The Cat Who Saved Books

The novel’s protagonist, Rintaro, is a dynamic and round character whose journey from profound grief to courageous action forms the story’s central arc. Initially, the text presents him as a hikikomori, a social recluse who has retreated into the dusty quiet of his late grandfather’s secondhand bookshop, Natsuki Books. Following his grandfather’s death, Rintaro has been emotionally incapacitated; he views the funeral with a sense of detachment, as if he were “watching a badly performed play” (2).

Described as a pale high school student with thick glasses who rarely speaks, Rintaro’s identity is deeply entwined with the sanctuary of the bookshop, a space that shields him from a world in which he feels he doesn’t belong. This state of withdrawal represents the initial challenge he must overcome, thematically engaging with The Courage to Emerge From Isolation. His passivity is his primary obstacle, and his transformation is catalyzed by the arrival of an otherworldly talking cat who forces him to venture beyond the safety of his shelves and fight for the very souls of the books he loves.

A deep, intrinsic love for literature is Rintaro’s defining trait, yet it’s initially a passive quality.