{"title":"Jeff Backhaus","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"hikikomori-and-the-rental-sister-book-jeff-backhaus-9781616201371","title":"Hikikomori and the Rental Sister","description":"\u003cp\u003eAn Indie Next Pick - An Amazon Best Book of the Month \u003cbr\u003e One of Book Riot's 5 to Watch - An iBooks Store Editor's Choice \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eA mesmerizing debut at once sorrowful, intimate, and optimistic.*\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Megumi, a young Japanese woman living in New York and hiding from her past, is hired to help rescue Thomas, an enigmatic, scarred man who has isolated himself in his bedroom for three years. With the tacit acceptance of Thomas's wife, a passionate relationship develops between Megumi and Thomas. Its emotional impact and surprising conclusion will leave all three characters forever changed. Mirroring both East and West in its search for healing, ?\u003ci\u003eThe Rental Sister\u003c\/i\u003e pierces the emotional walls of grief and delves into the power of human connection to break through to the world waiting outside. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Strange and tender . . . [Backhaus's] writing, which is as clear and direct as flowing water, convincingly portrays the deepening connection between Thomas and Megumi. --\u003ci\u003eThe Wall Street Journal\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Remarkable. --\u003ci\u003eThe Toronto Star\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Written deeply, cleanly, sparely and gently, like fingers playing over the strings of a harp. Jeff Backhaus has apparently worked at many jobs, but it seems that he has now found his vocation. --\u003ci\u003eSt. Louis Post-Dispatch\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Poignant . . . With poetic observations about the world from the view of an outsider--the outsider in a marriage, the outsider in a relationship, and Thomas, who feels like an outsider in his own life. --USAToday.com \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Backhaus's novel is courageous and spare, an enthralling success. --*\u003ci\u003eBooklist, \u003c\/i\u003e starred review","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":50386317607185,"sku":"CIN1616201371G","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"US \/ VERY_GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":53479016202513,"sku":"CIN1616201371VG","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/B00ERQOQ94.jpg?v=1751276984"},{"product_id":"rental-sister-book-jeff-backhaus-9781616203269","title":"The Rental Sister","description":"hikikomori, n. h?kik?'mo?ri; literally pulling inward; refers to those who withdraw from society.Inspired by the real-life Japanese social phenomenon called hikikomori and the professional “rental sisters” hired to help, Hikikomori and the Rental Sister is about an erotic relationship between Thomas, an American hikikomori, and Megumi, a young Japanese immigrant hiding from her own past. The strange, insular world they create together in a New York City bedroom and with the tacit acknowledgment of Thomas’s wife reveals three human hearts in crisis, but leaves us with a profound faith in the human capacity to find beauty and meaning in life, even after great sorrow. Mirroring both East and West in its search for healing, Hikikomori and the Rental Sister pierces the emotional walls of grief and delves into the power of human connection to break through to the world waiting outside. Named an Indie Next pick, an Amazon Best Book of the Month, one of Book Riot’s 5 to Watch, and an iBooks Store Editor’s Choice in hardcover.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":50395644821777,"sku":"CIN1616203269G","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1616203269.jpg?v=1751409183"}],"url":"https:\/\/www.worldofbooks.com\/collections\/author-books-by-jeff-backhaus.oembed","provider":"World of Books ","version":"1.0","type":"link"}