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A strong collection of short stories about lost souls
I loved Fumio Yamamoto's 自転しながら公転する which I read last year and was happy to have picked up more by her. The writing in Planaria feels more dense and (other than the last story) it's not very dialogue-heavy, but all of the stories are centered around peoples' daily lives so it's not too difficult to read.
The title piece, Planaria, revolves around a woman in her mid-twenties physically and emotionally recovering from the long-term effects of breast cancer. She has already beaten the cancer itself, but it remains a part of her.
Naked, the second story, is about a woman in her 30's. A few years ago, she got a divorce and had to quit her job, as her company was owned by her ex-husband. Naked explores her coming to enjoy her unemployment, and her next turning point in life.
Similarly, The Nowhere That is Here follows a middle-aged woman. She is working herself to the bone for her family, though the balance of her family itself isn't perfect.
The main character in The Imprisoned's Dilemma is suddenly proposed to by her long-term boyfriend and doesn't know how to respond.
Tomorrow Full of Love (?) is the last piece in the collection, and the only one with a male main character. He has somehow found himself as the owner of an izakaya and the lover of a mysterious homeless woman.
Out of the collection, the first and last pieces definitely hit the strongest for me. The title piece, Planaria, offered so much for me to think about, like how illness can become a part of your identity. And the last piece, Tomorrow Full of Love, was so wholesome and the perfect send-off for the collection. I enjoyed the 2nd and 3rd stories as well, though the 4th one, The Imprisoned's Dilemma, was incredibly stressful to read and there wasn't a fantastic payoff (Although Mito saying she felt like her relationship was akin to waiting for a bus so long you're not sure if it will come and you start to question whether or not you should take a taxi or walk, and ending with her boarding the bus was poetic, I just hated everyone in this story by the end.). Overall, would definitely recommend.