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pauroxas's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I have first picked it up after having been kicked out of the university and I had gone back home in disgrace. I was 16, very sick, friendless and hopeless.
Within the pages of this book, I have felt understood. It had spoken of things that other people were too afraid (or could not be bothered) to talk about with me. Death, loss, grief, unrequited love, depression, desolation, isolation, darkness; but also - growing up, learning about one's sexuality and sex, friendship, devotion, hope, little glimpses of light. But I hadn't known yet how much of this book I would get to experience for myself.
I have lived with this book, I have lived through it, I have lived by it. I have identified with every character in it, I kid you not. I had found myself in many of their situations. I had grieved their losses and experienced their pain. It felt very much like I was constantly drifting in and out of this book, my life having been woven in its pages before I have even lived it. In so many ways, I am still that 16-year-old.
It will be interesting to meet up with this old friend again someday. Maybe, if I find myself out of the woods.
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Suicide attempt, Grief, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Sexual content
baselthe2nd's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Suicide
meg_reads83's review against another edition
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Blood, Pedophilia, Sexual content, Death, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Rape, Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Terminal illness, and Misogyny
teranmbaker05's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Suicide
Minor: Sexual content
vicdonalds02's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Suicide and Sexual content
frooml's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Suicide
soniaaaaaaaa's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
i would also check the trigger warnings before reading, some stuff i read i didnt expect and it was quite disturbing
Graphic: Sexual content, Mental illness, and Suicide
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Sexual assault
Minor: Lesbophobia, Death, Child death, and Death of parent
dreamy_reader_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Moderate: Suicide
mirrorofneptune's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
That being said, I really enjoyed this book. I haven’t yet read much from Murakami but it felt more straightforward than Kafka on the Shore (which I did also enjoy) and it was full of incredibly-quotable paragraphs ruminating on life and death. There were some strong and interesting themes about how we as people relate to and explore the world, and what the consequences are for us when we lose the ability to do that.
A good read. Might need to go listen to that Beatles song now lol
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Mental illness
Minor: Suicide
madbrad22's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Moderate: Sexual assault and Suicide