A review by mintomillk
Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata

4.0

a deceptively deep novel, it's easy to read through Convenience Store Woman in one short sitting and leave it at that. i, a usually fast, speed-through reader, had to force myself to slow down and take in the book in its entirety, even though it felt like i was fighting with the pages as the lull of a rapid, one-time visit to the convenience store is reflected in Murata's writing. despite this, there's something alluring about the novel and about Keiko, though i would be foolish to say i understood it in its entirety. there's a larger message between the pages of this simple story of a woman trying on a relationship and new identity, about society and conformist culture and how it can do more harm than good. overall, this is a delightful short novel that i will definitely revisit from time to time.