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Quick answer: If you loved Convenience Store Woman, try Earthlings, Life Ceremony, There's No Such Thing as an Easy Job, Breasts and Eggs, Heaven and The Memory Police. Each one offers an unusual narrator, a quiet rebellion against social pressure or a strange Japanese novel you will not forget.
Sayaka Murata's short, strange novel follows Keiko Furukura, a 36-year-old who has worked at a Tokyo convenience store for eighteen years. She loves the rules of the store, while friends and family keep pressing her to marry or find a career. Readers love its dry humor and its strange heroine. Translated by Ginny Tapley Takemori, it won Japan's Akutagawa Prize. These books share its social satire and its outsiders.
Table of Contents
Quick Picks at a Glance
| Book | Author | Theme | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Earthlings | Sayaka Murata | Outsiders | readers who want much darker Murata |
| Life Ceremony | Sayaka Murata | Short stories | readers who want strange stories |
| There's No Such Thing as an Easy Job | Kikuko Tsumura | Work | readers who love Japanese work comedies |
| Breasts and Eggs | Mieko Kawakami | Womanhood | readers who want a big Japanese novel |
| Heaven | Mieko Kawakami | Bullying | readers who like a dark outsider story |
| The Memory Police | Yoko Ogawa | Quiet dystopia | readers who like eerie stories |
| Kitchen | Banana Yoshimoto | Grief | readers who like quiet Japanese fiction |
| The Housekeeper and the Professor | Yoko Ogawa | Quiet connection | readers who like gentle novels |
| Before the Coffee Gets Cold | Toshikazu Kawaguchi | Comfort | readers who want cozy Japanese fiction |
| Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 | Cho Nam-Joo | Women's lives | readers who want the Korean counterpart |
| The Vegetarian | Han Kang | Rebellion | readers who like strange rebellion |
| Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine | Gail Honeyman | Outsiders | readers who love an awkward heroine |
| My Year of Rest and Relaxation | Ottessa Moshfegh | Rebellion | readers who like dark comedy |
| The Stranger | Albert Camus | Outsiders | readers who want the classic |
| Severance | Ling Ma | Work | readers who like office satire |
1. Earthlings by Sayaka Murata
A girl who believes she is an alien grows up and rebels against society.
Best for: readers who want much darker Murata.
2. Life Ceremony by Sayaka Murata
Murata's stories turn social norms upside down.
Best for: readers who want strange stories.
3. There's No Such Thing as an Easy Job by Kikuko Tsumura
A burned-out woman goes through a series of odd jobs.
Best for: readers who love Japanese work comedies.
4. Breasts and Eggs by Mieko Kawakami
Three women in Japan confront their bodies and ideas about family.
Best for: readers who want a big Japanese novel.
5. Heaven by Mieko Kawakami
Two bullied students form a fragile friendship.
Best for: readers who like a dark outsider story.
6. The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa
On an island, things vanish and people forget them.
Best for: readers who like eerie stories.
7. Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto
A young Japanese woman finds comfort in kitchens after a death.
Best for: readers who like quiet Japanese fiction.
8. The Housekeeper and the Professor by Yoko Ogawa
A housekeeper cares for a mathematician with an eighty-minute memory.
Best for: readers who like gentle novels.
9. Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi
A Tokyo cafe lets customers travel back in time for one cup of coffee.
Best for: readers who want cozy Japanese fiction.
10. Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 by Cho Nam-Joo
An ordinary Korean woman's life shows the sexism around her.
Best for: readers who want the Korean counterpart.
11. The Vegetarian by Han Kang
A Korean woman's decision to stop eating meat upends her family.
Best for: readers who like strange rebellion.
12. Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman
A lonely office worker slowly learns to connect with others.
Best for: readers who love an awkward heroine.
13. My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh
A young New Yorker tries to sleep for a whole year.
Best for: readers who like dark comedy.
14. The Stranger by Albert Camus
A detached man commits a crime and is judged by society.
Best for: readers who want the classic.
15. Severance by Ling Ma
A woman keeps working through a pandemic that turns people into zombies.
Best for: readers who like office satire.
How to Choose
Go straight to Earthlings for more Murata, but note that it is far darker and more disturbing, with content that upsets many readers. If it was the dry office humor that you liked, There's No Such Thing as an Easy Job is the closest match, and Severance offers a sharper satire. For social pressure on women in East Asia, Breasts and Eggs and Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 are both important. If you want a similarly gentle Japanese read, The Housekeeper and the Professor and Before the Coffee Gets Cold are warm and comforting. And for a different kind of outsider, The Stranger is a short classic that many readers think of when they finish Keiko's story.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is Convenience Store Woman about?
A woman who has spent eighteen years working at a convenience store resists pressure to live a more normal life.
Did Convenience Store Woman win an award?
Yes. It won the Akutagawa Prize, one of Japan's top literary awards, in 2016.
Who translated Convenience Store Woman?
Ginny Tapley Takemori translated it into English.
How long is Convenience Store Woman?
It is short, at around 160 pages.
Did the author work in a convenience store?
Yes. Murata worked part-time in one for many years.