[3][4] The novel was translated into English by Stephen Dodd, the Professor of Japanese Literature at the School of Oriental and African Studies,[8] and published in paperback format in the United Kingdom by Penguin Classics on 1 August 2019.

[6] Publishers Weekly gave the novel a positive review, writing, "Mishima's pungent insights into the challenges of postwar Japanese life are threaded brilliantly throughout" but felt, "The novel handles its female characters poorly, using them in a disposable way that feels dated.

"[9] James Smart of The Guardian wrote, "It may be only a footnote in his career, but this surreal tale offers a trenchant critique of a city that has misplaced its soul.

Beneath the hard- boiled dialogue and the gangster high jinks is a familiar indictment of consumerist Japan and a romantic yearning for the past.

"[11] Writing for the New Statesman, philosopher John Gray said, "Life for Sale is not a great work of fiction, but it succeeds in capturing vividly the bathos of the self-pitying modern nihilist.