The House of the Lost on the Cape

The House of the Lost on the Cape (岬のマヨイガ) is a Japanese novel written by Sachiko Kashiwaba. It was initially serialized in the Iwate Nippo daily newspaper from May 10, 2014, to July 4, 2015. Kodansha later published the novel in print with cover art by Yukiko Saito on September 11, 2015. An anime film adaptation by David Production premiered in Japan on August 27, 2021. The anime is part of the "Zutto Ōen Project 2011 + 10...", commemorating the 10th anniversary of the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.

The English translation of the book was published by Restless Books in September 2023 and translated by award-winning translator Avery Fischer Udagawa. On the depiction of tragedy and hope within the story, Udagawa says, "I believe young people can all benefit from these portraits of hanging on when hope is in extremely short supply."

Synopsis
Yui and Hiyori meet the elderly and kind Kiwa in a shelter following the devastating Tōhoku tsunami on March 11, 2011. Together, the three form a new family and move into a large, old house located on a cape. Kiwa gets in touch with kindly kappa, zashiki warashi, komainu, and ojizōsama (among others) and together the characters confront and defeat demons that feed on people's grief after the disaster.

Characters

 * Yui (ユイ)
 * Yui is a teenage runaway and a high school student, who came from a violent and dysfunctional home due to her parents divorce, which then lead her mother to move out, as a result of her abusive father until she herself left home to get away from the abuse and her father's mistreatment, especially since he was constantly reminding and blaming her for their separation and her poor grades in school. She meets Hiyori while walking up the steps towards the remains of a shinto shrine where she sees Hiyori trying to move a huge tree branch off a Komainu statue; after she helps her remove the branch, she gives Hiyori her umbrella to protect her from the rain before walking away, until Hiyori catches up to her, where they end up at an emergency shelter and later taken into the care of Kiwa, a wise but kind old woman.
 * Yui is a teenage runaway and a high school student, who came from a violent and dysfunctional home due to her parents divorce, which then lead her mother to move out, as a result of her abusive father until she herself left home to get away from the abuse and her father's mistreatment, especially since he was constantly reminding and blaming her for their separation and her poor grades in school. She meets Hiyori while walking up the steps towards the remains of a shinto shrine where she sees Hiyori trying to move a huge tree branch off a Komainu statue; after she helps her remove the branch, she gives Hiyori her umbrella to protect her from the rain before walking away, until Hiyori catches up to her, where they end up at an emergency shelter and later taken into the care of Kiwa, a wise but kind old woman.


 * Hiyori (ひより)
 * An orphaned mute little girl who befriends Yui at an emergency shelter following the event of a destructive tsunami caused by an earthquake; due to the psychological trauma of losing her parents in a car accident around New Years Eve, she has not spoken a word since the tragedy. Shortly before the earthquake, she was taken in by relatives, until her relatives' house was destroyed during the earthquake, leading Hiyori to end up at the shelter until she and Yui were taken in by Kiwa.
 * An orphaned mute little girl who befriends Yui at an emergency shelter following the event of a destructive tsunami caused by an earthquake; due to the psychological trauma of losing her parents in a car accident around New Years Eve, she has not spoken a word since the tragedy. Shortly before the earthquake, she was taken in by relatives, until her relatives' house was destroyed during the earthquake, leading Hiyori to end up at the shelter until she and Yui were taken in by Kiwa.


 * Kiwa Yamana (山名 キワ)
 * Kiwa is a strange but wise and friendly elderly woman whom Yui and Hiyori meet at the shelter following the tsunami. When she approaches the girls, she takes pity on their situations and decides to take them in as her surrogate grandchildren where they move to an old house deep in the mountains overlooking the ocean.
 * Kiwa is a strange but wise and friendly elderly woman whom Yui and Hiyori meet at the shelter following the tsunami. When she approaches the girls, she takes pity on their situations and decides to take them in as her surrogate grandchildren where they move to an old house deep in the mountains overlooking the ocean.


 * Kappa of Toyosawagawa (豊沢川の河童)


 * Kappa of Kitakamigawa (北上川の河童)


 * Kappa of Mabechigawa (馬淵川の河童)


 * Kappa of Kozuchigawa (小鎚川の河童)


 * Zashiki-warashi (座敷童)

Film
An anime film adaptation was announced on November 5, 2020. David Production produces the film, with direction by Shinya Kawatsura, screenplay written by Reiko Yoshida and music composed by Yuri Miyauchi. The film was released on August 27, 2021, receiving the Best Animation Film Award at the Mainichi Film Festival.

The closing theme is performed by Hitsujibungaku (羊文学) with the song Mayoiga from the album our hope

Eleven Arts announced at their panel at the A-Kon event on June 4, 2022 that they have licensed the film and will bring both an original Japanese version and a new English dub for the North American theatrical release in partnership with AX Cinema Nights on September 7.

Reception
The novel won the 54th Noma Children's Literature Award in 2016. In 2024, the English translation won a Mildred L. Batchelder Award honor.