A review by annaptobias
The Nakano Thrift Shop by Hiromi Kawakami

2.0

I don't know why I'm having such a difficult time reading this. I used to devour Japanese contemporary novels like they were going out of style. Maybe I've outgrown it? The story follows the lives of four employees of a thrift shop: Mr. Nakano, the shop owner; his sister Masayo, and the two employees Takeo and Hitomi. Everyone is, uh, quirky--except for Hitomi, who is so utterly bland. I hesitate to call her a character since she barely has any. All that I can surmise about her so far is that she had a relationship a short time before starting the job, and she's interested in starting a relationship with her co-worker, who's not entirely excited to return her feelings.