FINISHED READING - The Factory by Hiroko Oyamada

In an era where blockbuster novels take hundreds and hundreds of pages to paint their world, and the story becomes ever so slightly incidental. It is positively refreshing to read a novel, well a novella really, where all that is accomplished in a mere 116 pages, but rich with juicy details. And though this story can seem small in scale, it is used to create a sense of unease and a sympathetic questioning with its protagonists of quite what is going on here.

The Factory begins with three opening chapters which tell you the background stories of three people, and why they all arrive as new intake at a factory. Each is desperate for work, and reluctantly decide that maybe now they are prepared to work for The Factory. The Factory is the towns biggest employer, its so large it's pretty much a town within the town, and working there is obligatory for most. But each of the three newbies finds the job they thought they were applying for, either doesn't really exists or quickly metamorphoses into a job they would never have applied for if they'd known. Its well below their capabilities or pay grade. So they start their factory employment as respectively a Paper Shredder, a Proof Reader of incomprehensible texts, and as a researcher in Green Roofing, which means he is collecting all the different moss samples to be had in and around The Factory.

The longer they stay there, the sense of meaninglessness inherent to their work grows. Their tasks though purposeful, are without any sense for how they contribute and fit into the wider ethos of the business. What exactly is it that The Factory makes anyway? And why is The Factory estate being invaded by flocks of a unique bird species that gather on a bridge, chillingly referred to as 'factory shags ?'

Oyamada commands her language very economically, so small phrases can be greatly impactful. It is by turns quietly surreal and is quirkily funny about office politics. Portraying the emotional tangles that people put themselves through simply in order to survive their day. This short tale highlights the many human failings of the modern corporate world. Where the world of work has become even more of a drudge, because nothing about it makes any sense, and personal satisfaction via ones employment has become virtually an impossibility. Though Human Resources might certainly tell you otherwise.

CARROT REVIEW - 6/8