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![コンビニ人間 [Konbini ningen] by Sayaka Murata](https://cdn.thestorygraph.com/wafd8aqgj5q8ngmujindtxp5794q)
3.71 AVERAGE
3.71 AVERAGE
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I have mixed opinions about this book. I could relate to the main character in some ways- she definitely is on the spectrum. However that is also one of my issues with the book. While the commentary about societal expectations is certainly relatable as an autistic, Keiko isn’t just autistic. Autistic people don’t automatically jump to like oh just kill them, then they can’t annoy you anymore. That’s straight up psychopathy. It’s disturbing to me that so many people seem to think this is how autistics feel. Also, the character Shiraha also got old fast and deserved to live on the street. No sympathy for that guy. Ending was abrupt.
This was a quick and easy read, and I have mixed feelings about it. Our main character, Keiko, lacks social grace and has a hard time understanding others’ emotions. It is implied that she has some sort of developmental disorder that stunts her ability to understand others and understand social cues. Still though, she has sharp observational skills: she is keenly aware of how her speech is influenced by the people around her: “infecting each other like this is how we maintain ourselves as human is what I think.” She is able to identify resentment as projection: “maybe people who thought they were being violated felt a bit better when they attacked other people in the same way.” She is able to observe her social interaction from the outside and analyze them accordingly.
Keiko struggles with the expectations of a “normal” life. It seems like her friends, family, and society at large want her to get better job, or get married and have kids. Keiko rejects this sort of conformity and embraces what she calls her convenience store animal instinct.
There are contours of anti-capitalist ideas – Keiko talks about being just another cog in a machine, about how she has to keep her body well-oiled in order to do her job, and she admits that she has her “human” life and her “convenience store staff” life. But I don’t think "Convenience Store Woman" really functions as a critique of capitalism. If anything, Keiko gains self-worth, independence, and meaning from her rote nine-to-five. In fact, she uses this identity – a “worker” devoid of humanity – to reject the conformist culture that demands more from her. I think Keiko as a character doesn’t really work as the subject of a capitalist critique (although I don’t even know if that’s what Murata was going for.)
I didn’t think this was a funny or quirky or lighthearted novel, like others have said. Only one part made me chuckle. Keiko’s sister comes to Keiko’s apartment, with concern for her. “She kept crying uncontrollably without responding to my request. Lost for something to do I took a custard pudding out of the refrigerator and ate it as I watched her sitting there sobbing.” But even that scene is colored by the tragedy of a woman who struggles to feel human, and her family who doesn’t know how to help.
Keiko struggles with the expectations of a “normal” life. It seems like her friends, family, and society at large want her to get better job, or get married and have kids. Keiko rejects this sort of conformity and embraces what she calls her convenience store animal instinct.
There are contours of anti-capitalist ideas – Keiko talks about being just another cog in a machine, about how she has to keep her body well-oiled in order to do her job, and she admits that she has her “human” life and her “convenience store staff” life. But I don’t think "Convenience Store Woman" really functions as a critique of capitalism. If anything, Keiko gains self-worth, independence, and meaning from her rote nine-to-five. In fact, she uses this identity – a “worker” devoid of humanity – to reject the conformist culture that demands more from her. I think Keiko as a character doesn’t really work as the subject of a capitalist critique (although I don’t even know if that’s what Murata was going for.)
I didn’t think this was a funny or quirky or lighthearted novel, like others have said. Only one part made me chuckle. Keiko’s sister comes to Keiko’s apartment, with concern for her. “She kept crying uncontrollably without responding to my request. Lost for something to do I took a custard pudding out of the refrigerator and ate it as I watched her sitting there sobbing.” But even that scene is colored by the tragedy of a woman who struggles to feel human, and her family who doesn’t know how to help.
the message the author tried to convey here felt jumbled and contradictory to me. i liked when the main character thought the most logical way to silence a crying child would be to kill it though
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
fast-paced
Es raro, absurdo, curioso y la mar de entretenido.
La historia de una persona “diferente” (no sabía explicar muy bien cuál es su diferencia…a veces parece que tiene Asperger y otras directamente que es una psicópata) que vive por y para trabajar de dependienta.
La historia de una persona “diferente” (no sabía explicar muy bien cuál es su diferencia…a veces parece que tiene Asperger y otras directamente que es una psicópata) que vive por y para trabajar de dependienta.
the dude mooching off of her should make an alpha male podcast.
Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata is a strange, unique and realistic book that explores the rules of our society. I have never heard of this writer but Murata is one the most celebrated of the new generation of Japanese writers.
The main character is Keiko, a 36 year old woman, who never had a boyfriend and who’s been working in a convenience store for more than 18 years. Keiko isn’t an 'ordinary person' - her words. She feels alienated because she doesn’t share society's values and doesn’t want for her life what everyone seems to want: to get married, to earn lots of money and have children. She doesn’t fit into a box. Keiko doesn’t know what to do with society and society doesn’t know what to do with a person like Keiko.
This is a very short book. When I saw Convenience Store Woman in London last December, I was immediately drawn to it. There's also a few words by Elif Batuman on the cover. I thought 'probably another strange and wonderful book like The Idiot so let’s bring it with me'. And, it’s exactly that: it’s strange, dry, marvelous. Always with humor, always compelling. Aside from the writing, this book discusses important issues like society expectations and alienation. What happens to those who don’t fit in any stereotype...? I loved how one of the character mentions that society allows several lifestyles but they’re all the same, at the end. Those that truly stand out scare the world. I highly recommend it!
For more reviews follow me on Instagram @booksturnyouon
The main character is Keiko, a 36 year old woman, who never had a boyfriend and who’s been working in a convenience store for more than 18 years. Keiko isn’t an 'ordinary person' - her words. She feels alienated because she doesn’t share society's values and doesn’t want for her life what everyone seems to want: to get married, to earn lots of money and have children. She doesn’t fit into a box. Keiko doesn’t know what to do with society and society doesn’t know what to do with a person like Keiko.
This is a very short book. When I saw Convenience Store Woman in London last December, I was immediately drawn to it. There's also a few words by Elif Batuman on the cover. I thought 'probably another strange and wonderful book like The Idiot so let’s bring it with me'. And, it’s exactly that: it’s strange, dry, marvelous. Always with humor, always compelling. Aside from the writing, this book discusses important issues like society expectations and alienation. What happens to those who don’t fit in any stereotype...? I loved how one of the character mentions that society allows several lifestyles but they’re all the same, at the end. Those that truly stand out scare the world. I highly recommend it!
For more reviews follow me on Instagram @booksturnyouon