Review: Convenience Store Woman

Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I probably shouldn't give this book such a low rating just because I didn't fully 'get' it. I am not quite sure just what this was supposed to be about. Was it a book about someone who is autistic? Did she have a psychosis? In my mind, she probably had both. Violent as a child, as an adult has to mimic others to appear 'human', can only connect to this world while working in a convenience store, the list goes on.

For such a short novel (novella) we get a lot of repetition. When a male enters Keikos world things start getting even odder. And he is a truly detestable male. I don't know why the author made him so; if he too was supposed to be autistic/psychotic. either way, he was a true pig.

One thing that did make me happy about this book is that Keiko knew what her flaws were and what she had to do to be happy and that was to continue to be a convenience store employee and the best one there was!

Would I recommend this book? Actually, if it goes on sale again or you can get it from the library, I would, just so you can feel the confusion and gut-clenching that I did! You may be able to figure this book out and then you can explain it to me in simple language. LOL!

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SYNOPSIS: "Keiko Furukura had always been considered a strange child, and her parents always worried how she would get on in the real world, so when she takes on a job in a convenience store while at university, they are delighted for her. For her part, in the convenience store she finds a predictable world mandated by the store manual, which dictates how the workers should act and what they should say, and she copies her coworkers’ style of dress and speech patterns so that she can play the part of a normal person. However, eighteen years later, at age 36, she is still in the same job, has never had a boyfriend, and has only few friends. She feels comfortable in her life, but is aware that she is not living up to society’s expectations and causing her family to worry about her. When a similarly alienated but cynical and bitter young man comes to work in the store, he will upset Keiko’s contented stasis—but will it be for the better?

Sayaka Murata brilliantly captures the atmosphere of the familiar convenience store that is so much part of life in Japan. With some laugh-out-loud moments prompted by the disconnect between Keiko’s thoughts and those of the people around her, she provides a sharp look at Japanese society and the pressure to conform, as well as penetrating insights into the female mind. Convenience Store Woman is a fresh, charming portrait of an unforgettable heroine that recalls Banana Yoshimoto, Han Kang, and Amélie."