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Here is a synopsis from Kirkus Reviews:

Even though her boyfriend broke her heart and, in despair, she lost her job, 25-year-old Takako doesn’t want to leave Tokyo. Her uncle Satoru, though, owns a cramped, musty bookstore in Jimbocho, Japan’s famous book town, and he offers her a room in exchange for her assistance. Surveying her temporary abode among the piles of books, Takako says, “If I got even the slightest bit careless, my Towers of Babel would collapse.” Yagisawa’s short and engaging novel is simply structured, following the ordinary events of Takako’s days at the bookstore.

This novella is just under 150 pages long, and it’s a really nice story. As someone Satoru’s age rather than Takako, I did find myself more interested in his story and wished to know more about him, but I still enjoyed reading the story. When I looked up the synopsis for this book, I saw that a sequel had been published. I don’t know if I’ll read it. It introduces more of the bookshop customers, but I think I’m done dipping into this world. I enjoyed the time I spent there, and I’m ready to move on.

I read a book with a similar premise last year, the Korean novel Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop by Hwang Bo-reum, and I liked it better because we get the POV of multiple characters. Still, this book was an easy read, a nice palate cleanser between doomscrolling the news.