“Tsugumi” is Banana Yoshimoto’s well-known work that brought her fame in literature. The novel is a wonderfully told story about the relationship between two cousins with completely different characters—Tsugumi and Maria. Tsugumi, though gravely ill, has unusual beauty, strong charisma, and a complicated temperament. In contrast, Maria is melancholic and kind. Their difficult relationship is made even more complicated by family troubles and the shadow of an approaching death.