This could be seen as depressing, and Keiko’s friends and relations assume she must be miserable to be ‘stuck in a job’ like this, as well as by being permanently single. I have become a functioning part of the world, rotating in the time of day called morning. I am one of those cogs, going round and round. It is the start of another day, the time when the world wakes up and the cogs of society begin to move. But how will she react when things begin to change around her? Keiko likes the comforting routines, the anticipating of customer’s needs, and the rules of behaviour as set out by the company manual.

At first, her family viewed this as a positive step, as there was always something a little ‘off’ about her, but now time has gone by without her moving on to anything else and eyebrows are being raised. Sayaka Murata’s Convenience Store Woman is the story of Keiko, who has worked at a convenience store since she was a student. Tolerated for students or as a part-time job for housewives or those with a side gig, but not a suitable long-term career. The staff are behind plastic sheets, but are truly unsung heroes, because, as in the UK and other places, working in a konbini is still seen as a sign of not doing well. Through the pandemic, the stores have continued as normally as possible, the shelves are stocked, the mask section perhaps a little bigger than before. In Tohoku, they were often the first places to reopen after the quake, so they kept many volunteers fed and warm. You can buy all the essentials and run your whole life from a konbini and you are pretty much never more than half a block from one (in Tokyo, at any rate). On the night after the 2011 earthquake, one provided shelter while I waited for a friend, later when moving apartments I shipped a suitcase via one to my new place. Whether it was buying pork buns ( nikuman) before a night out, or Pocari Sweat to ease the head the next day, using the scanner or photocopier, the ATMs, buying tickets, or sampling ALL THE SNACKS, they were a daily indulgence. Like many new arrivals, I quickly came to love the country’s network of ‘konbini’ as they are nicknamed.

I want to start this Convenience Store Woman review with some memories of Japan’s convenience stores.

Convenience store woman review