The Factory

I didn't want to stop reading this book, though it scared me. To put it simply, it is about how work can consume you and companies can own you, but it is told in a beautiful way that shows the contrast between the natural and unnatural parts of life.

Honestly I'm not sure what to make of this yet. There's obviously the direct read - about the rise of contract labor in Japan and how it perpetuates meaningless-feeling lives. But the setting of the book, the factory- feels nonphysical, so everything is potentially a symbol, adding up to, I think - an understanding of how this author felt as she drifted through various part time jobs. You can continue to flow on, repeating labor day after day, being paid well - and end up like the old man on the bus: ignored by kids (who don't know that maybe the same fate awaits then). The way this book portrays work makes it feel inescapable, almost in a "you're fated to live and die like this", but at the same time the characters have serious communication issues and lack of imagination and engagement with the world outside of work. Maybe the sister in this book realizes that, becoming a "bird" and flying away, days after eating with the character who spent 15 years doing nothing but aimlessly studying moss.

This book follows the lives of people who work in this factory, for which the purpose of the factory is unclear. People live in the factory's living quarters, and their lives seem all consumed by this factory. The book has a surprising, unusual ending which leaves you feeling unsure of the future of everyone in the factory. The book arrived when expected and in perfect condition.

This book is meant to challenge you. It’s meant to make you feel confused and anxious. If that’s not what you are looking for in a read, then skip this one. Too many reviews on here are clearly mad they couldn’t keep up with the book and instead of looking at their own critical thinking skills, are blaming the author.The book is a collection of different snapshots into peoples lives working at the same factory. It jumps from character to character and jumps from their first days at the factory to their lives 30 years into the job. It’s meant to signify how quickly you can loose yourself into a job. If that intrigues you, then you’ll enjoy working through this book, if it doesn’t, skip it.

The Factory depicts the monotony of corporate work where it feels that your individual position does not serve a purpose. It’s a good commentary on corporate work and how nothing ever happens. For that reason, nothing happens in the book. I enjoyed it for the writing and creating a rich sense of the factory. However, it’s not a book that grips you. It’s what we already know - we are cogs in a wheel. I give it 4 stars for the writing and layering of stories from three perspectives.