Thank you for the opportunity to read this book early! I really enjoyed these stories and found myself laughing out loud at times. It was nice to get lost in this collection while in trying times.

An eclectic collection about women in Japan just trying to get by despite certain expectations to conform to stereotypical traditional values of Japanese culture.

The Dilemmas of Working Women showcases a brilliant balance of both the heaviness and levity of life.

while this book isn’t “new” persay, thank you so much to netgalley, harpervia and fumio yamamoto for this english translation ARC.

what a treat. i thoroughly enjoyed the ride that this book was, the mess and the honestly. it’s impressive that a book written over 20 years ago can still be so relevant today.

i think i am learning my favorite book genre and its whatever this is serving- reality, some feminine bite and a slice of a real imperfect life.

*The Dilemmas of Working Women* by Fumio Yamamoto is an eye-opening look at the challenges women face in the workplace. The book dives into everything from balancing career and personal life to dealing with societal expectations, and it's super relevant to today’s world. Yamamoto does a great job of mixing research and real-life examples, making the issues feel personal and relatable. Some parts felt a bit heavy on the statistics, but the overall message is powerful and thought-provoking. If you're interested in gender issues or just want a deeper understanding of the struggles working women face, this book is definitely worth reading!

Fumio Yamamoto’s The Dilemmas of Working Women, translated by Brian Bergstrom, offers a unique snapshot into the lives of modern Japanese women navigating their careers, relationships, and identities. It’s such a gift to read translated works like this one, as it provides a raw glimpse into the culture of being a woman in a country I have never been to and thus might never have grasped so intimately otherwise.

Each story treats the reader as though the narrator is confiding in their closest friend, or jotting down their innermost thoughts in a diary. It’s personal yet friendly, making it easier to connect with the characters even when the cultural experiences are unfamiliar. The narrative tone balances melancholia and humor in the same way the protagonists balance their most raw musings with how others perceive their lives.

My favorite story was Naked — it introduces you to the collective with a story you aren’t expecting based on the title alone, and it made me feel more open to the rest of the stories. Naked portrayed the deconstruction of an ambitious woman, and dared me to think what my life would be like if I simply had more time — time to enjoy, time to spend, time to waste — then tossed it on its head, de-glorifying the notion.

The Dilemmas of Working Women is about how women are treated in Japanese society — by men who seek to dominate them, by their peers, and by themselves. The stories aren’t plot-driven but rather introspective, deeply personal yet universally relatable. While I overall enjoyed Yamamoto’s storytelling, some of the stories felt repetitive, dragging on a bit when the narrative could have kept pushing forward. I also felt like I was left hanging at times, though unfortunately, the nature of short stories is it can be easy to finish them and feel as though you wanted so much more. None of this ruined my reading experience so much that I didn’t want to finish the book, nor did it take away from my overall appreciation.

For that, I give this collection three stars. It’s a read that's insightful, thought-provoking, and it'll linger in your mind long after you’ve put it down. If you enjoy character-driven, reflective storytelling, then The Dilemmas of Working Women is worth picking up.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperVia for providing an advanced reading copy. All opinions expressed are my own.

This work of fiction showcases the ongoing issues of working women in Japan face as they navigate life employed/unemployed.

These short stories highlight the inner turmoil of “demanding” women deal with it in and out of the workforce and how men focused society still is. When reading about each woman, one can see how the male characters behavior towards the woman changes based on their employment status.

I found I had a hard time getting into this book but once I got 30% in I really became connected to the characters. The short stories helped keep me engaged.

Thank you to NetGalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

My favorite story out of the collection was ‘Here, Which Is Nowhere’ this is a story of an older working woman who has been forced to take a late night job to help with the finances in her home. She goes on being unappreciated and taken advantage of in her home by her husband and her children.

I may have related to this the most because it’s a situation I’ve seen many women end up in. All of the stories have some element in a woman’s life that is universally relatable.

Some cultural context is needed when reading these stories and I think the translation work is ok but it does come across quite melancholic. This is a book that really emphasizes the struggles and pressure of being a working woman, burnout, societal expectations and self expectations too.

I overall enjoyed reading this book and would recommend if you’re looking to relate to other people in tough work/ post work related situations.

PS I LOVE THIS COVER

A poignant and darkly comedic look at the lives of women trying to navigate the working world in Japan.

I liked 3/5 stories, or maybe understood is a better word. The last two struck me as a little odd in comparison to the rest of them. I enjoyed all of the stories though, in one way or another.

DNF

I wasn´t able to finish this book. I didn´t enjoy it half as much as I expected. It is not a bad book, but it wasn´t the right book for someone like myself. Perhaps I could enjoy it in a different moment of my life.

While all the women in Yamamoto’s five stories find themselves in different life situations, the thing that unites them all is their dilemma: living up to expectations. No matter what her age, ethnicity, or station in life, I can’t think of a woman who wouldn’t relate to the crushing weight of expectations, whether those come from friends, family, spouses, co-workers, or, perhaps most hard to face, herself. And while I am not a working woman in Japan, I found ways to relate to all the women in these stories as they react to and retreat from their society’s expectations.

I found the narrative structure of each story very interesting. Although some readers might be frustrated by a seeming lack of resolution at the end of each story, I was not bothered by the somewhat abrupt endings. Instead of a solution to her problem, each narrator finds a moment of catharsis (some admittedly more subtle than others). This seems fitting as their lives confront societal pressures; society does not change, but they can. Some, it seems, will make a change. Others’ futures are unclear. Some even seem to dig their heels in further, creating a more static character than some readers might enjoy. But overall, I found it both believable and entertaining. The choice to make the narrator of the final story a man was intriguing, but for me, it didn’t add a lot to my reading experience. His character was not nearly as interesting as the female protagonist, and I found myself simply wanting to hear what was going on in her head instead of his.

Five stories, each focusing on different aspects of being a woman in today’s society. While sometimes, with translations, the wordings or characters can fall a little flat, I found it added to the mundanity and ridiculousness of some of the situations the main characters found themselves in. For some reason, I wished there was a connecting throughline within the stories, but did also like how each story focused on each woman, just for a little bit.

Overall, even though it’s a slice of life book, it didn’t feel slow and I enjoyed it. Thank you to NetGalley, HarperVia, and Yamamoto for the opportunity to read this ARC.

I really wanted to enjoy this, but it ultimately fell short. While the premises of each story held promise, the author struggled to effectively emphasize their core message, leaving the themes and intended impact feeling lost.

Unfortunately I was unable to really get into this story to give it a full review. I found it often dull and depressing. This story was not for me.

The Dilemmas of Working Women is a collection of 5 stories about Japanese women (& men) living their lives, working their jobs, and facing their internal and external worlds. It was first published in Japanese in 2000 and has now been translated to English, but these stories felt as relevant as ever to me.
The stories explore the mundanity of adult life and the lost feelings one can have when things aren't quite going well. Planarian and Here, Which is Nowhere were my favorite stories. The former is about a woman struggling to want to work after surviving breast cancer, still feeling the health and mental effects of that endeavor, while her family doesn't understand why she isn't acting like she's better yet. The latter is about a mother whose children are outright avoiding her and who has taken up night shifts at a local store to help keep their family afloat financially.
These stories capture a very real feeling of the arbitrary callousness and everyday pains of living in our modern society that one becomes exposed to once entering the working world.
There is a line in the back of the book where some commentary is offered that perfectly explains the enchantment these stories have. This writing "beguiles us into total sympathy with her characters even as she allows us to view them critically as well." The characters may do things you would never do, but you feel like you understand how they go there and why they made that choice.
A genuinely lovely reading experience, one that I was so grateful to have had. I recommend this book to any working adult.
Thanks to HarperVia and NetGalley for the e-ARC of this wonderful book!

I'm not usually a fan of short stories, but this collection was cozy and relatable in ways that I didn't expect. My favorite aspect of the stories are that the characters are so painfully beautifully HUMAN. Readers feel intimately connected because we are living alongside them in the mundanity of daily life. Each one was completely different in plot, yet the writing style and tone are so consistent that each chapter feels cohesive and thematic. I appreciated that the length was not too short and not too long - each one made for a perfect bedtime story!

While this book might not be for every reader, it is for the reader who enjoys slice of life writing. I also think one has to have an understanding or an interest in Japanese culture to fully appreciate how Yamamato writes these women, and gives us a peak into their lives. It's also exciting that this book is being published in English for the first time. It says a lot about our cultural differences, as this was a bestseller in Japan-- how women have a different experience in the west, than they do in the east.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️☆ (4/5) – The Dilemmas of Working Women by Fumio Yamamoto is a sharp and thought-provoking collection of stories exploring the realities of working women in Japan. With wit and insight, Yamamoto captures the challenges of career, relationships, and societal expectations in a way that feels both deeply personal and widely relatable. A must-read for fans of contemporary feminist fiction.

The Dilemmas of Working Women by Fumio Yamamoto is a striking, introspective collection that captures the complexities of womanhood, work, and societal expectations in Japan. Each story presents a different facet of the working woman's experience—ambition, burnout, caregiving, loneliness—rendered with quiet poignancy and sharp observation.

Yamamoto’s writing shines in its ability to balance humor and melancholy, portraying characters who wrestle with rigid workplace hierarchies, gendered expectations, and the weight of invisible labor. From the woman who secretly dreams of abandoning corporate life to make stuffed animals, to another who, recovering from illness, yearns for the effortless regeneration of a planarian, these stories explore the contradictions of modern life with both wit and depth.

What makes this collection stand out is how deeply personal yet universally relatable it feels. While these women navigate uniquely Japanese workplace customs and social norms, their internal conflicts—about self-worth, success, and personal agency—resonate far beyond cultural boundaries. The prose, beautifully translated, retains the nuance and emotional weight of the original, making for a read that is both thought-provoking and deeply affecting.

Originally a bestseller in Japan, The Dilemmas of Working Women remains just as relevant today, offering a refreshingly feminist perspective in a society often defined by its patriarchal structures. These stories don’t offer easy resolutions, but they do provide something more valuable: a space for reflection, recognition, and perhaps even a bit of rebellion.

A collection of distinct, memorable stories stories that give readers a vivid glimpse into the lives of four women (and a fifth, indirectly via a male character's perspective - at first I didn't like this choice, but now I think it was an interesting way to close the collection). My favorite was Here, Which is Nowhere, followed by Planarian, but I enjoyed all of them; the common themes are ambivalence, identity, and what it means to make a living.

I recently read a series of articles on translation in The Drift, and I really enjoyed the translation "style" of these stories - the language was subtly but definitively strange, and didn't feel overly flattened for English-language readers. Lastly, we all judge a book by its cover, and this cover is perfect! Looking forward to carrying this at the store.