- Hardcover: 320 pages
- Publisher: Saint Martin's Press Inc.; 1st U.s. Ed edition (2 Mar 2009)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0312382944
- ISBN-13: 978-0312382940
- Product Dimensions: 21.6 x 15.2 x 2.9 cm
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,980,774 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Description
Product Description
"Supermarket" is a novel of the human drama surrounding the management of a supermarket chain at a time when the phenomenon of the supermarket, imported post-war from the US, was just taking hold in Japan. When Kojima, an elite banker resigns from his job to help a cousin manage Ishiei, a supermarket in one of Japan's provincial cities, a host of problems ensue. Store employees are stealing products, the books are in disarray, and the workers seem stuck in old ways of thinking. As Kojima begins to give all his time over to the relentless task of reforming the store's management, a chance encounter with a woman from his childhood causes him to ask the age-old question: is the all encompassing pursuit of business success really worth it? Sincere and naive in tone, "Supermarket" takes us back to a simpler, kinder time, and skilfully presents the depictions of its characters alongside a wealth of information concerning Japanese post WWII recovery and industrialization.
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1 review
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Is your produce fresh?
10 Aug 2009
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
A novel about the grocery business in the Japan of forty years ago? Yes, that's the premise of this strangely enjoyable book.
The surface story has shenanigans taking place in the fresh foods and clothing departments of one of Japan's new venture into 'supermarkets'. Our protagonist, Kojima, has taken the leap from banking to an industry he knows nothing about.
We follow him and his fellow employees through several years as they try to turn a profit from this new type of store that they copied from America.
Writing in a spare style, we learn only what we need to know to advance the story. I got the sense that the author and translator worked together to put this into English; and it resulted in a well written story.
'Supermarket' is a relaxing low key look at a section of Japanese life catching up with the west after the 1940's. Some of the underlying story is about moral and ethical issues that add depth to the book.
This is definitely a book with a unique plot. I enjoyed it.
The surface story has shenanigans taking place in the fresh foods and clothing departments of one of Japan's new venture into 'supermarkets'. Our protagonist, Kojima, has taken the leap from banking to an industry he knows nothing about.
We follow him and his fellow employees through several years as they try to turn a profit from this new type of store that they copied from America.
Writing in a spare style, we learn only what we need to know to advance the story. I got the sense that the author and translator worked together to put this into English; and it resulted in a well written story.
'Supermarket' is a relaxing low key look at a section of Japanese life catching up with the west after the 1940's. Some of the underlying story is about moral and ethical issues that add depth to the book.
This is definitely a book with a unique plot. I enjoyed it.
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