👩‍💻🗂 Kikuko Tsumura "There’s No Such Thing as an Easy Job"

30 May, 2025

Let me start with saying that everything happening in this book feelings-wise is quite relatable.

This is a story about an office worker who spent 14 years of her life at a corporation, hit a wall with burnout and a nervous breakdown, and finally left her job. The entire book follows her as she tries to “find herself”—or rather, as I see it, simply recover—by testing out a series of short-term jobs assigned to her by a very accommodating HR rep, based entirely on her personal requests. No spoilers, but my favorite job remains the one where she writes slogans for cracker packaging.

I really related to everything the main character felt and did—because I’ve been there too, at every job I’ve had. She’s definitely one of those people who likes taking on responsibility, doing something meaningful… but then suddenly finds herself panicking: What if they start expecting too much from me? What if it’s too big of a responsibility? What if I end up worse off? Should I just step away?

The story feels warm and very Japanese. Honestly, I couldn’t guess where it was going at first (no spoilers, I promise), but the ending made a lot of sense in hindsight.

With each new job, the heroine reveals a different side of herself, almost like we’re meant to piece together a full picture of who she is by the end. Personally, I couldn’t quite do that. Even though I understood why she kept changing jobs, the character herself felt emotionally underdeveloped to me. Maybe that’s because she spent 14 years in survival mode, never stopping to ask herself what she actually wanted, what she enjoyed—or couldn’t stand.

At first, she sets just three conditions for her next job: close to home, minimal movement, and minimal responsibility. But over time it becomes clear that none of that really matters. What she truly wants is not to do anything at all—a completely understandable desire when you’ve just escaped the corporate hellscape and are trying to climb out of depression.

It’s a gentle, comforting Japanese novel about trying to find your place in this mad world.

If you’re curious about Japanese culture and mentality, I’d recommend this light and low-stakes read. But fair warning: while you’re reading, you’ll probably catch yourself thinking: “Nani?!”.