{"product_id":"diary-of-a-void-emi-yagi-9780143136880","title":"Diary of a Void by Emi Yagi","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eA BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: \u003ci\u003eThe New Yorker\u003c\/i\u003e · NPR · WBEZ’s \u003ci\u003eNerdette \u003c\/i\u003e· The New York Public Library · \u003ci\u003eLiterary Hub\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eDiary of a Void: A Novel by Emi Yagi\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA \u003ci\u003eNew York Times \u003c\/i\u003eEditors’ Choice\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“One of the most passionate cases I’ve ever read for female interiority, for women’s creative pulse and rich inner life.” ―Katy Waldman, \u003ci\u003eThe New Yorker\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Always expect the unexpected when you’re not expecting.” ―Sloane Crosley\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA woman in Tokyo avoids harassment at work by perpetuating, for nine months and beyond, the lie that she’s pregnant in this prizewinning, thrillingly subversive debut novel about the mother of all deceptions, for fans of \u003ci\u003eConvenience Store Woman \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eBreasts and Eggs\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhen thirty-four-year-old Ms. Shibata gets a new job to escape sexual harassment at her old one, she finds that as the only woman at her new workplace—a manufacturer of cardboard tubes—she is expected to do all the menial tasks. One day she announces that she can’t clear away her coworkers’ dirty cups—because she’s pregnant and the smell nauseates her. The only thing is . . . Ms. Shibata is not pregnant.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePregnant Ms. Shibata doesn’t have to serve coffee to anyone. Pregnant Ms. Shibata isn’t forced to work overtime. Pregnant Ms. Shibata rests, watches TV, takes long baths, and even joins an aerobics class for expectant mothers. She’s finally being treated by her colleagues as more than a hollow core. But she has a nine-month ruse to keep up. Before long, it becomes all-absorbing, and with the help of towel-stuffed shirts and a diary app that tracks every stage of her “pregnancy,” the boundary between her lie and her life begins to dissolve.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSurreal and absurdist, and with a winning matter-of-factness, a light touch, and a refreshing sensitivity to mental health, \u003ci\u003eDiary of a Void\u003c\/i\u003e will keep you turning the pages to see just how far Ms. Shibata will carry her deception for the sake of women, and especially working mothers, everywhere.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Bust-Down Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50674459607355,"sku":"0143136887","price":6.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0855\/2077\/7531\/files\/9780143136880.jpg?v=1778370185","url":"https:\/\/bustdownbooks.com\/products\/diary-of-a-void-emi-yagi-9780143136880","provider":"Bust-Down Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}