It is such a different take on the usual personal non-fiction narrative, and that is refreshing but abrasive at times. Thinking about Nagata Kabi’s life made me think too hard about my own. It was devastating to watch as Nagata’s mother reads MLEWL and scolds her for her life and the choices in it. Nagata goes in and doesn’t skip over any details of her depression and anxiety. I have two pages of notes from my first read through, and they’re almost all “xx-so relatable!!” Nagata realizing the difference between her actual abilities and the abilities of the imaginary Nagata who could magically do more was like looking into a mirror I was in the middle of a month of working about 110 hours per week because past me thought I could definitely do it. This was an extra hard read that took me a long time to consume and digest. Yet, My Solo Exchange Diary was infinitely relatable to me, and I expect to many other readers. Outside of being an anxious and depressed queer, I don’t have many similarities to Nagata Kabi herself. Nagata’s second work published and translated into English continues with themes laid out in its predecessor, My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness, while revolving more around the realization of her destructive cycles and the difficulty in breaking them to become an objectively better, more functional person. My Solo Exchange Diary by Nagata Kabi is an intensely raw look into her life and continued struggles with her mental health, independence, and acceptance of her sexuality.

Solo exchange diary