Take a photo of a barcode or cover
challenging
emotional
funny
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
"𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘣𝘰𝘳𝘯 𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘶𝘯𝘤𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘪𝘯 𝘮𝘺 𝘮𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘺."
'Convenience Store Woman' is a first-person narrative of a 36 yo convenience store worker, Keiko, whose sole reason for existence is to serve the titular convenience store she works at. In all her 18 years of service at the convenience store, Keiko has religiously abided by the store rules, reciting her "welcomes" and "thanks for your customs" with a flourish: acting as she did as an almost self-erasing entity called 'an obedient & hardworking employee' in a capitalist system.
Born not in a dysfunctional family but an affectionate & loving environment, her teachers, parents & even her therapist fail to plumb the depths of the reason or cause why Keiko can't act 'normal' (what does normal even mean & who defines it?) Branded a strange child for always getting in trouble, she grows up completely withdrawing from social circles, a recluse among her peers with no husband, children or even a full-time 'respectable' job (all the traditional markers of 'success'), she is often at the receiving end of being violated by people's prying noses meddling in her life.
'Convenience Store Woman' in its 160 odd pages doesn't pull any punches delving ruthlessly into sensitive, taboo subjects like misogyny, gender roles within a patriarchal system, identity politics, sexuality and how the private individual is a political entity in a late-capitalist, patriarchal society. Anyone who fails to 'perform' their designated roles in the hetero-normative, capitalist framework (the centre, the 'normal') is branded an 'outsider' (the margin, the 'abnormal'), an outcast shunned to the periphery of the society: a fate worse than death. With this 'death', Keiko is reborn as the convenience store woman twice: completely shedding her human identity, being reborn as that primal, animal instinct that breaths in tandem with the Convenience Store, the cells coursing through her body finally becoming one with it.
'Convenience Store Woman' is a first-person narrative of a 36 yo convenience store worker, Keiko, whose sole reason for existence is to serve the titular convenience store she works at. In all her 18 years of service at the convenience store, Keiko has religiously abided by the store rules, reciting her "welcomes" and "thanks for your customs" with a flourish: acting as she did as an almost self-erasing entity called 'an obedient & hardworking employee' in a capitalist system.
Born not in a dysfunctional family but an affectionate & loving environment, her teachers, parents & even her therapist fail to plumb the depths of the reason or cause why Keiko can't act 'normal' (what does normal even mean & who defines it?) Branded a strange child for always getting in trouble, she grows up completely withdrawing from social circles, a recluse among her peers with no husband, children or even a full-time 'respectable' job (all the traditional markers of 'success'), she is often at the receiving end of being violated by people's prying noses meddling in her life.
'Convenience Store Woman' in its 160 odd pages doesn't pull any punches delving ruthlessly into sensitive, taboo subjects like misogyny, gender roles within a patriarchal system, identity politics, sexuality and how the private individual is a political entity in a late-capitalist, patriarchal society. Anyone who fails to 'perform' their designated roles in the hetero-normative, capitalist framework (the centre, the 'normal') is branded an 'outsider' (the margin, the 'abnormal'), an outcast shunned to the periphery of the society: a fate worse than death. With this 'death', Keiko is reborn as the convenience store woman twice: completely shedding her human identity, being reborn as that primal, animal instinct that breaths in tandem with the Convenience Store, the cells coursing through her body finally becoming one with it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Misogyny, Stalking, Toxic friendship
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Stalking
Moderate: Ableism, Bullying
Minor: Sexual harassment
hopeful
inspiring
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting
Moderate: Body shaming, Sexism
Minor: Animal death, Stalking
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Three-fourths through the book, I almost wanted to give up, but I'm glad I didn't.
This book felt like a modern Camus and Kafka but with a different culture, a woman's voice, and a hopeful twist. The book doesn't make you feel good, but it's not supposed to; it's supposed to make the reader feel as uncomfortable as those who don't fit into the cookie-cutter designs of society feel every day.
Personally, as someone who grew up in Japan, the serenade to the combini made me feel both homesick and right at home. Finally, above all, this book makes peace with the pure lack of grandeur normal life has and offers a way of thinking about one's purpose as something innate and pure (even if it isn't extremely heroic or exciting).
This book felt like a modern Camus and Kafka but with a different culture, a woman's voice, and a hopeful twist. The book doesn't make you feel good, but it's not supposed to; it's supposed to make the reader feel as uncomfortable as those who don't fit into the cookie-cutter designs of society feel every day.
Personally, as someone who grew up in Japan, the serenade to the combini made me feel both homesick and right at home. Finally, above all, this book makes peace with the pure lack of grandeur normal life has and offers a way of thinking about one's purpose as something innate and pure (even if it isn't extremely heroic or exciting).
Content Warnings
Moderate: Misogyny, Sexism
Minor: Body shaming, Bullying
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Misogyny, Sexism
Minor: Stalking, Gaslighting
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness
Moderate: Animal death, Body shaming, Bullying, Chronic illness, Mental illness, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Stalking, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
tense
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Bullying, Misogyny, Sexism, Acephobia/Arophobia
Minor: Rape, Sexual assault
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Bullying, Sexism
dark
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Moderate: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Acephobia/Arophobia
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
on one hand, this is a nice little story about someone wholeheartedly pursuing what they want in life--that which makes them feel valuable--even if that something isn't in line with what society expects of them.
on the other hand, i can't help but feel that this is a much more depressing story than that. i think the main character, keiko furukura, is neurodivergent or at least heavily coded as neurodivergent. she lacks the ability to empathize with her peers at a very young age. because of this, she's been shunned by society as she is seen as "not normal." when she grew up, she found solace in the comforting monotony of life as a convenience store worker. this work eventually fulfilled her and made her feel "normal," even as she isolated herself more and more from other people.
so doesn't that just make this book not a feel-good story of self-acceptance (like what most people are saying about this book), but actually a story about commodification and alienation under a late-capitalist society, and how non-neurotypicals cope with that? god i'm too stupid for this tbh
on the other hand, i can't help but feel that this is a much more depressing story than that. i think the main character, keiko furukura, is neurodivergent or at least heavily coded as neurodivergent. she lacks the ability to empathize with her peers at a very young age. because of this, she's been shunned by society as she is seen as "not normal." when she grew up, she found solace in the comforting monotony of life as a convenience store worker. this work eventually fulfilled her and made her feel "normal," even as she isolated herself more and more from other people.
so doesn't that just make this book not a feel-good story of self-acceptance (like what most people are saying about this book), but actually a story about commodification and alienation under a late-capitalist society, and how non-neurotypicals cope with that? god i'm too stupid for this tbh
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny
Moderate: Bullying, Violence