a modern take on an epistolary novel, rental person who does nothing is a complete delight. it a real treat of a book. thank you netgalley

I was not familiar with Rental Person before reading this book. I just thought the concept sounded interesting, and it was! I loved reading about all the different reasons that people would hire Rental Person and Rental Person's perspective on the whole concept. I enjoyed the existential musings about work and a person's value. I agree with a lot of Rental Person's viewpoints and found them to be quite forward-thinking. The book was easy to read, entertaining, and valuable for critical thinking about our capitalist societies.

A unique memoir and one of the few Japanese NF books I've read. I liked it, but didn't love it; while the concept is interesting, it began to feel a little repetitive to me by the end.

An eye-opening, witty reflection on 21st-century loneliness which examines human connection (or lack thereof) in Japan. Written in an anecdotal, slice-of-life style, the author recounts his experiences working as a rental person who is hired by strangers for accompaniment. His clients' reasons for hiring a rental person vary widely, but his unique career highlights the impact of loneliness in modern-day Japan.

What an interesting concept. I liked the way this book was written with tweets, emails (pm’s) and then the authors thoughts.

I found this book to be fascinating and I’m so happy I spent the time reading it.

Rental Person Who Does Nothing is a memoir of exactly that: a rental person who does nothing. Do you need a person to accompany you to an event but can’t ask anyone in your personal life? Do you want some company while you quietly work at home? Do you want to try a new restaurant but don’t want to go alone? That’s what Rental Person is for.

I was unaware of Shoji Morimoto before reading this book, despite his prolific online presence. I was intrigued by the title alone, which is why I decided to pick it up, and I’m so happy I did. This was one of the most unique and thought-provoking books I’ve read in quite some time.

Morimoto recounts many of his experiences as a rental person, but he also provides commentary on the idea of a society that finds value in a rental person and also the value that someone can provide who simply does nothing. In fact, my favorite part of the book was the commentary he provides about the value a person has regardless of their job and the value they provide just for existing as a person, even if they do nothing.

He states that his dream was to do nothing, and he hated working for his company simply because he needed money when he didn’t like anything he was doing at work. So he started his rental person business. I say “business” but it’s important to note that Rental Person does not charge for his services, only for transportation and any applicable food. But his time comes free. He discusses in detail why he decided to operate this way, and I found it all to be extremely fascinating.

I would definitely recommend this book. The concept alone is worth reading about, but hearing specifically about Morimoto’s experiences and thought processes makes for an incredible experience.

Sorry this book did not grab my attention and seemed silly. I stopped reading so I don't want to give a full review. To each his own; it was not for me. I wish the author and publisher the best.

“Normally when people talk about a "dream”… they're referring to something to be achieved in the future. So being asked about dreams can be depressing for people, forcing them to think about the future. My dream of doing nothing is already a reality, so in fact, it is a dream of keeping things as they are. Why shouldn't a dream focus on the here and now? Why is there an assumption that it must be about the future?”

Rental Person is living MY dream. The concept of ‘payment for being’ piqued my interest and made me want to read this book. Another highlight was the different requests from clients. However, it got a bit repetitive towards the end and lost focus. Thanks NetGalley for the ARC!

Really enjoyed this! At first I was hoping for more detail when it came to each encounter, but the simplicity is what made it so beautiful. Sweet story about *everyone* finding their way and where they're meant to be.

I really enjoyed my time with this book. It was something I took little by little almost like a daily devotional in humanity and celebrating the little mundanities of life. At times, I didn't understand Morimoto's logic to accepting certain cases, but by the end of each story I found myself either deeply emphasizing with the subject of the story, with Morimoto's thoughts about the interactions or a new perspective.

What a weird little book. Really, it's a weird premise; it's about nothing and doing nothing for a job. There's probably some deeper meaning that I missed- but it was okay. I loved that he thought up a job and somewhat succeeded at it. But there was no overarching plot beyond a day in the life.

3.5. This is a quick and quirky read with a surprising amount of sweetness (despite Shoji Morimoto's insistence that he is not a "good person"). I enjoyed Morimoto's musings--though it felt very much like a book about nothing a la Seinfeld--and found myself reflecting on the often transactional nature of relationships.

This was such a good book! I didn’t know much about it going in to it so I didn’t really know what to expect. On the surface, it was a fun book about an interesting endeavor. But more than that, it is a sweet reminder that our value does not come from what we can offer society. We are valuable just because we exist. I am thankful to the author for sharing his experience and a bit of his life with us.

I gave this book 4.5 stars, as towards the end it felt like there was a lack of wrapping things up. I know that is addressed in the “instead of an afterward” section, but as a reader who enjoys a nice tidy ending, it made it a bit difficult to feel satisfied when finishing the book.

All together though, the book was amazing.

Thanks for “doing nothing!”

Review will be posted by 1/17/24 on TikTok, Instagram, and StoryGraph.

This was a lovely and refreshing take on today's gig economy, but not in a way you expect. At first, I didn't realize this was a memoir. Shoji Morimoto tells of his experiences, with inserts from his social media mixed in, with clients in a way that depicts something amazing: human connection. He calls his business a Do-Nothing rental agency, but the ability to have human companionship with no string attached and still feel a sense of connection should not be taken for granted. I could tell, even just as a reader, that these small actions taken by one person helped so many people just by placing himself nearby, either physically or digitally. What a wonderful thing to see.

I really liked this book, and I appreciate that it was short. Shoji Morimoto emphasized at the beginning of each chapter the type of person he is, which is important to note because not everyone can be a Rental Person. According to Shoji, it takes someone who is average, doesn't want to stand out in the crowd, but is also unintimidating, and puts others at ease. As I powered through each chapter, I wondered if I could be a Rental Person, but as Shoji makes it clear, it is for those who need the support of their partner and are willing to only live off their savings and accept travel expenses. I found this book to be an interesting experiment in the study of human relationships, behavior, fear, etc. and Japan is the perfect test lab because over the years many things have been said about Japan that makes them an odd, yet fitting character for this experiment. For example, Japan's high suicide rate, but low domestic assault events (School shootings, stabbings, mass murder). The high percentage of single people who don't want to get married and/or have kids, but a dedicated workforce. Living in a bustling city, yet feeling so isolated; Japan is a wonderful mix of pros and cons that really demonstrate the myriad of layers that is the human experience. Placing Shoji amidst all of this as a seen, but unseen bystander allows the reader to feel like they are watching an episode unfold.

I really enjoyed this book and I hope that you will too.

This book, about a man who has left traditional employment and made himself "available for any situation in which all you want is a person to be there," is both strange and strangely compelling. He is a hamster who's abandoned the wheel, a Bartleby who unequivocally prefers not to, a man who doesn't fit well into the modern culture of success obsession and so has created an alternate model.

As we read this memoir, which the author acknowledges that he didn't even write, we may find ourselves asking, "Is this lifestyle sustainable?" But even as the question forms in our minds, we know that we're somehow missing the point. This short jaunt through Rental Person's day-to-day forces us to reevaluate our ideas of success, value, and usefulness. Like Morimoto himself, we must consider "the gap that exists between the value that [we] sense in people and the value assigned to them by society." The fact is, the business of doing nothing is working well enough for the author for now—and from the scant biographical information we get in this oddly-produced memoir—we're reminded that "for now" is really all we've got.

Rental Person Who Does Nothing, a book that is quick to read but long to think, is a title that I will widely recommend.

I really enjoyed this look into Shoji Morimoto's service as a Rental Person Who Does Nothing. I think the premise of the service is well-meaning and his explanations for why he does and doesn't do certain things were well thought out and explained. There were times where the book felt a bit repetitive but I think Morimoto's insights were enlightening and the stories he shares were wonderful. Definitely made me wonder how such a service might work or if it would work in the United States.

Reading the concept of this book felt like an interesting premise. It is about a man who quits his job and decides to rent himself out for do nothing tasks like accompanying someone to a park. I think it fell a little flat though in the way it sometimes felt like it was repeating itself and the guy who rents himself out even made the comment he didn’t really do anything for the writing except answer a few questions by the actual author. Some of the reasons people rented him were interesting but overall I thought the premise was better than the actual book.

Assuming this was a novel because of its unusual premise, I was startled to realize that it's actually a memoir based on the author's experience, in collaboration with his editors. Seeming unmoored and unnecessary at his former job, Morimoto decided to volunteer for people to "rent" him to serve them as requested for short term tasks. Sometimes purely logistical, but sometimes emotional or social, his encounters and the nature of the requests make for interesting reading, both for their impact on the author and also for what they indicate about the clients. There is an interesting dichotomy between the somewhat anonymous urban setting populated by lost souls and the sense of the author as a generous member of the community at large.

Translated from Japanese, this memoir tells the author's story of being hired by clients to do nothing. While holding a series of jobs he really disliked, the author realizes he enjoys doing nothing and offers to do nothing for others. But is is really nothing? Going with a women who is filing her divorce papers is kindness. Having an ice cream soda with a businessman reduces loneliness. An odd story but one that is also charming.