The Bookshop Woman

This is a story about the beauty of climbing into a book, free diving into its pages, and then resurfacing on the last page, ready to breathe a different kind of air...

Nanako Hanada's life has not just flatlined, it's hit rock bottom... Recently separated from her husband, she is living between 4-hour capsule hostels, pokey internet cafes and bookshop floors. Her work is going no better - sales at the eccentric Village Vanguard bookstore in Tokyo, which Nanako manages, are dwindling. As Nanako's life falls apart, reading books is the only thing keeping her alive.

That's until Nanako joins an online meet-up site which offers 30 minutes with someone you'll never see again. Describing herself as a sexy bookseller she offers strangers 'the book that will change their life' in exchange for a meeting. In the year that follows, Nanako meets hundreds of people, some of whom want more than just a book...

Acerbic and self-knowing, The Bookshop Woman is a soul-soothing story of a bookseller's self-discovery and an ode to the joy of reading. Offering a glimpse into bookselling in Japan and the quirky side of Tokyo and its people, this is a story of how books can help us forge connection with others and lead us to ourselves.