On 4 March 2025 at the Central Library and as part of the Hong Kong International Literary Festival, I had the privilege of moderating a conversation with the delightfully down-to-earth and modest Asako Yuzuki, author of the genre-defying novel Butter, with deft translating provided by Japanese/English translator, Ikumi Yoshida. Butter is Yuzuki san’s first work to be translated into English (by the talented Polly Barton), becoming a runaway bestseller and Waterstones Book of the Year 2024, even to the surprise of the author herself. The novel focusses on the relationships between the three principal female characters in the book – Rika Machida, a journalist who gains exclusive access to convicted killer and gourmet chef, Manako Kajii and Reiko Sayama, a housewife and Rika’s best friend – and on food, principally butter-infused dishes. An intelligent, compelling story of friendship, food, family and feminism, Butter is a long read (clocking in at 452 pages) but definitely one to pick up and savour. I thoroughly enjoyed spending time with Yuzuki san and to introducing her to Hong Kong’s most iconic buttery baked good: the po lor yau (pineapple bun with a thick slab of butter). I hope that not only Butter, but others of Yuzuki san’s writings will find their way into the hands of readers outside of Japan.