Checkout

by Anna Sam, Morag Young (Translator)

Can you scan 800 barcodes an hour? Can you smile and say thanks 500 times a day? Do you never need to go to the toilet? Then working at a supermarket checkout could be just the job for you. Anna Sam spent 8 years as a checkout girl. Checkout - A Life on the Tills is a witty look at what it s really like to work in a supermarket: the relentless grind and less-than-perfect working conditions, along with people-watching and encounters with every kind of customer from the bizarre to the downright rude.

Genres: Nonfiction, Memoir, France, Humor, Biography, French Literature, Roman

182 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2008

Reviews

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

*Please note that this book was received as a free Advanced Readers Copy. Obtained through the Goodreads First Reads program*

I have mixed feelings on this book. When reading the synopsis I expected funny stories of different people that came through the writer's line. And there is that, but there's some other stuff too that I wasn't as taken with.

In this book, Sam ranges all over the job of a supermarket cashier. From uniforms to early birds and all other types of customers, she covers everything there is to know about the job. Some of the stories are just plainly told, while others are set up in a dialogue format. She weighs in on bosses and Bargain Hunters (coupon people).

Since it is a collection of stories, as said before I expected just funny dialogues, much like you see on the spoof online sites out there. She does this, but it's a smaller part of the book. She gives other things a lot more detail, like uniforms. Honestly I thought she was overly snarky on the uniform descriptions. She may have been going for funny, but it sounded more sour. This same feeling holds true for her thoughts on asking "Are you open?" The snarky reply to that "I'm not, but my register is." And this is only done because she feels it is rude to equate the cashier with the machine. As a linguist this doesn't win with me and instead of feeling sympathetic towards the plights of cashiers in this book, instances like this make me roll my eyes (and that's coming from someone who was a cashier for years). I also felt sorry for the poor Bargain Hunters (coupon deals and such) that she chose to make fun of. They get her scorn but she doesn't know why they might be trying to save a buck.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that a good portion of the writing left a bad taste in my mouth. I tried desperately to enjoy it but there was just so much that wasn't funny in the book that it was hard to enjoy the good parts. And there were good parts. Her drunken customer descriptions and the late nighters stories were good. She can definitely write well it's just the tone I think needs work.

I would probably give this book a 2.5. I almost gave it a two but there was a good portion of the book I enjoyed. I just wish she had found a way to be funny without being cruel to certain types of people.

Checkout Girl
Copyright 2011
178 pages

Review by M. Reynard 2011

[Debbie Young · Rating 1 out of 5]

I bought this book after hearing an enthusiastic review on the radio, out of curiosity to find out more about the view from the other side of the till. I was also very taken with the term "beepeuse" from the French original.
Unfortunately I found it very disappointing. The sketches were superficial and brief, none of them especially memorable or illuminating. There were also two serious distractions from the original content of the book: (1) the publisher's unaccountable decision to pretend the whole thing was an account of English shops, substituting the names of English supermarket chains for the French ones (though not changing the shoppers' habits, e.g. frequent purchases of Roquefort, Camembert and artichokes) and (2) a horrific translation, leaving the prose sounding foreign and alien, as if the book had been written in English but by someone who was writing most of it with a French-English dictionary in one hand. Why else would there by such nonsensical phrases such as "blowing his nose on a bread" if they are not just literal translations of French idiom? It made what should have been an easy, light read into stilted and irritating hard work.
It may also have suffered from being lifted directly from the original blog that spawned it. Blog-to-book deals are all very well, but people read books and blogs in very different ways, and a little more adjustment needs to be made from one form to the other than has been done here.
With a little more thought and effort, this book could have been very much better. I'm giving it the one star because I did manage to plough through to the end, but only because I hate to admit defeat.

[Diane in Australia · Rating 2 out of 5]

French book translated into English. No idea if that is why it is so uninspiring. I usually enjoy the behind-the-scenes type of books, but this one was just boring ... and, frankly, irritating. I kept waiting for it to get better, but it never did.

2 Stars = Blah. It didn't do anything for me.

[Giada · Rating 3 out of 5]

L'insostenibile pesantezza del lavoro a contatto col pubblico

[Ariel Cummins · Rating 1 out of 5]

I picked up this book on a whim, thinking it would be a fun, fast read. I love reading retail memoirs -- I mean, really, lots of time libraries are pretty much just glorified retail so I find tons to commiserate with. This book, though, was light on humor and insight and heavy on uninspired complaining. This book was less than two hundred pages long, but I couldn’t muster the energy to finish it. Whether it was the fact that it was translated from French, the weird blogger-gets-a-book-deal tone, or just the author’s style, this was one book I was happy to return.

[Els Verbeelen · Rating 1 out of 5]

Het slechtst geschreven boek ooit.....

[Krista · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ühel novembrikuisel päeval jalutasime koos Pisi-Miga raamatukogusse. Mul oli kindel plaan leida raamatuid, mis oleksid naljakad, lihtsalt ajaksid naerma. Pole ju kerge beebikisa, magamata ööde ja valutava seljaga hakkama saada. Karlova harukogus suhtlesingi sel päeval just toreda raamatukoguhoidjaga, kellele minu päring tundus olevat just mõnus mõtlemisaines. Sest et inimeste huumorimeel ongi erinev ja sest et iga päev vist ei tulda küsimusega raamatuist, mis oleks naljakad. Igal juhul oli see mõnus jutuajamine riiulite vahel ning ühelt riiulilt leidsin muuhulgas lisaks "Kassapidaja pihtimused".

Raamatukoguhoidjatel on teadupärast paras ports naljakatest seikadest alati varuks. Ikka küsib keegi punast raamatut teemal X, teost "Hani ja mehed" või muud vahvat. Mõeldes sellele kommirahale, mida haritud inimestele palgaks makstakse, on tööalane humoorikas pool ilmselt üks osa valemist, mis sellest ametist kergekäeliselt loobuda ei luba. Aga on veel palju muudki. Igal juhul, kui mõtlen omadele kunagistele kogemustele või ja kolleegidelt kuuldule, on iseenesest tegu enamaltjaolt vahva tööga. Sest alati saab hullemini minna. Näitseks saab minna kassapidajaks. Sellest ka "katsumused". Mitte "seiklused" ega "pihtimused", ammugi mitte "vaikimised". Kui ma kirjutaks raamatukoguhoidja tööst kunagi raamatu, oleks selle pealkirjas "vaikimised".

Anna Sam on (nähtavasti) algul blogisse, seejärel kaante vahele kogunud hulga lookesi kassapidaja tööst - formaat, mis blogide populaarsuse kogumise aegu on olnud üsna levinud. Saad ju tänulikelt lugejatelt tagasisidet: "oh, nii äge!" ja "kas raamatu peale ei ole mõelnud, nii vahvalt kirjutad!". Mõni blogi ongi nii vinge, et sealsed palakesed iseenesest annavad raamat mõõdu välja. Samas kaldun arvama, et mõnigi blogil põhinev teos vajaks esmalt toimetamist, et raamatuks saada. Ehk vajaks isegi palju toimetamist.

Selle raamatu paigutaksin sõbralikult viimasesse mainitud kategooriasse. "Kassapidaja katsumused" on iseenesest ju põnev pilguheit kassapidaja tänamatusse töösse, kuid siin on minu jaoks liialt sellist õhtusse jõudnud väsinud inimese virinat ja sarkasmi. Jaa. On muhelema ajavaid kohti, on ka äratundmisrõõme, aga otseselt naerma see raamat ei ajanud, ega mõjunud kosutavalt ka hingele. Ootasin ehk liiga palju? Tõsi ta on, et ka kassapidaja on inimene ja selles mõttes on see teos silmiavav: missugust emotsionaalset, vaimset ja sotsiaalset p&÷+a need inimesed peavad igapäevaselt taluma. Kimdlasti see väsitabki, muudabki sarkastiliseks. Ja siis meenub mulle veel, et prantsuse huumor oma teatava kenitlemisega ja amüsantsete vaimukustega ei ole päris minu "teetass" - võib-olla siitki teatav möödarääkimine autori ja minu eelistuste vahel.

Igatahes: lugesin, sain veidi targemaks ka. Kindlasti soovitaks neile, kes plaanivad karjääri kassapidajana (vihje: sellist asja pole olemas). Aga hea on ikka küll, et olemas on raamatukogu: nüüd viin raamatukese sinna tagasi ja rahu temaga.

[Anastaciaknits · Rating 4 out of 5]

Since I work in retail, as I soon as I saw this book on netgalley I knew I had to read it.

Anna lives overseas, and worked as a cashier "check out girl" for eight years, and this is the story of being a working girl. It's rather hysterical to me, to see just how universal working in retail is, regardless of where you live. I too am constantly plagued by "Are you open?" and "Where's the bathroom?" and tries to not only educate the public, but does it in a way that makes you laugh.

Anna begins the book by telling you how she got hired and trained, which I laughed through (having gone through an extremely similar process), and then continues by telling you about her daily life working in a grocery store and the story of the contant "beeps".

It's ironic because I have often wanted to try to write a book about my life in retail, but have no talents in that arena! But I'm happy that someone else out there did.

0--
I received a free copy of this book from netgalley in exchange for my honest views/opinions

[Ethan Aegon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Le quotidien d'une hôtesse de caisse à travers de courts billets transcrivant dans un style médiocre mais avec humour des situations qui sentent le vécu. Pour autant il n'y a pas grand chose de drôle dans la description des comportements subis, la dépersonnalisation des êtres, les 250 "bonjour, vous avez la carte de fidélité ? merci, au revoir" quotidiens, les perspectives d'évolution nulles, les plannings inhumains, l'infantilisation constante, tout ça pour un SMIC. Un livre social donc et si l'auteur échoue à nous convaincre que le métier de caissière est un boulot complexe elle nous sensibilise avec succès sur le ressenti de ces femmes derrière leur caisse.

[Blancactus · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nada más descubrir la existencia de este libro tuve que lanzarme a comprarlo, como buena cajera saturada.
La conclusión a la que llego con este libro es la misma que arrastro día tras día en mi puesto de trabajo: da igual un hipermercado (como es el caso del libro), que una tienda de retail (mi caso): gran parte de la clientela es homogéneamente gilipollas, irrespetuosa, maleducada y egoísta. Sí. Odio al mundo entero. Pero al menos podemos tomárnoslo con humor. ¡Y el odio crea vínculos maravillosos!

[Alice Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was an easy/entertaining read. Now I don't know how accurate or instructive it is because I've never been a cashier in my life. But I've worked in retail and I could relate to many stories. Nice book that I read on the plane and kept me hooked the entire time.

[Kirsten · Rating 3 out of 5]

So amüsant die einzelnen Episoden und Kundentypen auch sein mögen, vom Stil her wiederholt sich das Erlebte. Was mir auch ein bisschen gefehlt hat, war dass sich die Kassiererin nicht in ihre Gegenüber versetzen konnte oder wollte. Auch wenn ich einige der Kundentypen (und mich natürlich auch) wiedererkannt habe, fand ich die Geschichte doch ein bisschen einseitig.

[Ann-sofie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Underhållande men blir en smula tjatigt med en hel bok från kassan.

[Erin · Rating 1 out of 5]

I remember this book from when I was like 12 purely because it was so dull. She just talks about working in a shop and there is nothing remotely exciting

[Tereza Mikulová · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hele, zase taková pecka to nebyla a nebýt to v Levných knihách, asi se ke knize ani nedostanu, ale pro zasmání dobré. Nevím, pěti hvězdičkami bych to asi moc nadhodnotila. Pokud si nechcete vyzkoušet práci v obchodě, doporučuji jako zkušenost alespoň tuhle knihu, abyste věděli, čemu se jako zákazníci vyvarovat. :)

[Jo ♡ˎ´✨ ☕︎ · Rating 4 out of 5]

LMAO. I cried, I laughed, I empathized.

I recommend this book to everyone: working in retail or not.

[Maggie61 · Rating 2 out of 5]

When I first saw this book on net galley, I really wanted to read it. I have worked retail, mostly in a grocery store atmosphere for 30 years and I thought this book would have some funny stories about the life of retail and customers. Not so much.
I could relate to some of it, I have some similar stories; I have seen pretty much everything you could imagine and things you couldn't begin to imagine and I could relate to the descriptions of some of the customers.
What I couldn't relate to was the horrific writing style. Don't get me wrong, I love sarcasm but this was over the top and way, way too much. Many of the attempts at humour just started to get really old; it may have worked in a 3 page magazine article but in a book even this size, I was over it long before the book was finished. I didn't like the arrogant tone and not so funny humour attempts and found it to be very condescending towards people who are "checkout girls" making them seem like half brained idiots. While most of my career has been in a supervisor or manager capacity, I took offense to this and found it interesting that the market most likely to be interested in reading this book were the ones who were targeted as having a worthless job. I would give it a 1 1/2.
I received this book free from net galley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

[A Reader's Heaven · Rating 1 out of 5]

(I received a free copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.)

Can you scan 800 barcodes an hour? Can you smile and say thanks 500 times a day? Do you never need to go to the toilet? Then working at a supermarket checkout could be just the job for you. Anna Sam spent 8 years as a checkout girl. Checkout: A Life on the Tills is a witty look at what it's really like to work in a supermarket: the relentless grind and less-than-perfect working conditions, along with people-watching and encounters with every kind of customer from the bizarre to the downright rude. Sam's story has won her fans all over Europe, turning Checkout: A Life on the Tills into a huge international bestseller, published in 10 languages.


I am so sorry - I just could not finish this book. In fact, I didn't even get to the halfway mark as the writing style was dreadful. It wasn't funny, surprising, interesting or new.


Paul
ARH

[Kim Ibara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I couldn't find the French title on Goodreads, but that is the one I read. I see they've made a film of the book as well...it looks wonderful!

This book is great! It is a collection of blog entries by a literature major who spent a few years working as a checkout clerk at a French supermarket. Her observations are brilliant: if you have ever spent any time behind a cash register, you will recognize every customer, boss, and co-worker that Anna Sam profiles in her extremely witty way. I do not know if the English version is as enchanting, but the French one is delightful! Lots of humor...and truth. I highly recommend it, and can't wait to start reading her next book "Conseils d'amie à la clientèle."

[Melissa · Rating 1 out of 5]

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I was very disappointed in this book. I was a cashier and worked customer service for 7 years. I was expecting a book with stories, more like the website notalwaysright.com. But instead it felt like I was reading a manual on how to be a cashier. What to wear, how to do things, what kinds of customers to expect, etc.

The "stories" in this book didn't feel like stories at all. More like examples of situations. And there was never an ending on them. For example, the story involving the fight between the guards and the man. What happened to cause it? The stories always felt incomplete to me.

I didn't enjoy this book and I wouldn't recommend it.

[Kirsti · Rating 4 out of 5]

Three and a half stars. Anna Sam took a job as a supermarket checkout girl to pay for her university studies. Then she graduated and couldn't find a better job. So, at age 28, she published a memoir . . . and I say God bless her.

It's always interesting to get a peek into someone else's life. It seems that a checkout operator in France has a considerably better safety net than a checkout operator in the United States.

This book is short, light, and humorous, as if the author didn't want to wear out her welcome.

I am so glad I don't have to deal with customers all day. :-)

[moony 🌕 · Rating 4 out of 5]

J’avais envie de lire ce livre depuis assez longtemps. Ayant regardé le film avant et l’ayant beaucoup aimé, je ne m’attendais pas vraiment à ça. Le livre et le film n’ont pas grand chose en commun, mais je les ai quand même aimé. Une bonne lecture pour faire passer le week-end et pour en apprendre plus sur les caissières (évidemment😅).

[Sandra "Jeanz" · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did like it though it wasnt as funny as the other one I had previously read. Basically an account of a checkout girls life. Having done this myself I can say that the account in this book were in fact no way exaggerated at all lol

[Kat · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was a bit boring. I thought there would be more customer related stories and less waffle. It's a shame as I was looking forward to it.

Thanks goes to net galley and the publishers for providing this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Loucy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Livre assez court, qui raconte avec humour l'expérience professionnelle de l'auteur. Ayant travaillé comme caissière 2 étés de suite lorsque j'étais étudiante, je me suis retrouvée dans pleins de situations avec les clients.

[Jen Webb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very funny. Loved the quirky little stories about life on the tills. Could feel myself nodding in agreement with some of it.

[Simona Sabatelli · Rating 1 out of 5]

Badly written, flat. Could have been a good subject to write about with sarcasm, pity.

[Agoaye Martin · Rating 1 out of 5]

Je ne savais pas qu'il s'agissait d'une blogueuse avant d'avoir fini le livre mais je m'en suis rapidement douté.
mouais.... C'est un recueil d'anecdotes, rien de plus...

[Le carnet de Calli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Moi qui ai été quelques années hôtesse de caisse pour dire le grand mot et ne pas me réduire à simple caissière.

J’ai retrouvé pas mal de similitude avec ce que j’ai vécue.
Par contre mon choix s’est porté pour la station-service et non le magasin.

Et moi hélas, je n’avais pas les toilettes incorporé a la station donc fallait demander la pause pour aller aux WC, la bonne galère comme dit dans le livre soit ta quelqu’un de suite soit personne soit on t’oublie et quand tes loin du magasin, c’est encore pire.

Les clients pas contents quand tu changes les prix ou qu’une pompe est en arrêt ah la là que de souvenirs.

Ou bien ceux qui veulent absolument se servir alors que tu es en train de fermer et qu’ils doivent attendre la fin de la procédure pour que les automates se mettent en route.

Le top le lundi matin quand le client t’attends a 7 h devant la pompe et te hurle dessus que l’automate a avalé sa cb la veille et qu’il veut la récupérer.

Ah la, tu commences bien ta journée.

Et puis ceux qui partent sans payer et que tu ne peux rien faire et que tu dois appeler la caisse centrale pour le signaler et tu te fais pourrir… Genre, je vais courir après les voitures dans la ville pour les faire payer.

Ce livre à fait remonté des souvenirs de mon passage comme hôtesse de caisse et m’a bien fait rire, son langage est un peu cru, mais ça ne m’a pas dérangé.

J’ai passé un bon moment avec cette lecture.

[Harriet · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was okay. Pretty boring. I've worked in retail for over a decade, much of it in supermarkets and in off licences, and to be honest a lot of Anna Sam's complaints and what I suppose are meant to be wry observations about the poor behaviour of customers, the lack of support from supervisors, and the difficult working hours, never really bothered me. It's just part of the job. I did think she made the job out to be much more annoying than it actually was, and she didn't really touch on the things that are actually dreadful, like the abuse you often receive from customers, or how it feels to be the only person present when a customer has a heart attack or some other awful health emergency, which happens more than people who haven't worked in shops maybe realise.

Checkout was a very quick read, which is good because it was really wearing thin by the end, but it was entertaining enough if you've worked in supermarkets or retail generally. I imagine it wouldn't hold much interest otherwise.