ひらやすみ • Hirayasumi Book Club Week 5

ひらやすみ Week 5!

This Week’s Reading:

Chapter 4
Page 101 → Page 119
Home Thread
Beginner Book Club Home

Week 5 December 12th 2025
Start page 101
End page 119
Pages 18p
Previous Week Week 4
Next Week Week 6
Home Thread ひらやすみ

Vocab Sheet

Participation

Are you reading along with us?

  • I finished this reading ahead of time/I’ve read this book before but want to participate in discussion
  • I’m reading along!
  • I’m still reading, but I haven’t reached this part yet
  • I’m no longer reading the book :cry:
  • I’m reading this book after the club has finished
0 voters

Remember to mark any major points from this week’s reading (or any info from future chapters) with a spoiler tag!
Happy reading!

Don’t forget to set this thread to Watching in order to stay abreast of discussion!

5 Likes

Title page is here. Page 103, the Seiyo building is Seiyu Asagaya. The last panel of page 103 looks far too neat to be a second-hand bookshop, though it does kinda resemble the Yaesu Book Centre (although to a certain extent, all bookshops in Japan look the same).

The overpass featured on pages 106-108 is here - conveniently, there’s (currently?) a marker on it saying it was in the drama version of this.

Page 116, Akari’s from Fukuoka.

10 Likes

thoughts while reading:

Another new grammar form - https://bunpro.jp/grammar_points/ずに

I really enjoy the narrator voice in this book.

Natsumi made a friend!! The art school stuff made me think of Blue Period.

6 Likes

The bookshop on page 103 looks very much like the 100 yen aisle at a BOOKOFF.

4 Likes

Ah, that’s a fair point. Here is a photo from the Book Off at Kichijoji - it’s got both the pointed and the rectangular banners hanging from the shelves same as the manga, except it’s the rectangular ones that say 100 yen and the pointed ones saying what’s on the shelves, the reverse of the manga. There’s also a Book Off Plus at Ogikubo, though nothing at Asagaya.

6 Likes

Could it be a random ‘person wasting time’ scene used by the narrator and not what なつみ was actually doing on that day?

This 100 yen aisle from a BookOff insta page looks pretty similar.

6 Likes

Week 6 is here! ひらやすみ • Hirayasumi Book Club Week 6!

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p 104

I didn’t know くよくよ, and now the challenge is to resist adding it to SRS.. already have too many of those killing review accuracy.


「ガサ」って何?「がさがさ」のこと?

p 106

あっしたー

Reminds me of one youtuber saying that in a Japanese company it doesn’t matter what you say to your coworkers in the morning as long as vaguely ends with まーす. It will be graciously interpreted as おはようございます.

ガタン ゴトン

A passing train, that’s a nice touch to complete the atmosphere of a city at night.

p 110

絵画棟

One of those suffixes I haven’t yet figured out how to read correctly. かいがとう?かいがむね?

p 111

Love all the little details

ここに私物おくな
美術

p 116

忍者部

What, an official club? With a budget for activities? Cool!

5 Likes

After I worked on the vocab spreadsheet I went back and unburned a bunch of vocab :sob:

4 Likes

Yah, it’s the sound of him pulling the recipe book out of his bag.

4 Likes
Page 102

[びっくりしたぁ なんだヒロ兄か
Oh my god, what the hell Hiro-ni

やめてよ大声で恥ずかしい
Stop [calling me] with a loud voice! It’s embarassing.

大学帰り?
Returning home from uni?

ヒト兄はバイト帰り?
And you Hiro-ni, coming back from work?

Page 103

あ、セイヨー寄っていい?
Ah, is it alright if we stop at Seiyo?

いらっしゃいませー
Welcome~

なつみちゃんは、ウソおつきました。
Natsumi-chan was lying.

ホントは今日も大学に行かず阿佐ヶ谷をブラブラ。
In reality (ホントは), also today (今日も), she didn’t go to uni (大学に行かず) and she wandered aimlessly at Asagaya (阿佐ヶ谷をブラブラ).

なつみちゃんは一回休んだら収拾がつかなくなるアツになっていました。
As for Natsumi-chan (なつみちゃんは), she was in a heated-up state (アツになっていました), where if she skips class once (一回休んだら) things get out of hand (収拾がつかなくなる, set phrase).

古本屋でずっと立ち読みの図
Picture (図) of standing and reading (立ち読み) all the time (ずっと) at the used book store (古本屋で).

Page 104

そして頭の中で、答えの出ないことをくよくよ考えてました。
And then, in her head (頭の中で), she was thinking (考えてました) worringly (くよくよ) about stuff (ことを) she can’t find a solution for (答えの出ない).

友達ほしい
I want friends

大学行かなきゃ
I must go to uni

東京コワイ
Tokyo is scary

今日もレジでアタフタしてたら後ろから「チッ」ってされた
Also today, at the register, when I panicked, from behind they said to me “tsk”.

私マンガ家なれるかな
I wonder if I can become a mangaka

今も考えています。
She’s thinking that this time too.

ピーマンない
There’s no green pepper

マジかー 計画狂ったな
Seriously, here it goes my plan…

Page 105

なにしよー
What to do…

なっちゃん何食べたい?
Nacchan, what do you wanna eat?

肉え
Meat

スーパーで料理本 持ってる人初めて見た
I saw (見た) for the first time (初めて) a person (人) holding (持ってる) a cooking book (料理本) at the supermarket (スーパーで).

5分後
5 minutes later

まだ決まんないの⁉
You haven’t decided yet!?

グミ買っていい?
Can I buy some gummy bears?

待って!待ってんだよ!
Wait! Wait I tell you!

いいよ!
That’s fine!

6 Likes

That’s a ヤ. ヤツになって. Natsumi-chan had become the sort of person who… :slightly_smiling_face:

Ah, my friend. If your only exposure to the wide world of gummies is gummi bears and gummi worms, you are missing out.

グミ

There’s so many different varieties available in Japan:

It’s impossible to tell what she’s got in the manga, but in the drama version, it looks like it might be apple gummies:

Google image results aren’t coughing up any products that look exactly like this one, so perhaps they created a fake package for the drama, but this one at least looks kinda similar.

9 Likes

I’ve been enlightened. There’s so many of them. I only knew of Kit Kat flavours before.
Definitely adding this to the neverending list of things to try when I’ll travel to Japan someday…

6 Likes

If you have an Asian supermarket in your area, they usually have Kasugai gummies - very tasty

6 Likes

Hello I am liking this manga a normal amount.

train of thought process

Even the chapter cover she’s looking forlornly at a friend group she is not part of. Chapter title is entirely vibe based words. One for being broody and mopey and the other for being sparkly, which is a vibe.

She might be lying about having been to uni today but at least she left the house?

Oh no her brain is relatable. Especially the part where you’re thinking about all the things you should be doing while not doing those things.

Taking a recipe book with you for when plans don’t work out isn’t a bad idea, I just don’t have enough hands to both juggle that and carry my shopping.

I just like it. ヒロト preferring to walk and be present rather than using his bike. なつみ not feeling anything when she looks at the view because she’s just worrying. It has a feeling that I don’t know the word for. It’s not bittersweet, or nostalgic. It’s a feeling of nebulously existing, and all of the people you see are also existing and all of the trees have leaves and every step you take requires complex cooperation of all of your muscles and everything just is and you also just are and it’s almost overwhelming but it’s… not good because good is too strong a word but definitely not bad either and maybe you kinda wanna cry but not in a bad way. That’s the kind of feeling this manga has to me.

「昨日は行ってなかったんだな」とヒロト君は思いましたが、何も言いませんでした。 Well now I might actually cry. It’s just. It’s good. It reminds me of visiting my aunt. It’s soft and it’s nice and nothing has even happened why am I tearing up. He made her breakfast! She doesn’t have to worry about making her own breakfast!

She made it to uni! And. Potential friend?

OH! The girl who gave her the water! I didn’t realise that middle top panel was flashback mode. I’d forgotten about that.

They are both so nervous but look at them being brave and making an attempt at friendships. 自己紹介完成した!

They got lunch and conversation together! I wonder if maybe あかり either doesn’t have much family or doesn’t get on with them, and that’s why there’s the silent panel of her looking at なつみ before placatingly saying “hey at least you’re not alone” with her eye closed all nonchalantly as if it doesn’t affect her. (Maybe I’m reading too much into it.)

She got to enjoy just looking at the world! She sings a little song as she goes down the stairs! Hooray for friendship!

6 Likes

Whatever her relationship with her family, I’d say at this moment the biggest issue is that they’re all the way over in Fukuoka.

5 Likes

HAHA, this gave me a good laugh when I opened the rest of your post hahaha

Story Response

I think this was definitely my favorite part from this week :sob: I loved it
You were able to capture in words a lot of the things my brain was thinking about this week’s reading!!!

4 Likes

Finally managed to finish this chapter (thank you Christmas holidays), maybe I can even catch up with the weekly threads…

My favorite panel (page 111)


Epic entrance.

And here’s my notes for this week:

Page 106

アレ、ヒロ兄バイクじゃないの?
Huh, Hiro-ni, don’t you have a bike?

うん、バイクは時間ヤバイ時だけ。
Yeah, but I only use it when I’m in a hurry.

なっちゃんここの歩道橋眺めいいよ
Nacchan, the view from this pedestrian bridge here is good, you know.

ココを頂点に道が下り坂になってんの。
The road (道が) becomes a downhill slope (下り坂になってんの) with here as the peak (ココを頂点に).

なんか開放的でよくない?
With this kind of liberating feeling, isn’t it nice?

Page 107

なつみちゃんはくよくよしていたので何も感じませんでした。
Because Natsumi-chan was constantly worrying, she didn’t feel anything.

新芽のいいニオイ…
The buds good smell…

ねぇ、ヒロ兄ってさ、悩みとかないの?
Hey, you Hiro-ni (ヒロ兄って), like (さ), don’t you have any worry or such?

Page 108

ないなぁ悩み。
No worries.

えっマジでっそんな人いんの?
Eeee seriously, are there people like that?

くよくよ考えたってしょうがないじゃん。
Even if you worry (考えたって) constantly (くよくよ), there’s no point (しょうがない), don’t you think (じゃん)?

あ、でも 夕飯はめっちゃ考えるよ、くよくよしないから。
Ah, but, I do think (考えるよ) really hard (めっちゃ) about dinner (夕飯は), because I don’t fret over it (くよくよしないから).
(Not really sure about the から at the end here, it doesn’t really make sense in this translation…)

Page 109

私は今日からちゃんと大学行くわ
I, from today, will properly go to uni

「昨日は行ってなかったんだな」とヒロト君は思いましたが、何も言いませんでした。
“Yesterday you weren’t really going” Hiroto-kun thought, but he didn’t say anything.

Page 110

美術大学: college of the arts
絵画棟: painting wing

人少な
Few people…

みんな私みたいになってんじゃん
Everyone is becoming like me, right?

モデルさんに申し訳ない
I feel sorry for the model

ヤバ、準備しな
Damn, I gotta get ready

Page 112

これ、よかったら…
This, if it’s okay with you…

え!あの時の⁉
Eh, [you’re the girl of] that time?

行っちゃった…
Well, she went away… (abbr. of 行ってしまった)

ぜったいそうだ。
I’m sure it was her.

泥酔した時水くれた人だ~
The one that offered me water the time I was drunk

まさか同級生なんて
No way she’s really a classmate

なんか運命?
Some kind of fate?

Page 113

くよくよ考えたってしょうがないじゃん。
Same as pag. 108

その時なっちゃんは根拠はないけど、
At that time, Nacchan had no reason [to think that, see next page], but

確信しました。
She believed it.

Page 114

「この人 なんか 気が合いそうだな」と
“That person looks like someone like I could get along with”

この前水くれた方ですよね?
You’re the person that gave me the water bottle the other day, right?

あの時はありがとうございました。
Thank you for that time.

イエ… 同じ科の人が倒れてると思って
No… I thought that a girl from the same class had collapsed.

Page 115

私、小林なつみ
I’m Kobayashi Natsumi

横山あかり、です
I’m Yokoyama Akari

スゴイ、なつみさん現役なんだ。
Amazing, Natsumi-san, you really passed the entrance exam on the first try.

Page 116

私なんて一浪だよぉ。
The fact is that I failed the exams the first time.

あ、出身どこなん?私福岡。
Ah, where are you from? I’m from Fukuoka.

山形ス。
Yamagata.

福岡って博多ラーメンとか有名な?
Fukuoka is famous for Hakata ramen among other things, right?

そうやね
It is, right?
(Not sure about that や there)

でも、うちはラーメンよりうどん派かなぁ。
But, I (うちは) am in the camp (派) that prefers udon to ramen (ラーメンよりうどん) I guess (かなぁ).

あかりさん、福岡ってことは一人暮らし?
Akari-san, since you said [you’re from] Fukuoka, are you living by yourself?

うわっいいな~ 一人暮らし!
Wow that’s good! Living by oneself!

私親戚の兄とボロッボロの平屋住んでてさ
You know (さ), I am living (住んでて) in a run-down (ボロッボロの) one-story house (平屋) with the older brother of a relative (親戚の兄と).

しかも兄ちゃんちょーのんびり屋でたまにイラッとすんだよね~
Moreover (しかも), the older brother (兄ちゃん) is a super (ちょー) easygoing person (のんびり屋) and sometimes (たまに) I get so irritated, right? (イラっとすんだよね)

Page 117

でも一人よりさびしくないっちゃない?
But living by yourself is more lonely, isn’t it? (lit. is less not lonely)

お兄さんと一緒のほうが。
Than [living] together with your older brother.

そ、そうかなぁ。まあ そーかも。
I see, I guess? You may be right.

そうって。
I told you so.

あ、あかりさん午後授業は?
Ah, Akari-san, do you have lessons in the afternoon?

西洋美術史。
Western art history.

同じだ!あのよかったら一緒に
Same for me! Well, if you’d like, we [could go] together

うん ぜひ
Yeah, sure!

あとで知ったのですがあかりさんも、大学で初めての友達だったみたいです。
She found out later (あとでしった), but (のですが) for Akari-san too (あかりさんも), she apparently (みたいです) was the first friend she made at uni (大学で初めて友達だった).

阿佐ヶ谷: Asagaya

Page 118

なつみちゃんは帰りに昨日の歩道橋に行きました。
Natsumi-chan, on the way back home (帰り), passed by (に行きました) the pedestrian overpass (歩道橋) of the previous day (昨日の).

昨日は何も感じなかった景色が、今日はー
Yesterday, she didn’t feel anything for the scenery, but today…

ちょっびりキラキラして見えたのでした。
…[the view] looked like it was a bit sparkling.

It’s the first time I encounter a term like 現役 (or 一浪). It seems so weirdly specific, there isn’t any corresponding English term, right?

6 Likes

Yeah the entry on Jisho looks like this!

I wonder if 一浪 is similar to “gap year” but the connotation seems to be a lot more negative.

3 Likes

Dialectical copula.

Aye, being a 浪人 is definitely a bad thing - taking a gap year because you failed the once-a-year opportunity to get into uni, not by choice.

5 Likes