” The Box Man ” by Kobo Abe is a mystery / romance story that was originally published in December of 1974 .

A man that walks around Japan wearing / living in a cardboard box and gets shot by an air rifle . He goes to the hospital and falls in love with a nurse that is taking care of him . She pays him for ownership of the box but he is having a hard time letting it go . Also there is a murder or two of box men but that’s nothing to worry about … right ?

This is a weird read but it has strong storytelling . There is a certain dream logic to it . You can never be sure what’s actually happening or in what order events are occurring . Kafka would be proud . I wouldn’t recommend this story to everyone but if you have a taste for unorthodox storytelling and a little mystery/romance , give this a go .