First off, this is a great book, one of those novels that focuses on some seemingly benign subject and reveals so much through mere observation. I’d say Help Wanted feels akin to the short novel Last Night at the Lobster and partially so to shows like Superstore and The Bear. The story follows members of the Movement division (delivery and distribution) of a big box store in upstate New York. We’re with them for about a week during their regular 4am shifts as well as a few overnights that start more towards midnight.

What Help Wanted does so well is round out the stereotypes of folks who work in retail and reveal the buffoonery and exasperation of workplace politics anywhere and everywhere. Each character has their own redeeming qualities along with quirks and vices, and I’d guess most readers will see both themselves and their colleagues reflected throughout the working class cast.