The Book of Form and Emptiness

The Book of Form and Emptiness by Ruth Ozeki, published in 2021, follows the story of Benny Oh after the death of his father, Kenji. The novel centers themes of narrative form, grief, and the importance of artistic creation in the midst of socioeconomic issues and environmental crisis. Zen Buddhist teachings shape the way the characters of this novel handle their ethical and social conflicts, as informed by Ozeki’s personal Buddhist practice. This summary uses the 2022 Penguin paperback version

Content Warning: Mental health, grief, self-harm, and hoarding.

Plot Summary

The Book of Form and Emptiness begins with the narrative voice of the Book describing a boy, Benny Oh, and their relationship. The novel is told through a mix of Benny’s first-person discussions with the Book, the Book’s narration of plot events in Benny’s life (told in varying points of view), and excerpts from a fictional book Tidy Magic. Benny’s story begins with the unexpected death of his father, Kenji Oh, a jazz musician and Japanese immigrant living in San Francisco with his wife and son. Following Kenji’s death, teenage Benny and his mother, Annabelle, hold a cremation for him, taking his ashes back home until they can decide on how to properly honor them.

Benny and Annabelle develop conflicting coping mechanisms. Benny begins hearing what he believes to be the voice of his late father whenever he is close to Kenji’s ashes. Gradually, this escalates into his hearing the voices of inanimate objects around the house and in school. When the voice of a scissor prompts Benny to stab his teacher, Benny stabs himself in the leg. He begins a course of treatment with child psychiatrist Dr. Melanie, spends two weeks in the children’s psychiatric ward, and takes medications prescribed for psychosis and anxiety.

Annabelle, who works for a news-monitoring agency, begins hoarding. Her job is threatened by the growing irrelevance of such agencies, and she worries about losing her health insurance while Benny is being treated at the hospital. In the ward, Benny meets Alice, a young woman recovering from addiction. She has an art project in which she inserts small slips of paper into books, people’s pockets, or other easily findable places. These slips have seemingly nonsense instructions on them, such as one Benny finds in his pocket that instructs him to speak to his shoe.

After leaving the ward, Benny begins high school. He is teased by his classmates for having been admitted to the psychiatric ward. Benny tries to combat this by being honest about his experiences, but his classmates continue to ostracize him. Benny’s relationship with Annabelle grows more tense and distant as they struggle to maintain healthy communication with each other. Benny decides to begin skipping school and spends his days reading at the public library.

While shopping one day, Annabelle discovers the book Tidy Magic, written by the Japanese Zen Buddhist monk Aikon. She decides to read and follow the instructions of this book because Kenji once spent time as a Buddhist monk. She begins working from home, which requires her to keep hard copies of the news items she monitors, resulting in a pile up of garbage bags in the house. Combined with the objects she has hoarded, the house soon becomes unbearably crowded for Benny.

The voices Benny hears escalate on the day of the presidential elections and ensuing protests that occupy the citizens of San Francisco. Benny is drawn to join the protests, narrowly avoids arrest, and ends up hiding overnight in the library. There, he is found by the security guard in the Bindery. Benny meets the voice of the Book and is singing with it, but to the security guard and police officers, he is assumed to be both mentally unstable and under the influence of drugs. Benny is admitted to the psychiatric ward again, where his new medications and his depression cause selective mutism and difficulty moving. He begins using a wheelchair.

Meanwhile, Annabelle loses her job. The son of her landlord and social services threaten that unless she cleans the house, she will be evicted and lose custody of Benny. Annabelle’s friend and librarian Cory brings a small group of people to help clear out the home. While putting trash in the dumpster, Annabelle discovers Alice, who is going through withdrawal symptoms. She takes Alice into the house and lets her sleep, then the two go to the psychiatric ward to see Benny and Dr. Melanie.

In the ward, Alice says goodbye to Benny as she plans to return to rehab. Annabelle and Dr. Melanie agree that Benny’s treatment should be adjusted, reevaluating ways to respect Benny’s experience of reality. Benny watches his mother leave and wait at the bus stop from a window in the ward. Encouraged to help her in some way, Benny begins talking again and stops using the wheelchair. He is soon discharged and returns to a cleaner, more organized home.

Annabelle and Benny attend a book signing at the library for Aikon’s Tidy Magic. There, they meet Aikon herself, who agrees to bless Kenji’s ashes in a traditional Zen Buddhist ceremony. After this, Annabelle and Benny find peace in accepting their loss. Annabelle begins a new job at a craft store, and Benny notices that the voices have grown quieter. They are able to begin moving on as a family.