6 books to read if you loved the Perfect Days movie

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If you love slice-of-life movies about quiet routines, noticing the little things, and pondering the big questions, you probably liked Wim Wenders Perfect Days (2023).

I’m guessing that’s how you got to this post – if so, welcome. If you’re yet to watch it, go and watch it first!

Whenever I come across a film I love, I usually tumble down the rabbit hole of pondering other movies and books that feel like it. In terms of movies, Perfect Days reminded me of Little Forest (the Japanese versions, Summer/Autumn and Winter/Spring) and Studio Ghibli’s gorgeously contemplative Only Yesterday. You also hear the Paterson comparison a lot.

But what about books that scratch the same itch as Perfect Days?

Of course, I could mention Haruki Murakami – so many of his books (Kafka on the Shore, Norwegian Wood) beautifully describe a solitary life with books, some jazz, and mundane rituals blended with a healthy portion of the surreal.

Thinking about non-fiction, I could also mention Kokoro, Beth Kempton’s wonderfully meditative memoir-cross-guide to finding calm in the chaos and beauty in the darkness (kokoro a noun meaning intelligent heart, feeling mind).

I could mention the books shown in Perfect Days, too: The Wild Palms by William Faulkner, Eleven by Patricia Highsmith, Ki by Aya Kōda.

But in this post, I want to try and dive deeper… thinking about books that feel like Perfect Days, drinking a can of iced coffee from a Tokyo vending machine, eating lunch on a park bench watching light filter through the trees above, or driving while looking at a beautiful sunset.

Read on for my best attempt at an answer, including more than a couple of graphic novels, several works by Japanese authors, and plenty of celebrations of both the big and little things in life.

Books that feel like the Perfect Days movie

Furari by Jiro Taniguchi

As the first of a few slice-of-life graphic novels on this list, Furari is a gently contemplative book inspired by the wanderings of cartographer Inō Tadataka (1745-1818). As a retired businessman, he created the first map of Edo-period Japan with modern surveying techniques, and much of this book narrates his slow wandering, counting, and observing.

With echoes of Japan’s haiku tradition, you feel like you’re there with Inō for picnics under the sakura blossom, fireflies illuminating the night sky, and a cup of sake after a morning surveying. It’s a book full of lovely moments, brought to life through Taniguchi’s delicate artwork and short thoughts and dialogue.

For more like this, you might also like: 8 slice of life graphic novels about everyday moments

In Praise of Shadows by Junichiro Tanizaki

“If light is scarce then light is scarce; we will immerse ourselves in the darkness and there discover its own particular beauty.”

First published in 1933, In Praise of Shadows is one of the classic essays on aesthetics, from architecture to food. Reading this will change how you see the sun on the trees, candlelight flickering against a wooden table, or what’s visible in not-quite-darkness. Even toilets, nearly a century before Perfect Days celebrated Tokyo’s public services:

“The Japanese toilet is truly a place of spiritual repose. It always stands apart from the main building, at the end of a corridor, in a grove fragrant with leaves and moss. No words can describe that sensation as one sits in the dim light, basking in the faint glow reflected from the shoji, lost in meditation or gazing out at the garden.”

In by Will McPhail

Some of the most delicate, unspoken moments of Perfect Days are about human connection. We’re left to make up our own minds on whether Hirayama is lonely or happily independent, melancholy or content.

One of the best books I’ve read about human connection is another graphic novel, In by Will McPhail, a wry but profound short read. In shares the story of a disconnected young-ish guy who works remotely, listens to Joni Mitchell when he’s lonely, and unsuccessfully seeks connection in pretentious coffee shops. I thought it was fantastic.

The Walking Man by Jiro Taniguchi

This is the second book by Jiro Taniguchi in this list, but I think that’s fine – it just underlines how good his work is for fans of Perfect Days. Focused on a modern-day Japanese business man as he strolls through urban Japan, The Walking Man has more of a modern vibe than Furari. It’s described as a book in which nothing happens but everything occurs.

The Abundance of Less: Lessons in Simple Living from Rural Japan by Andy Couturier

I think there’s absolutely a crossover between people who love Perfect Days and dream about living simply (I finally watched Perfect Days after reading about it multiple times in r/simpleliving). So I hope you don’t mind me including a few simple living books here, starting with The Abundance of Less.

In this calming book, Andy Couturier follows ten people living in rural Japan who left behind urban Japan to enjoy a quieter way of life. Pick this up for a reminder of the joys to be found in simplicity: the luxuries of nature, art, friends, delicious food, and an abundance of time.

For more like this, head over to my collection of the best simple living books, including gems like Frugal Hedonism.

Spill the Beans: Global Coffee Culture and Recipes by Lani Kingston

Just after watching Perfect Days, I found myself leafing through Spill the Beans, a stunning hardcover book by Gestalten, one of my favourite lifestyle and travel publishers. I was drawn to the Japan section, especially a recipe for iced coffee made with a Kalita Wave pour-over. If you also love coffee, this is a beautiful book to browse on lazy weekend mornings, full of diverse recipes and immersive photography.