Ramen, Existential Crises
The menu never changes. The crises arrive fresh every day.
Koji works in a tiny ramen shop where the noodles cook for exactly eighty-five seconds. Then the timer fails.
“…a breath of fresh air… one of the best books I’ve read this year.”
— The AU Review
Koji is twenty-seven and one module short of a degree in Politics and Government. The missing module is Crisis Management. It feels appropriate.
For six years, he has worked in a tiny ramen shop with eleven seats, one dish and a broth whose flame has not gone out in thirty-two years. The noodles cook for exactly eighty-five seconds.
Then the timer fails. A stranger gives Koji his business card. Someone from his past walks into the restaurant. Around him, other people make decisions and continue with their lives.
Koji has always known what should be done.
Doing it is another matter.
For bookshops stocking the paperback, write to hello@roieoknin.com.
“One of the best books I have ever read.”
Goodreads, five stars“From the first page, the writing style of Roie Oknin sucked me in.”
Goodreads, five stars“Delicate storytelling that beautifully bridges humor, drama and the philosophy of life.”
Goodreads, five stars“A few days is a very dangerous unit of time. It has no definite shape. It can end on Tuesday, or it can last six years.”
“There is something insulting about objects that return to working perfectly the moment you have failed because of them.”
“A place that is open almost every day may forget that being closed is also part of its nature.”
Roie Oknin is a writer, artist and medical student. He holds a B.Sc. in Neuroscience and a B.A. in Psychology.
Ramen, Existential Crises is his first novel. More