My Thoughts: The convenience store woman in this book by the same title is Keiko, a 36-year old who has worked in the same convenience store since she was 18. Debut author Sayaka Murata still works part time in a convenience store, so clearly has the gravitas for putting together her first novel. Convenience Store Woman is all Keiko’s story and Keiko is one very, very odd woman. Even as a child Keiko had been a little strange. Her family worried about her, she had no real friends, and Keiko didn’t really know how to act around other children. As she grew older, Keiko learned to mimic the actions of others, eventually going so far as to mimic their speech patterns and copy how other women dressed and carried themselves.

In these ways Keiko got by for a long, long time. She was content with her neatly ordered life. But, by her mid-thirties people were questioning Keiko. Why was she still working in a convenience store? Why wasn’t she married? Had she ever even had a boyfriend? Once again, Keiko felt the need to adapt to fit the expectations of other, but with limited social skills she had few options. Keiko’s solution was almost as odd as Keiko herself, and it was here that Convenience Store Woman went completely off the rails for me.

I’m hesitant to go to a place with a story that the author never did, but throughout this book I kept thinking that surely Keiko must be on the high-functioning end of the Autism spectrum. Her inappropriate responses to others, her mimicking, her compulsively ordered life, and her lack of social skills all pointed in that direction. Had this been played up more, the book would have been a lot more interesting to me. As it was, Convenience Store Woman was a strange little book about a really odd woman with a sad little life. It proved to be just too weird for me!

Note: I received a copy of this book from Grove Press (via NetGalley) in exchange for my honest thoughts.

Keiko has always felt different. She reacts to emotions, social situations and just life in general a little bit differently than anyone else. Since her early childhood, her family has tried to "fix'' her, lamenting Keiko's odd behaviors and habits. Keiko feels her job is one of the best things that ever happened to her. One day 18 years ago she found the convenience store and applied for a job there, and she's been letting what she learns there form her life and reactions to people ever since. She uses convenience store greetings, eats convenience store foods and lives a convenience store life. However, being past 30 and working what others see as a deadend, low job has her family once again looking down on her. Poor Keiko....no marriage, no children, no future. What are they going to do about Keiko? And what is Keiko going to do to appease them?

This book is different and an absolutely enjoyable read. I love stories that are creative, different and not like anything I've read before. This story definitely surprised me, and kept me reading. Keiko is odd, but she learns how to deal with life, people and her family. She likes her job....but others keep telling her that her life isn't enough. She ponders how to solve the problem, and makes mistakes. It's very hard to pretend to be like everyone else when you aren't like them at all. I was afraid what the ending of this story might bring, but the ending was perfect.

Convenience Store Woman is a lovely and bizarre story. Just like Keiko. Loved it! I'm glad this got translated from Japanese to English so I could enjoy the story! :) I hope they translate more of her books!

**I voluntarily read an advance readers copy of this book from Grove Atlantic via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are completely my own.**

Darkly comic, subversive and deeply human, this gem of a book is about Keiko Furukura, a Japanese woman in her 30s who is not quite like other people. From a child she has always been “different” and has never viewed the world as others do. However, she is perfectly content in her own way, working in a local convenience store, a place where she feels at home. But should she try to be more like other people, lead a more “normal” life, try to fit on with societal norms? This is a wonderful short book which questions what it means to be normal, what it means to adapt to those around us and what we owe to ourselves to simply be ourselves. It captures brilliantly the atmosphere and daily routine of a convenience store – I could see Keiko’s store so clearly, almost smell it, as if I were actually there. Clever and astute, engaging and moving, this is a deeply sympathetic portrait of a woman at odds with the world but at peace with herself.

Thank you so much to Netgalley for this ARC. I have listened to Modern Mrs Darcy talk about this book on her podcast and it sounded very interesting and I was not disappointed. Convenience store woman is a simple little story about Keiko Furukura a totally quirky hopelessly inept character but in a totally charming and sweet way. I don't usually read books that were originally in another language but this really worked and is a great book.

This intriguing short novel builds slowly but is worth the wait. It is the story of Keiko, the convenience store worker of the title. She is a committed employee who has done the same routine tasks for eighteen years with enthusiasm and diligence.

Keiko is aware that she does not feel as other people do. She does not understand the expectations of society but is conscientious in mimicking the people around her. wearing the right clothes, showing the right facial expressions and saying the right things.

Keiko comes under a lot of pressure to have a career or a husband or, ideally, both. She does not understand why this matters so much to other people but is careful not to criticise their expectations. Her conformity is enabled by her sister, who is aware of Keiko’s difference but eager to conceal it.

Keiko’s life changes when Shiraha begins to work at the convenience store. He too has failed to meet society’s expectations, but rather than adapting, he is angry. He sees himself as a victim and believes it is always someone else, never himself, that is to blame for his problems.

This book has such a lovely voice and a subtle, understated humour. It asks interesting questions about what it is to conform and to belong. On the one hand, Keiko’s complete acceptance of the terms of a low-paid, demanding job might feel like exploitation, but on the other she shows strength in constructing a life on her own terms.

While the pressure for a woman to marry is perhaps greater in Japan than in the West (embarrassing aunties at your sister’s wedding notwithstanding) it does raise questions about what pressures we do accept without question, and how we look at those who choose not to belong.

The people around Keiko, even those who claim to care for her, are only interested in the surface. Keiko struggles to understand the feelings of others, but they have not even tried to understand hers, assuming that her needs are the same as society’s.

Keiko is both charming and subversive. When as a child she asked why it is wrong to eat a dead bird found in the park, but alright to buy a dead bird to eat from the supermarket, she showed more logic than most adults. Many of her perceptions are quite sensible, even though she is the one who her friends believe is in need of a ‘cure’.

Convenience Store Woman is an engaging story and its simple, spare prose asks some deceptively complex questions.

This is a quirky, wonderful book that I absolutely adored. If you like Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine or The Rosie Project, then you should love this book about Keiko the convenience store employee, who isn’t neurotypical but has remarkable insight into how the world works. Everyone around her just wants her to be normal, which means to them either a career-oriented job or marriage, when what she wants is to fit in and be respected for how well she does her job. It’s very short and sweet and poignant, and I’m glad I read it.

I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Grove Atlantic/Grove Press for providing me with an ARC. In exchange I am offering my honest review.

This is a quirky quick read which is part delightful and part disturbing. I'm still trying to process if my discomfort was in the translation or if the author really meant to convey certain thoughts. The repeated use of the main character referring to herself as not normal, was pretty jarring. There are certainly dozens of other word choices to express one's uniqueness, awkwardness or quikiness. It really bothered me that a woman clearly written on the Autism spectrum would repeatedly be labeled not normal by friends, family and co-workers.
Keiko Furukura has lived her life seemingly apathetic to society's norms. She finds pleasure and comfort in her job as a convenience store employee where she is able to mimic the gestures of others and ridgely adhere to the employee manual. After 18 years at the same job a new co-worker enters her sphere and spins her world out of orbit. While this may have been written to appear as dark comedy, I thought it was sad and somewhat cruel. I honestly found nothing charming in those sections.
This book challenges what we{society} perceive as "normal" or acceptable and mocks the oddity of reason. While I'm glad I had an opportunity to read this book, I'm pretty ambivalent about the content.
I gave this book two stars according to GoodReads scale as two stars represent "I thought it was O.K" I am curious to read more from this author, I believe she has the capability to craft interesting stories.

Convenience Store Woman is a short, weird little story about an 18 year old girl, Keiko, who doesn't fit in. She's strange. She starts a job at a brand new convenience store....and 18 years later, she is still there.

Often using her health as an excuse as to why she is still at the same job, Keiko follows the rules of the store, careful to follow the rules, and working hard to be ordinary. She deals with pressure from her family and friends to confirm to their standards - to find a husband or a different job, but she continues to enjoy her life as it is. One day, she is tasked with helping a new employee and her life starts to slowly change....but is it for the better.

Thanks to NetGallery for a copy of this book in exchange for this review.

Thank you to Netgalley, Grove Press and Sayaka Murata for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. Rating 3.5 stars.

This is a gem of a novel. It might be small in page numbers but it is big on pleasure! It is quirky and offbeat just like the main character. Her name is Keiko and she is an odd duck. She doesn’t understand the world in the same way that most people do. She has to learn how to behave by observing those in her environment and these are things that don’t come easily for her. Keiko watches videos and copies people’s facial expressions and tone of voice but doesn’t understand the feelings behind them. Her logic, however, is impeccable, if not always appropriate. When she was small, two boys were fighting in the school playground. Everyone was telling them to stop, so Keiko picked up a shovel and smashed it over the boy’s head. She thought she solved the problem and expected people would be happy but was surprised her parents were called into the school and she got into trouble. Her parents are so sad for her. They had high hopes that she would be more like her sister but as Keiko got older she never changed. In high school Keiko found a job at a convenience store. She made an excellent employee, a hard worker, alway on time, never missing a day. Here she is today, at age 36, not married, no children and still working at a job most people would have left behind years ago. Keiko is very happy with her life, but is starting to feel pressure from those around her to succumb to societal pressures and be more “normal”. Should she upend her life just to fit in. Who is to say what is the right way to live? Is there only one right way? Set in Japan, where there is a stricter code of what is acceptable in society, Keiko is faced with a real dilemma.

I really enjoyed this book and I thought it raised a lot of provocative questions. The story is told simply and doesn’t delve deep, never giving us too many answers. Rather, it allows the reader to think for themselves. It is a slice of life with some humour mixed in. I found the style of writing interesting because it reads in almost a broken English. It reminds me of the way a person who speaks Japanese might speak if English was their second language. All the characters in this story are delightful even when don’t root for them. We never learn why Keiko is different. She is never labelled with, for example, autism, which I think is awesome. She just is who she is. People exist on a spectrum with a wide range of emotions and behaviours. Who are we to interfere with anyone’s right to live the life they choose. Dropping in on Keiko’s life reminds us that everyone has their own definition of happiness and if you are brave enough you can live your best life.

A quick read, even if weird, starring a woman who seems to have difficulties empathizing with other people and thus bahaving not like she feels, but like the society expects her to. She worked for most of her adult life, twenty years or so, as a convenience store clerk, and this is somehow VERY wrong (not sure I understand exactly why, like she’s not a parasite, living off the back of someone else – I get that it is plateaued and lacking any ambition, but it’s her life and I don’t really get why others are judging her SO HARSH); also, she finds herself in a very strange kind-of-relashionship with a man so much unlike her.
I found her (diseased?) personality/character/nature quite interesting and I also thought some of her reactions highly hilarious, so the novel was a page turner, but I just couldn’t really relate to any situation or thought or – especially – with her relashionship, and it gets clearer and clearer to me that maybe I’m just not compatible with Japanese culture, or maybe Asian culture in general, as I find it hugely strange and most times uncomprehensible..

Keiko doesn't fit in. That is, she doesn't fit it anywhere except the convenience store where she's worked for 18 years. She knows that her friends, family, and coworkers all think she is strange for staying at one job for so long. The pressure to be "normal" reaches a point where Keiko invites a man to stay with her, to give the appearance that she's finally accomplishing at least one step on the way to ordinary adulthood.

The most enjoyable parts of the book are when Keiko in working in the convenience store, methodically explaining her tasks and the sights and sounds of the store. Reading those sections is calming, while reading the parts where Keiko is forced to interact with others and make her best attempt at normalcy are painful, because they're written in a way where you are nervous for Keiko to make a mistake. It's quite brilliantly done so that you can see the difference in where Keiko is comfortable versus where she is not. This book also gives a peek inside the head of someone who isn't rebelling against society, she honestly doesn't understand society.

Some of the dialogue is a bit clunky and awkward, especially when Shiraha, the man who eventually moves in with Keiko, is spouting his endless monologues. However, that could be just cultural differences in how Japanese speak. The length of this book is perfect, there's a nice tidy ending and you can read it in an afternoon.

Short quick read about a 36-year old convenience store worker in Japan. Still not quite sure what to think of this book. It reads as though the woman is autistic? I'm just not quite sure what this book was really getting at.

4.5 pleasantly surprised stars for this intriguing little book! Convenience Store Woman is not action-packed nor steeped in drama, but it is a compelling read nonetheless.

The story follows Keiko Furukura, a 36-year-old, part-time convenience store employee. The people in her life have always thought she is a little odd, and yet they are perplexed by her seeming inability to move beyond what is seen as a temporary life stage. Keiko, on the other hand, doesn't know why anyone should care that she has found contentment in the predictability of her work, and the comfort brought by the rules in the employee manual.

I'm not exactly sure how Sayaka Murata managed to write such a captivating account of what is basically the daily routine of a worker in a convenience store, but I could not put this book down! Keiko was a fascinating character, and by the time this (much too short!) story was done, I found myself rooting for her to live her life her own damn way, weirdness and all.

I'll definitely be watching for more from this author -- her talent is incredible.

Thank you to NetGalley and Grove Atlantic for providing me with an e-ARC of this book.

I received an advanced reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review..

What a treat. I loved this book. Very moving portrait of an odd duck – never labeled, which is refreshing – making choices to survive in this society on her own terms. I feel like it anymore detail would be spoiling, if not the outcome than at least the joy of discovery, So I was just totally recommend it to anyone who enjoys unusual depictions of female characters, and women finding the strength to live on their own terms.

Short fascinating character study of a woman who does not meet what society considers norms. Keiko is different, just different, and her life inside the convenience store makes sense to her, if not to others. You can argue about what her diagnosis might be but you'll surely find her really interesting, even if others do not. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. This is a great opportunity to read modern Japanese literature.

"So the manual for life already existed. It was just that it was already ingrained in everyone's heads, and there wasn't any need to put it in writing."

Convenience Store Woman was a short, fast and sharp read following Keiko Furukura, a part-time convenience store worker in her mid-thirties. Furukura was always strange, even as a child she was finding herself in trouble for her bizarre and occasionally violent reactions. In college, what was supposed to be a casual job for extra cash ended up giving Furukura exactly what she needed: the tools to fit in. Through the convenience store worker's manual and the observation of the other employees Furukura became a working cog in society and can go about essentially unnoticed, which is exactly what she always wanted. The story starts 18 years after the fateful day she started work in the convenience store (and where she continues to work) and watches as she meets another societal misfit.

I thought this was a beautiful ode to anyone that feels that they don't fit in or don't quite meet the standards set for them by society. Written in the clean, stark voice of Furukura, I thought the writing style perfectly matched the narrative and Furukura herself. Although occasionally repetitive, I was fascinated by her sharp observations and her take on what it means to be human from someone that feels like an outsider to the species. I quite enjoyed this short and witty little book, while it wasn't what I expected I was more than pleasantly surprised.

3.5/5 stars

One of my 2018 reading goals was to read more books by asian authors and about asian culture, so this book was perfect for that.

I've seen Convenience Store Woman being compared to Eleanor Oliphant is completely fine by Gail Honeyman and while I do see the resemblance, I don't necessarily agree with the comparison.

Eleanor Oliphant was definitely a quirky character (my favorite kind) but I was able to relate to Eleanor on a deep emotional level, while Keiko from Convenience Store Woman felt very detached and unemotional, which I wasn't able to relate to, but enjoyed nonetheless. Both women follow the same thought process, but Convenience Store Woman definitely takes things to a more bizarre and at times, disturbing level.

I absolutely loved the message this book was trying to relay, I just wasn't very keen on it's delivery. While I enjoyed the brisk and to the point writing style, it also felt incomplete at times - I wished to know just a little bit more, just few more details to be able to paint a complete picture.

​Maybe I wasn't able to emotionally identify with Keiko much, but the book did make me feel one emotion very strongly - I absolutely despised Shiraha. With every insult he spewed out of his filthy mouth I just wanted to set him on fire and see his skinny, dirty form writhe in pain. He definitely takes a gold for being the most infuriating, hypocritical character ever created! It's astonishing really, how in so little pages a character managed to be so horrid.

This book does a phenomenal job painting the even day horrors of society - it is truly terrifying just how messed up we are.

So, who is Keiko? Is she really broken and needs fixing, like her parents told her all of her life? Or is she the only one who sees things clear? Is she a waste of space or is she a workaholic who lives, breathes and eats her job? You will have to read to find out!

Convenience Store Woman would be perfect for book clubs, school discussions and just any social event involving books. Because this short gem of a novel contains many lessons that need to be heard.

Many thanks to Grove Atlantic, Sayaka Murata, and Netgalley for the copy. All opinions are my own, honest and come from the heart. Convenience Store Woman will be published on June 22, 2018.

The only thing I liked about this book was its cover. The story is about a convenience store worker. The plot is flat, the characters are dull and uninteresting. The point of the story is what? The woman is happy being a convenience store worker. Good for her. There is nothing redeeming about this book.

An odd little book with quite eccentric characters
Keiko is the quirky protagonist and she decides that working in a convenience store is both satisfying and provides her with a sense of belonging. She feels very "connected" to the store and its routines and mundane tasks. She doesn't mind this, she thrives and enjoys her job and is a hard worker.

Her family constantly worries that she is "not normal." Society has certain "expectations" and she has chosen not to comply. There is a deeper message about life and the assumptions that all successful people are expected to follow, but Keiko isn't listening!

This is a quiet story about acceptance and judgement. I enjoyed spending time with Keiko!

3 ½ stars

Convenience Store Woman was an odd book. Not a bad book, but definitely odd. Set in Tokyo and translated from Japanese, it features a women in her mid 30s who has been working in a convenience store for her whole adult life. Through her eyes, we understand that she is not meeting social expectations by not being married and by not having a higher status job. But it is also evident that her sense of who she is and who she wants to be does not beat to the drum of social expectations. Things are just fine for her working in the convenience store until she decides to try to conform to social norms… This book is very short, clever in the way it’s told, somewhat humorous and mildly depressing. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me access to an advance copy.