the premise of 'a story about a woman who spends all her time in a department store. not working there. just being there' immediately drew me in. and mieko kawakami didn't disappoint, since she seems incapable of writing something i dislike. anyway, even in such a short story kawakami manages to do some excellent commentary on issues that she's addressed in her other work too. she talks about things such as womanhood, beauty standards, misogyny, mental health issues, family issues, etc. i absolutely loved the atmosphere and mieko kawakami's writing style was amazing as always. so good ♡