Reviews with content warning for Mental illness - Convenience Store Woman

Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata

58 reviews

carolinasbooks's review against another edition

hopeful informative reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I didn’t exactly expect this story from this book, it gave me pretty strong Parasite vibes at certain points and is unlike anything else I’ve ever read before, big recommend!

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hanfaulder's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional funny inspiring reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This is one of my favourite books. Convenience Store Woman is a book about many things, and it discusses many interesting themes that are not often talked about: especially from the perspective of a woman. For me, however, the main reason I loved this book so much is because reading it was the first time in my 20-odd years that I have truly related to a character. The main character, Keiko, is heavily coded as being neurodivergent - at least, that is what I have read into the book, as an autistic person myself. It is never explicitly mentioned in the book, if Keiko is autistic or not, but I and other autistic people online seem to have come to this conclusion. I remember excitedly telling my dad, after reading Convenience Store Woman in one 5-hour sitting, that "she thinks like me! this character is like me!" and honestly, it was a shock to me, realising that when other people read books, they don't just like characters or aspire to be like them, but can see themselves reflected back in the pages.

The plot of the book follows Keiko as she struggles through a world that does not understand her. She is a 36-year-old-woman working in a convenience store in Japan, with no partner or desire to date, and who relies on her sister to make sense of the world for her. Convenience Store Woman is a sharp, cutting, deliciously dark look at how modern women are forced to become cogs in the machine. Whether that be through consumerism, being a part of a business, where we exchange goods for money - or how women exchange their individuality to be in socially acceptable relationships. The book also explores how these two things are linked, how they are actually very similar, and reveals the illusion of choice presented to women between these two sides of the same coin. The book is about how much of ourselves we're willing to exchange in order to "fit in". Keiko simultaneously seems to know exactly what's happening, and has no idea what's happening to her. She sacrifices her wants to make the people around her happier, to make them look at her like she's one of them - that she's managed to successfully become a chameleon. But she wonders if that is worth giving up what makes her feel safe and what gives her joy. Her inner monologue, although scattered throughout the book, gives insight into the world that is true, that strikes hard, and that I do not think we would have gotten if she was written as a neurotypical person. She sees the world differently, but that does not make her herself different. Convenience Store Woman is as haunting in its prose as it is in its impact: and it is a book that has not left me since I read it.

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rieviolet's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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kingorgan's review against another edition

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challenging emotional funny reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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annieinthearchives's review against another edition

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dark reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

The book offers a good reflection on the idea of “normal” as defined by society and how people act in order to cope with the pressure of societal expectations. I particularly appreciated the author didn’t create a melodramatic background story behind the character, as it made the story more realistic, though there are many things one could ask about Keiko (such as is she neurodivergent and if yes, why isn’t this explicitly indicated?) but overall it was a good thought devastating story and not because of the ending (in anything it was somehow a happy ambiguous one)

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