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3.34 AVERAGE
3.34 AVERAGE
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
It wasn't until I had finished this that I realized it was by the same author as the fantastic [b:Strange Weather in Tokyo|18283207|Strange Weather in Tokyo|Hiromi Kawakami|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1375634096l/18283207._SY75_.jpg|2974590]. This one doesn't quite match that one. The framing device for the book is pretty interesting. It is ostensibly about Mr. Nishino -- but each of the 10 chapters is told from the point of view of one of the (many) women he had a relationship with. The idea is you never see or hear anything from Nishino's point of view but, through the reflected perceptions of others you get some idea about him. It is interesting because that's exactly how the real world is. We never see Nishino's innermost thoughts so much of what he does is a bizarre cypher to us.
I think it is a great idea but Kawakami doesn't quite deliver on the potential. Nishino spends his entire life as a commitment-phobe womanizer. There's some vague underlying question about why he is the way he is...but I was never interested in that. Millions of people are commitment-phobic or lack fidelity in relationships and we don't need some secret childhood trauma to explain it away.
Because Nishino is essentially unchanged from age 18 up until his death in his 50s, all we really see is the same person again and again. And his relationships also have a kind of repetitive similarity; he tends to be pick women that, like him, struggle with commitment.
Again, that's kinda realistic -- people will often go after the same type again and again in their relationships -- but it gave the whole book a kind of static feel.
You're never meant to really understand Nishino -- and Kawakami certainly succeeds at that. At the end of the book one of the women wonders to herself -- and her thoughts are surely an echo of the reader's own,
I think it is a great idea but Kawakami doesn't quite deliver on the potential. Nishino spends his entire life as a commitment-phobe womanizer. There's some vague underlying question about why he is the way he is...but I was never interested in that. Millions of people are commitment-phobic or lack fidelity in relationships and we don't need some secret childhood trauma to explain it away.
Because Nishino is essentially unchanged from age 18 up until his death in his 50s, all we really see is the same person again and again. And his relationships also have a kind of repetitive similarity; he tends to be pick women that, like him, struggle with commitment.
The moment I stopped being cool toward him, I had no doubt that Nishino would bolt. I would have done the same. Nishino and I were of a similar ilk.
Again, that's kinda realistic -- people will often go after the same type again and again in their relationships -- but it gave the whole book a kind of static feel.
You're never meant to really understand Nishino -- and Kawakami certainly succeeds at that. At the end of the book one of the women wonders to herself -- and her thoughts are surely an echo of the reader's own,
That represents the entirety of how I knew Nishino. Every so often, I still think back on what a strange guy he was. I never really knew him all that well. And yet, I’m left with the sense that we were quite close. We shared a certain sensitivity. But also, at times, an utter insensitivity.
challenging
dark
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
reflective
relaxing
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The first chapter had me hopeful.
It was strange in an intriguing way.
But then it lost me, and I am not sure why.
And Nishino himself did not really have many redeeming qualities.
So it was hard to not just feel bad for the women in his life.
And then there was a particular scene that I could not get past - and so that did not help.
If you have read the book you know which scene I mean.
I don't know why it was included and just seemed bizarre and very off-putting.
I couldn't get into this book, but the concept was interesting: seeing a person through the lives of their past lovers.
It was strange in an intriguing way.
But then it lost me, and I am not sure why.
And Nishino himself did not really have many redeeming qualities.
So it was hard to not just feel bad for the women in his life.
And then there was a particular scene that I could not get past - and so that did not help.
If you have read the book you know which scene I mean.
I don't know why it was included and just seemed bizarre and very off-putting.
I couldn't get into this book, but the concept was interesting: seeing a person through the lives of their past lovers.
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
lighthearted
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated