Butter (novel)
Butter is a 2017 Japanese novel by Asako Yuzuki. The story, inspired by a real-life serial murder case in Japan, follows a Tokyo journalist who starts interviewing a woman accused of tricking and possibly killing men by seducing them with her cooking.
Originally published by Shinchosha in 2017, Butter was nominated for the Naoki Prize that year. An English translation by Polly Barton was published in 2024. It was Yuzuki's first work translated to English. It became a bestseller and the Waterstones Book of the Year in 2024. It sold over 280,000 copies in Britain.
Plot
Rika Machida, a young reporter at a weekly magazine, wants to write a big story about Manako Kajii, a woman in her 30s held in a detention centre in Tokyo for the suspected murder of three single, divorced men, all of whom were significantly older than her at their age of death. Kajii, a skilled home cook, is said to have seduced her victims with her meals, which shocked the public due to her perceived heavier body weight. Although many reporters try to speak with her, Kajii refuses all interviews. On a friend's suggestion, Rika writes to Kajii asking for the recipe of her famous beef stew, the last meal the final victim ate, finally making her agree to an interview.After talking with Kajii, Rika decides to cook some of her recipes in the hopes of receiving permission to do a written article on her, discovering more about herself, and taking introspective views on feminism and the Japanese standards for women and their relationships with men.
Reception
The English translation of Butter received strong commercial and critical attention in the United Kingdom. Released in February 2024, the novel sold over 280,000 copies in the U.K., exceeding its original sales in Japan. It was selected as the Waterstones Book of the Year 2024, chosen from a shortlist curated by staff from the retailer's approximately 300 locations. The translation by Polly Barton, which uses British English, has been marked as a factor that helped the book to be welcomed by the English speakers.In a review for The Guardian, Josh Weeks called the novel "sharp and sometimes thrilling", praising how it explores the social stigma of obesity, eating, and the complex link between food and trauma. He also noted that Butter gives a strong critique of the unrealistic beauty standards for women in Japan. The Times described Butter as a rich and unusual blend of murder mystery and food writing. The Chicago Review of Books praised Butter as "compelling and intensely readable", especially for how it unites a murder mystery with a "love letter to fine dining". The book was also featured and reviewed on the BBC talk show Between the Covers, hosted by Sara Cox.