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A review by v_larr
Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata
2.0
I waited until after my Book Club meeting to actually write this review because I wanted to have an active discussion first. Guys, it was incredible. I got to engage with people who thought this book was good, I got to complain about it, we all had differing opinions but we backed them up with SOURCES and respected everyone and it was so much fun.
I mean, it solidified my opinion about this book kind of sucking.
I mostly get the points this book tried to address. You don't need to conform to society's standards. Love isn't the only thing in life, jobs aren't about climbing up the corporate ladder. But at the same time, it felt like there were so many other messages and hidden meanings that tried to express themselves but weren't able to.
For example, the convenience store. I thought there would be something about romanticizing the mundane and routine, but then there would be something vaguely anti-capitalist? Like something something "I love the job here with all it's awesome stuff, I have to take care of myself because once I'm no longer useful they will dispose of me and I will have no job" like hold on a second? I think there are many ways people could take this, but that's how I took it and it's leaving me confused.
Also, I would've liked more information on her childhood and what exactly she needed to be "cured" of. Like she's clearly autistic or autistic-coded, if not that then some other form of neuro-divergence. The lack of a clear diagnosis does bother me, but at the same time I don't think it's like a bad thing that it wasn't there. I just would've liked that information.
This book did an excellent job of highlighting how annoying heteronormative allosexuals are.
Okay. Now. Shiraha. That's his name right?
I loved the fact that he was there in the book. But I hated him. This is a good thing, I don't think he was meant to be likable. And I really enjoyed everything he represented. He was an r/antiwork incel who believed things should just be handed to him, no one liked him until they found out he was "with" Keiko then suddenly they forgot all the bad things about him because they cared so much about her romance. And he was so hypocritical! Wanting to be a lazy leech but pushing Keiko to get a new job even though he was preaching about society or whatever. Like yeah, those kinds of people unfortunately exist. And there's a clear difference between him and Keiko, who doesn't want to harm anyone and just wants to live her life doing what she enjoys.
I just don't like how she sometimes compared herself to him. Like no, y'all are verrrryyyy different. Sure they're both "foreign" or whatever but she's not a sexist lazy stalker. She does her job because she loves it.
Actually speaking of the job. Someone mentioned in book club that the book was so against conforming to standards, but in a sense that's what Keiko loves about the store. The routine, the neverchanging rules. Like, is this a layered message that sometimes it's okay orrrrrrr?
I wonder if the translation is part of what makes it difficult to understand. Also, I thought the writing style worked well for the character, but it was so boring to me.
And really, Keiko is just stagnant throughout the book. She started off a store worker and finished a store worker. And it's not like her mindset changed either. She never wanted to do what everyone else was doing, it was more like she almost cared but then didn't. It just felt like there was no real progression. From a reader standpoint, it's boring to me. And like, there is this slice of life vibe to it, but the thing I like about slice of life is that romanticization of the mundane. But like I said earlier, it felt back and forth.
Also, I'm sorry, I get the whole thing about like oh screw society's standards, but if your entire life is based on your job up to the fact that you eat and sleep just enough because it makes you useful, not because, yaknow, you need it to live, then I'm sorry for you. Like I get hyperfixations, trust me I do, but this is just sad.
And she likes the job because she can fit into this mold, and it leaves me wondering, is she just...I don't know, this sad blob of nothing without that mold? She's always masking herself, who is she behind that? Aside from like I don't know a logically violent kid. I realized in book club the reason the store works so well for her is because she can use the most efficient and logical path towards solving a problem without hitting a kid with a shovel. That's cool.
Anyways, I think I mentioned everything.
I mean, it solidified my opinion about this book kind of sucking.
I mostly get the points this book tried to address. You don't need to conform to society's standards. Love isn't the only thing in life, jobs aren't about climbing up the corporate ladder. But at the same time, it felt like there were so many other messages and hidden meanings that tried to express themselves but weren't able to.
For example, the convenience store. I thought there would be something about romanticizing the mundane and routine, but then there would be something vaguely anti-capitalist? Like something something "I love the job here with all it's awesome stuff, I have to take care of myself because once I'm no longer useful they will dispose of me and I will have no job" like hold on a second? I think there are many ways people could take this, but that's how I took it and it's leaving me confused.
Also, I would've liked more information on her childhood and what exactly she needed to be "cured" of. Like she's clearly autistic or autistic-coded, if not that then some other form of neuro-divergence. The lack of a clear diagnosis does bother me, but at the same time I don't think it's like a bad thing that it wasn't there. I just would've liked that information.
This book did an excellent job of highlighting how annoying heteronormative allosexuals are.
Okay. Now. Shiraha. That's his name right?
I loved the fact that he was there in the book. But I hated him. This is a good thing, I don't think he was meant to be likable. And I really enjoyed everything he represented. He was an r/antiwork incel who believed things should just be handed to him, no one liked him until they found out he was "with" Keiko then suddenly they forgot all the bad things about him because they cared so much about her romance. And he was so hypocritical! Wanting to be a lazy leech but pushing Keiko to get a new job even though he was preaching about society or whatever. Like yeah, those kinds of people unfortunately exist. And there's a clear difference between him and Keiko, who doesn't want to harm anyone and just wants to live her life doing what she enjoys.
I just don't like how she sometimes compared herself to him. Like no, y'all are verrrryyyy different. Sure they're both "foreign" or whatever but she's not a sexist lazy stalker. She does her job because she loves it.
Actually speaking of the job. Someone mentioned in book club that the book was so against conforming to standards, but in a sense that's what Keiko loves about the store. The routine, the neverchanging rules. Like, is this a layered message that sometimes it's okay orrrrrrr?
I wonder if the translation is part of what makes it difficult to understand. Also, I thought the writing style worked well for the character, but it was so boring to me.
And really, Keiko is just stagnant throughout the book. She started off a store worker and finished a store worker. And it's not like her mindset changed either. She never wanted to do what everyone else was doing, it was more like she almost cared but then didn't. It just felt like there was no real progression. From a reader standpoint, it's boring to me. And like, there is this slice of life vibe to it, but the thing I like about slice of life is that romanticization of the mundane. But like I said earlier, it felt back and forth.
Also, I'm sorry, I get the whole thing about like oh screw society's standards, but if your entire life is based on your job up to the fact that you eat and sleep just enough because it makes you useful, not because, yaknow, you need it to live, then I'm sorry for you. Like I get hyperfixations, trust me I do, but this is just sad.
And she likes the job because she can fit into this mold, and it leaves me wondering, is she just...I don't know, this sad blob of nothing without that mold? She's always masking herself, who is she behind that? Aside from like I don't know a logically violent kid. I realized in book club the reason the store works so well for her is because she can use the most efficient and logical path towards solving a problem without hitting a kid with a shovel. That's cool.
Anyways, I think I mentioned everything.