered recommending *Farewell Zoshigaya*, another work by Higuchi, but chose *Sex in Japan* instead due to Tsuchiya’s fixation on sex during their conversation. The novel follows a husband and wife who enter the world of swinging, but the story takes unexpected turns, becoming a critique of violence and a courtroom drama before ending as a story about pure love. The narrator describes it as a 'roller coaster' of a book, blending absurdity with deeper themes. The article is an excerpt from *The Bookshop Woman: My Year Transforming Lives—One Book at a Time* by Nanako Hanada, translated by Cat Anderson, published in 2026 by Tiny Reparations Books.
