First published 2018
Keiko Furukura has always been an outsider, so when she finds solace in the rigid routines of her convenience store job, her family is relieved. But eighteen years later, at 36, Keiko is still clocking in, still mimicking her coworkers' behavior. Her comfortable stasis is upended by the arrival of a bitter young man who, like Keiko, is alienated from society's expectations. As their tenuous friendship develops, Keiko must confront whether her life in the store is truly her own, or if she's been sleepwalking through it to avoid the challenges of the "real world."
Genres: fiction, literary-fiction, contemporary, japanese-literature
Vibes: atmospheric, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, found-family
Setting: Japan
163 pages · Hardcover · Grove Press