Convenience Store Woman

This book contemplates what it means to be normal. The main character is a thirty six year old woman who is abnormal by societies standards. Her persona is built from the coalescence of parts of other people. She attempts to act the way her coworkers onto shroud her abnormality. Her sister pressures her to find a husband and is adamant about “curing” her. Fate brings her to meet a petulant man in his twenties who is finding a wife. He believes that society hasn’t changed from prehistoric times. He alludes to a village where “abnormal” people are ostracized from society. The man Judges people based on their superficial characteristics; for example, he belittles the store owner for his incompetence. When the main character adheres to societies standards and starts living with the man, other people validate her for doing so. Although her sister and her friends are content with her new life, she begins to loose her diligence. She begins to sleep and wake whenever she pleases and breaks the momentum of the convenience store that drives her life. She is now normal in accordance to societies standards, but she doesn’t feel complete without the store. In the end, she realizes that the store is her element and she would rather be abnormal and content than normal and unhappy.

I wanted a book to read that didn't require intense concentration or a dictionary to get through. This book fit the bill. I was able to listen to it on Audible while doing other tasks and didn't have any trouble keeping up with the story. I have never read a book about a person who works in a convenience store and I have never read a book about a convenience store worker who lives in Japan. It was a nice change.

Keiko Furukuru was born with no instinct for socially acceptable behavior. As a child she was inappropriate so often that her parents were constantly being summoned to teacher-parent meetings. So she stopped doing any thinking on her own and just imitated what others did. That worked.Keiko has a rebirth when she starts working part time at a convenience store. All she has to do is absorb the training and follow the manual. Suddenly her life has structure and purpose. She could almost pass for normal, but after eighteen years in the same dead end job, relatives and friends start questioning her behavior again.This story is an eye-opener on the subject of individuality and socialization. Keiko’s naive logic is amusing and endearing. Even if you’ve never stocked a shelf or promoted rice balls, it’s not hard to identify with Keiko’s drive to do what makes her comfortable. Her reactions to the constant constructive criticism from friends, co-workers, and relatives are startling and rather wonderful. She is agreeably polite and apologizes often. Keiko is a bizarre kind of heroine, but still very much a heroine.Keiko’s sincere efforts to accommodate society’s expectations lead to outlandish situations that make fun reading. Keiko is a peculiar sort of heroine, but still very much a heroine.

You'll find yourself rooting for Keiko all the way. A short but enjoyable read. The main character's perspective is refreshing.

Loved how the author portrays a unique character that has a pure soul. One of the finest novels by a Japanese author.

Really short great read. An autistic woman working in retail does not understand the odd behaviour around her. and takes comfort in the routine and demands of shop life. Reminded me of my time in retail and hopefully it makes me less judging of people life choices.

Audible Didn't add much to the Kindle read

Beautiful account of the risks of being different in a homogenous society, but also of the strength of being true to oneself and discovering happiness for being so.

Let’s see – what is considered “normal” for a girl in our society? Here are some thoughts that come to mind –1) Obtain a “respectable” qualification by a certain age.2) Get a “good” job, earn a decent income. Reach a certain level in your organization, within a certain time.3) Marry a “suitable” boy, earning a decent income, by a certain age – Very Important requirement.4) Have a certain number of children, by a certain age – Very Important requirement5) Own your own house with a pre-defined periodWell, the list goes on and on. Society, relatives, neighbours, friends have pre-conceived notions of what is “right” for a woman. But…what happens when you don’t abide by society’s norms? What if you take your own sweet time to get married? If your job/career is not considered “good” enough, and your salary doesn’t meet society’s exacting standards? What if you exceed the “acceptable” age limit to bear a child – or (gasp!) you decide you don’t want a child at all? What if (super gasp!) your sexual orientation is different? Ahhh – then it is rightfully everyone’s business, isn’t it, and it is everyone’s duty to give advice/guidance to the woman, to point out what is right!“Convenience Store Woman” is about Keiko Furukura, who has always been considered to be somewhat odd, in school and in college, not quite “fitting in” with the rest of the crowd. Her parents and sister love her dearly, and are thrilled when she gets a job at a convenience store, at the age of 18. The problem arises when Keiko continues to work at the store for the next 18 years, with no signs of a life partner in her life, no prospects of any promotion/progress in her career. In short, Keiko does not click ANY of the boxes for what is “right” and “normal” as per the standards in their society. When a rather strange boy enters Keiko’s life, her friends and family are ecstatic – at last Keiko will have a happy life! But – does Keiko really need this weird boy at all in her life – just to keep everyone happy? What if she is happy just the way she is, loves her work (and is very good at it!), and doesn’t need a partner, nor a high flying job?Japanese society seems alarmingly similar to ours! Here are my two primary takeaways from this delightful little book, which I read in two days –1) Never underestimate the power of a regular employment to give you an identity, to give you a daily routine to follow, to keep you emotionally stable – in short, to keep you happy, and to keep your life in order. You don’t have to be the CEO of your company, but the easy comradeship of your colleagues, the feeling that you are good at what you are doing (however humble that work may be), getting up at a particular time in the morning and getting ready, knowing that you are wanted at your workplace – all this is so, so important. If, like Keiko, your job brings you happiness and contentment, does anyone have a right to question you ? Think of it this way – Keiko may be much happier being a Convenience Store worker, earning her paltry (by other people’s standards), leading her quiet little organized life than a woman who is in the top rungs of her organization!2) Some people are happy on their own, and they do not feel the need for a partner! People need to respect and understand this – EVERYONE cannot follow the same set of rules. Relatives, neighbourhood aunties, nosy colleagues need to STOP hounding people who choose to live on their own terms! Please respect their privacy.Ultimately, “Convenience Store Woman” asks the Reader one very important question. What is more important – adhering to society’s norms, however miserable you may be doing so, or being happy and fulfilled in life just the way you are?Please click “helpful” if you like my review, and you empathize with Keiko!

Our heroine, Keiko, is a first person character who describes her world from an autistic perspective. She studies her colleages, family and friends in order to create a facsimile of "normality" that they will find acceptable. Her family desperately want her to be "fixed" but she is perfectly happy as she is and does not know what it is they think needs fixing; no-one can explain it to her. She has found the perfect place for her working in a convenience store, yet her family and friends are all desperate for her to conform to the Japanese norms - every woman must get married or have a "proper" career. I enjoyed Keiko's struggles with her society's expectations, and the social pressures placed on single women. The writing is very stripped back and deceptively simple as it critiques the world through Keiko's eyes without seeming to condemn. Ultimately this is a delightful celebration of the need to be yourself rather than allow yourself to be ruled by others' expectations and inflexibilities.

This is billed as being 'dark' and 'haunting', but having read this book I can't work out why. It is a brief exploration of Japanese cultural expectations and the experience of somebody who sits outside of these. Keiko takes pleasure in her symbiotic relationship with the shop in which she works, and this was surprisingly enjoyable to read about - the different products and the fluctuations in their sales. This was the more gentle side to the book, and paints Keiko as a simple but thorough person. Then the reader realises she is very isolated and lost in a world of mimicry and confusion. There is an odd paradox where she seems to be impervious to the opinions of others, but is also a slave to trying to fit in. However, I also found her co-workers rather strange, especially their reactions to Keiko and they way they treat her, whilst she is clearly excluded from their social lives, their reactions when she hands in her notice are bizarre.My favourite observation of the book is that people love to make up their own narratives of other peoples' lives, and often don't even realise they are doing it.The book, like the protagonist, is simple and unusual, and draws on the pleasures of minutiae without being overly dull.

This being a short novel I thought I would have finished it quickly, however I've had to really force myself to finish it. I liked the message, at least the message that I got from it, which is basically to do what makes you happy inspite of society's expectations, however the story could have been better. I really didn't take to any of the characters, it's usually quite easy to form a picture of characters in a novel and they become quite familiar, however they were all pretty unlikeable. On the front cover there's a review saying 'Haunting, dark, and often hilarious...' I didn't find myself laughing much at all. I think that I had very different expectations going into this and wonder if it would be more enjoyable in Japanese. I did actually like the ending, but for me most of the book plodded and I don't feel like it was worth the time.

I should think that most reviewers have used the word 'quirky' somewhere and - to be honest - it's hard to resist.The translation has been well done and the tone of the writing retains echoes the unselfconscious narrator. A straightforward plot which won't confuse or bewilder, meaning that the reader can just enjoy the ride and the gradual character revelation.It's pretty short, so would make a good book on your commute, weekend away, or just a lazy armchair read on a rainy day.If you like indie movies, you'll probably like this.