The Accidental Office Lady [Paperback]

Laura J. Kriska (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The Japan we see most often is an image of a country teetering on the edge of depression, an economic system that's too hamstrung by its own cultural traditions to fully participate in the global economy. The endless train of trade delegations to and from Tokyo seem to attest to the cultural gap that exists between Japan and the rest of the world--but that's where the explanation usually stops. We're rarely privy as to the nature of the gap itself.

That's why Laura Kriska's book, The Accidental Office Lady, is so valuable. The book is a firsthand account of Kriska's two years in Japan working as a trainee for the Honda Motor Company. As a trainee, she takes on a variety of tasks, from serving tea and taking the coats of senior executives to working in one of Honda's auto factories. Along the way she confronts the rigidity of business life in Japan: "I felt the corporate walls forcing me into a mold as though I were trapped inside a Fisher-Price playhouse, in which each piece of furniture fit perfectly into its assigned space and had a single hole for a peg-shaped doll. I didn't want to be that doll, and the more threatened I felt, the more I wanted to resist." Kriska not only successfully resists, but finds that she's able to fit into the corporate world of Honda. Anyone contemplating the nuances of Japanese life--especially from a woman's perspective--will find this an insightful and entertaining read. --Harry C. Edwards

From Publishers Weekly

First jobs straight out of college are never what one expects. With new degree in hand, Kriska accepted what sounded like a plum assignment as the first American woman trainee at Honda Motor Company's headquarters in Tokyo. Perhaps not surprisingly, her idealistic expectations of fulfilling work, engaging colleagues and authority to make contributions are chilled by standoffish co-workers who view her with confused suspicion and a day-to-day drudgery that starts with donning an ugly polyester uniform that is worn only by the women. Though as a "trainee" she is not on the lowest rung of the corporate ladder (and never holds the title "Office Lady"), this uniform symbolizes for her the very different levels of power that men and women hold at Honda's headquarters. It's not accidental that her occidental background leads to more than the usual trauma of being the newest kid on the block. As Kriska matures and gains the language and cultural skills necessary to begin to understand her work environment, she convinces her Japanese mentor that the work she can do best will take her into the nitty gritty of a company factory in Sayama. Although the precise time of her experiences is unclear, a wealth of details, recaptured from journal notes, make this an entertaining cross-cultural memoir: "I looked at the small entryway that had been filled with a pile of shoes and saw that all eleven pairs had been reorganized in pairs and reversed so that the toes pointed toward the door."
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Tuttle Publishing; 1st edition (April 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0804821054
• ISBN-13: 978-0804821056
• Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 4.6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,754,513 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars easy to read, for the Japanese also, December 19, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Accidental Office Lady (Paperback)

(I am a colledge student in Japan. I happened to find this a book online.)Her efforts to struggle to accept and change wrong phases of Japanese custom for herself made me inspired, though I would prefer to comment on what she recounted. Her yarn may be a little bit dated; Japen's society has changed since then: times are bad; most people don't indulge in luxary; increasing young men are breaking with tradition. It is TRUE, however, that Japan is a sexist society. You will find how much discrimination the auther encountered. As a female, I feel offensive against old, ridiculous Japanese notions of women which defines that they are so weak that they must depend on men. Most women in this book seem not to be aware of sexism in the society, but I hope you to know today's many Japanese women are claiming their rights.

As she uses a word 'embarrassed' many times, I found Japanese people are too shy at trivial situations(maybe I am, too!). She made me grasp my country objectively and differencies between Japanese and American culture. I highly recommend this book to anyone, especially Japanese people. The 'gohatto' she made in this book may be useful for those who ventured into the westrn society.

Finally, she has made a mistake of a sumo wresler's name; his name is Chiyonofuji, correctly.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A recommended read for those who haven't been to Japan., October 14, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Accidental Office Lady (Paperback)

This book is definitely a worthwhile read for those who have never visited Japan or even for those who have spent a short time there and were less than enthralled with the experience. It offers a very accurate view from a typical American experience whether working in the Japanese business world, in the English teaching profession, or in another field generally made up of foreigners.

I was disappointed that there was not much mention of the positive aspects of Japanese business culture. Unfortunately, most foreigners who visit Japan also make this same ommision when recounting their experiences.

Something that perplexed me from the outset of the book was the great lack of knowledge and understanding of modern Japan that the author exhibited as she made her way through the events of her story. It was my understanding that she had completed a Japanese Studies program which included study abroad at a very prestigious Japanese university before beginning as a trainee at the Honda headquarters.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Accidental Appreciation of Laura Kriska, June 25, 1999

By 

Paul Allaer (Cincinnati) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Accidental Office Lady (Paperback)

Ms. Kriska recently gave a presentation at the Japan America Society here in Cincinnati, which I attended at the last minute, by accident so to speak. Following her lively presentation, my curiosity was peaked enough to buy the book. As it happens, I had to fly to Los Angeles a few days later, and settled in for 4 hours on interrupted reading. Ms. Kriska writes as she comes across in person: witty, smart, engaging, understanding, forgiving, yet always with an agenda to be accomplished (in her book: the "uniform policy" episode; in her presentation: to get the audience to buy the book), for which she does not apologize (nor should she). Ms. Kriska's eye for details is impressive, even more so realizing that the book was written some 8 years after the events. Unexplained both at the presentation and in her book is what exactly caused the long delay in starting and/or finishing the book. That aside, anyone looking for a good international "human interest" story or for that perfect summertime poolside reading, this is a can't-miss book, guaranteed to make you smile along the way. And it made my flight to/from Los Angeles seemingly so much shorter!