The Bookshop Woman by Nanako Hanada - A Memoir that Serves as a Love Letter to Books.
Blog of a Bookseller
Despite most of my substack referencing fiction at the moment, I am also a big fan of Non-Fiction - the problem is that I am incredibly picky about the sort of non-fiction I read.
I like memoirs, but I want specific memoirs that tell the real experiences of ordinary people, such as Nanako Hanada, a bookseller from Japan who initially worked for a chain bookshop.
I immediately claimed that when Hachette provided the shop with two proof copies of Hanada's unexpectedly uplifting memoir, the book was released in Japan a few years ago and was only recently translated into English. It was a cult best-seller in Japan, giving Hanada enough royalties to open her independent Bookshop, Kani Books in Tokyo. It was adapted into a TV drama.
Recently separated from her husband, Nanako realises how lonely her life has become and takes a plunge by signing up for a meet-up site where people meet for 30-minute bursts to find romance, build a network, or share ideas, describing herself as a sexy bookseller who, after your 30-minute conversation, will give you a personalised book recommendation.
'Hello, I'm the manager of a very unusual bookshop. I have access to a huge database of over two thousand books; I'll recommend one that's perfect for you.' - Nanako’s Meet-Up Bio
It's bold of her, completely out of her comfort zone, but it's exactly what she needs. Throughout the next twelve months, Nanako met an eclectic range of people through this site; some wanted more than a simple book recommendation, but others with whom she formed close friendships.
Reading this memoir as an introvert who finds the idea of meeting with total strangers was an intriguing experience, especially as to make the profile on the site Nanako used, you had to connect it to your social media profiles (e.g., Facebook, Instagram, ETC), but I found myself enthralled with it very quickly. While I don't know if I could have had the courage that Nanako had to take the plunge, I have the utmost respect and support for her for doing something outside her comfort zone.
One of the fun things about this memoir is that throughout it are scattered small illustrations - some are portraits of the people she meets, others are bookish images. As a compulsory book annotator, a habit from my university days I've never been able to part with, I found it fun to include these illustrations in my notes, drawing arrows and writing about the particular image's significance to the current chapter or passage of the book.
The first two people Nanako meets are men - men who are trying to pursue a relationship with her, making her profoundly uncomfortable and lose her faith in carrying on with her social experiment, fearing all she will encounter are men who are trying to seduce her or be their mistress. Still, eventually, she starts connecting with people who don't have ulterior motives behind their actions.
The charm of Nanako's book is her subtle, sharp humour, which echoes off the page and into the reader's mind, making it hard to read without smiling and chuckling. I took my proof copy to a silent book club (an event at the shop where people put an hour aside to read in silence together). I found it hard to stop myself from snickering at Nanako's biting remarks she makes regarding the first man she met, the one who tried to seduce her. The Bookshop Woman's core is a story about self-discovery when you feel the lowest of the low. Nanako is open about feeling like she had hit rock bottom at the beginning of her memoir, talking about her failed marriage, spending time split between capsule hotels, cafes and her job at a bookshop with dwindling sales. It is books that keep her going, and it is books that offer her connection when she joins the meet-up site.
I adore a read that reminds me of books' connecting and healing power, partly because they have been that for me, but Nanako's felt extra special to me as I, too, thought I couldn't fall any lower before I got the job at the Bookshop. The Bookshop helped me grow as a person and form connections and friendships. I've been there for over two years, and it is the best thing that ever happened to me. I am always grateful the manager and the owners gave me a chance, and books like Nanako's feel like a connection to others like myself, who relied on books and were pulled up by them.