(I Read) Touch by Olaf Olafsson
Olaf Olafsson’s Touch goes toe-to-toe with Stefan Zweig’s Beware of Pity as the most touching novel I’ve ever read and it’s right up there with Beware of Pity and Orwell’s 1984 as my top 3 favourite books.
The story is set just before the whole world entered lockdown in 2020. With the pandemic looming and him not going to be any younger than 75, Kristófer decided to close his restaurant permanently.
In the morning following his last supper together with most of his staff at the restaurant, whilst enjoying a brief period of quiet in the morning before going about his day, he noticed a Facebook friend request from Miko Nakamura – he was jaw-dropped to see that name after 50 YEARS!
He was unsure whether it really is the Miko he was in love with during his time in London – where he worked at her father’s restaurant until their sudden closing – until Miko sent him a message asking if he is the Kristófer Hannesson who lived in London in 1969.
From there, Kristófer set out to make his way to Japan to pay Miko a visit after all these years. At the grand old age of 75, he’s well-aware this opportunity may not come again. One by one, his friends are gone. His health will only go downhill from here. The pandemic brings tremendous uncertainty. He wants to touch an unforgettable part of his life which no one knows about.
I slept late last night because I wanted to know there and then why Miko and her father disappeared all of a sudden – someone was cutting onions, folks, someone really was cutting onions.
I need to watch the film adaptation one day.