I cannot stand Honorary Incel Shiraha and his half-baked ramblings about society, but in the end I had to admit that he and Keiko are some of the best examples of people left behind by capitalism and conformity. 

This book was hilarious, dark, and all too real. It’s a very concise yet entertaining and relatable critique of capitalism and a glaring lack of community support for everyone, including men of course (still hate Shiraha ofc but he did make a fair point about conservative views of men as providers and uh. studs). Keiko’s alienation from her peers and the rest of the world outside of Smile Mart was a natural consequence of the culture she was born into. While it’s not explicitly stated, the book very adeptly illustrates how little support and understanding neurodivergent people receive at large. It’s extremely heartbreaking, despite the subtlety of the text. Without empathy, a proper support system, a generous community, and a forgiving economy, how can we expect to strive for personal freedom and fulfillment? So it wasn’t a surprise to see the book end the way it did.

The horror and disappointment you feel at the end is somewhat distant, displaced somehow by a bit of relief for Keiko, who is able to find so much comfort and stability in her work… even if she is a dispensable cog. Even if at that point, the dehumanization has fully set in. 

I’m normally not overly interested in contemporary Japanese fiction like this, because there is a pervasive emptiness that’s specific to Tokyo (and to some extent other first world countries) that I’d rather avoid like the plague (mostly because that produces the most annoying people—individualism and nihilism borne out of capitalism is the UGLIEST poison), but I found myself really enjoying it. I highly recommend reading Convenience Store Woman with some shoegaze or in public transpo at night to amplify that sense of alienation (and, simultaneously, to feel understood by the author and Keiko)

Keiko ily ily fr.