Journal with Witch

Thirty-five-year-old novelist Makio Koudai has long lived in the shadow of a strained relationship with her older sister, Minori, who often criticized her for being different. When word arrives that Minori and her husband have died in a car accident, Makio is surprised by her own lack of grief—until she is called in to identify the bodies and unexpectedly comes face to face with her 15-year-old niece, Asa Takumi, whom she hasn’t seen in years.

Asa is left reeling from the loss of her parents, and Makio—aware of how messy emotions can be—assures her that conflicted feelings are still real feelings. She encourages Asa to keep a diary to help sort through her grief, and when it becomes clear no other relatives will take her in, Makio chooses to become Asa’s guardian despite having no idea what she’s doing. Together, the two try to share a home and rebuild their lives, learning about each other—and themselves—along the way.