Hinshi no Essayist is a series of short, essay-like (but fictional) chapters revolving around the themes of death and dying, narrated by a dying man in a hospital. Some of the chapters deal with the narrator's own life; most of these have an element of the uncanny or fantastic. Some deal with other patients: a man who meticulously plans his own deathbed scene, and a woman who obsessively scrutinizes her dreams to find out whether she will live or die, for example. Some are openly fantastic parables or fables.

The basic theme is that of the transience and value of life. It's a familiar theme, of course, but Shiriagari gives it a vividness and immediacy rarely encountered.

• Paraphrased from Completely Futile