Thirty-six year old Keiko Furukura is tired of people insisting that she either get married or get a “real” job. Keiko has worked part-time at Smile Mart, a convenience store chain since she was 18 years old. She loves her job and she does it well, so she doesn’t understand why the meddlers in her life just can’t be happy for her. See, Keiko isn’t what most people consider to be a “normal” girl. First of all, she’s only ever worked in a convenience store, she isn’t interested in getting married, and she has trouble discerning what’s the right thing to wear or the right thing to say. To hide what others consider to be her “imperfections,” Keiko dives into her work each day, living and breathing for the convenience store. She mimics her coworkers’ speech patterns & ways of dress, & talks as little of her state of life as possible. Keiko attends to her job day in and day out without complaint, never calling in sick, never taking a day off, always there when needed. Meanwhile her friends and family continue to pressure her to get married or quit work at the convenience store. When a new male coworker starts at Keiko’s store, her whole world is shaken up. Will Keiko risk getting close to him, and what will be the consequences if she does? Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata is a big read in a small package. Clocking in at a little over 150 pages, this fast little novel packs in a lot of story in a short amount of time. Readers are introduced to the quirky, but endearing Keiko, and are quickly pulled in by the sights and sounds of her convenience store. It’s easy to see why Keiko is so enraptured by her job. The routine, the script, the normalcy of it all is somewhat comforting, especially to a woman like Keiko who has apparent issues with stepping outside of her comfort zone. Convenience Store Woman focuses on the unfortunate societal norms of women - get married, and if you’re not married, you better have a high-profile job - and Keiko just can’t see what the problem is. If she is happy, why aren’t others happy for her? You can’t help but feel frustrated for Keiko and her plight as her coworkers, family, friends, and even their husbands share their opinions of why Keiko isn’t “normal.” The book explores Keiko’s struggle to stay true to herself, while not caving in to the increasing pressures of society. Translated from its original Japanese, Convenience Store Woman is an engaging, comical read about a woman who does not fit the mold, and even better, has no desire to conform. Readers will root for Keiko as she attempts to ward off the pressures of society, and strives to prove to the world that her life has meaning.
Availability: Book Rating: **** Stars (I really liked it) Reviewer: Brooke, Public Relations Librarian
ARE YOU AND THIS BOOK A GOOD MATCH? DISCOVER MORE WITH NOVELIST APPEALS!
GENRE: Literary Fiction; Psychological Fiction; Translations
THEME: Go Your Own Way (If you want to go off the beaten path you have to blaze your own trail. Follow along as characters strike out on their own.)
TONE: Moving; Offbeat STORYLINE: Character-Driven; Own Voices
WRITING STYLE: Engaging
CHARACTER: Culturally Diverse; Likeable; Quirky
LOCATION: Tokyo, Japan
SUBJECT: Alienation; Convenience Stores; Expectation; Men/Women Relations; Misfits; Nonconformity; Social Norms
IF YOU LIKE THIS BOOK, YOU MAY ALSO ENJOY THESE TITLES:
Comments