Abstract

There’s No Such Thing as an Easy Job is a story of a 36-year-old woman who felt burned out from an interesting and rewarding but demanding job and decided to embark on the journey of finding an undemanding job that is suitable for her.

What is the right job for me? She takes a step forward to rediscover the healthy relationship with her work and life. What did she find there? It is a comical and surreal collection of “fantasy tales for workers.”

While going through somewhat eccentric jobs such as "surveillance job" and “rice cracker packet job", she faces every task with a sincere attitude while experiencing daily struggles. Her job searching odyssey and relationships with coworkers are narrated in a lighthearted tone.

■Contents
Chapter 1　The Surveillance Job
Chapter 2　The Bus Advertising Job
Chapter 3　The Cracker Packet Job
Chapter 4　The Postering Job
Chapter 5　The Easy Job in the Hut in the Big Forest

Author’s Information

Born in Osaka, Japan, author Kikuko Tsumura has published many stories on the working life and women, based on her experience as a company employee. Since being awarded with the Dazai Osamu Prize which led to publish her first novel, she has won numerous Japanese literary awards including the Akutagawa Prize in 2009. She is also the winner of PEN/Robert J. Dau Short Story Prize 2020.