I really can’t decide if this book is quirky or just a bit weird or both - but I really enjoyed it!
It’s set in Japan and is about a girl who doesn’t follow the society’s norm - she’s 36 and has been working part time in a convenience store for 18 years. She has never moved on to a more “appropriate job”, never got married, never “had a life”
But she’s happy. And she’s good at her job. And she feels part of the “convenience store machine” and is okay with that.
The voice of the book is funny, a little dark and memorable. There’s an interesting section where one character compares today’s societal pressures to that from the stone ages and makes a pretty good argument for it having not changed one but. Women are good if they marry and have children. Men are good if they go out and “hunt” I.e. make the money to put food on the table. It is this train of thought that makes Keiko think for a while that she needs to quit her job and get married, but then in a refreshing twist of events she realises that her place in the convenience store, whilst it does not fit the societal norm, is where she is happy. And I think that’s such an important take away from the book!
Not necessarily a book I’ll read again but I really enjoyed it and would recommend it to others! Refreshing, quirky and fun!
TW: mention of stalking/harassment of females but never scenes shown(or written)