Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata
Ginny Tapley Takemori – translator
Nancy Wu – Narrator
Listening Length: 3 hours and 21 minutes
Program Type: Audiobook
Version: Unabridged
Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.
Audible.com Release Date: June 12, 2018
Thoughts
I first saw this book when Kathy posted her thoughts on it. It sounded different than anything I’ve ever read and she enjoyed it so I thought I’d give it a try.
I loved Keiko. She grew up knowing she was different than other people and felt like she didn’t fit in, even at a young age. When she graduated high school she started working at a convenience store and finally found her place in the world. The routine, order, & sounds of the store made her feel comfortable and capable. She was the perfect convenience store worker.
The characters are fun to get to know, especially Shiraha, the man she meets at the store who is more of an outcast than she ever thought she was. He has a low opinion of just about everyone, especially women . But Keiko and Shiraha start a relationship of sorts, and that was when her family finally eased up on worrying about her. After all, she was almost 40 yrs. old and had never had a boyfriend. Things were not quite what they thought though.
It was fun learning that cashiers in Japan talk differently to their customers than cashiers in the U.S. One of the things they say is “Your receipt, sir. Thank you for your custom!”. I also liked learning that they greet customers by saying “Irasshaimase”, which means “welcome” or “come in”.
This is a really short read (or in my case, listen) and I definitely enjoyed it. It’s a great choice if you’re in the mood for something different or a quick read.
Counts toward the following challenge:
Audiobook
This does sound good. Your review makes me want to check it out.
It is good Yvonne. I got the audiobook from the Cloud Library app.
I’m glad you enjoyed this one too. It was a very different read for me.
I’m glad you shared your thoughts. I probably would never have heard of it if you hadn’t.
Oh, this sounds delightful! I just put it on my library hold list. 🙂
I hope you enjoy it JoAnn!
I’m going to try to find this at the library. Any book set in modern day Japan is interesting to me.
I got the audiobook from the Cloud Library app.
I’m not sure this would have pulled me in just from the blurb though I do love the cover. I like the sound of this one – especially about the differences between the Japanese and US cashiers. It never would have occurred to me that there was a difference.
So happy to read your positive reaction to this one Vicki – the audio was outstanding.
I agree, I’m so glad I decided to listen to it, made the characters come to life for me.