Reviews tagging 'Adult/minor relationship'

Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami

158 reviews

annahollamby's review against another edition

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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? It's complicated

1.0

boring and incredibly unlikeable. found myself wondering so many times if the author has ever actually met and interacted with a real woman before. like genuinely. the way he talks about women and sex is gross and pathetic. yet more complex female storiess and characters lost to the male gaze and the manic pixie dream girl trope. also sincerely What The Fuck (r.e. the supposed lesbian character realising she's a lesbian because of a 13 year old 🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮 only for her lesbianism to be cured in the end by (you guessed it!) a penis... Fucking Gross. 

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spottedtea's review

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dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • 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

3.5

A must-read for those who want to delve into modern Japanese literature and/or Murakami. It was profoundly popular in Japan when it was first published, and is likely an accurate portrayal of the average lifestyle of young 20-somethings in 1960s Tokyo. However, I would not consider this a "good" book. It is a rather enjoyable and quick read, but the characters are overall unlikeable (especially the main character; the plot (and there barely is one) is basically "which hot/cute girl will I choose" (harem anime anyone?), and sees our protagonist vacillate between various women through sexual encounters. But you should definitely feel bad for him, he is a lonely boy after all, かわいそう) and the amount of sexual content just becomes cringe-y after awhile. The male protagonist is a carbon copy of the male protagonist from Murakami's prior novels (and likely a stand-in for Murakami himself). And the way mental instability and suicide is treated in this novel is, by modern standards, melodramatic and disrespectful. I could go on.

Murakami has a history of constructing female characters as overly and primarily sexual beings, which is just a projection of his own fantasy, let's not kid ourselves, but this is a wider issue with Japanese societal norms regarding gender relations which I won't get into here. In summation, worth reading for understanding, but brace yourself for unlikeable characters and an overabundance of gratuitious sexual content.

However, you might be asking, why are you insisting I should read this when you seem to have only a list of complaints? Well dear imaginary reader, let me answer that: there are some very poignant scenes and moments in this novel, especially towards the end, that faithfully captures the true loneliness and ennui that many young adults face as they are about to exit the education system and enter the adult world. I can't help but still vividly recall very specific scenes from this novel as if I had watched a movie. Murakami's characters and plots may not always be well-constructed (his female characters especially), but the emotional atmosphere he imparts on readers is often striking. So far, I actually think his first novel (Hear the Wind Sing) was the best at this. But that might be because it was short, pithy, to-the-point. It focused on his strengths as a writer and cut out the fat. Norwegian Wood gets too caught up in its attempts at promoting an aesthetic almost (as in, too many pretentious references to quintessential 60s music). Which, if you understand modern Japanese taste, makes sense as to why it became so much more popular.  

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prlprl's review against another edition

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reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Murakami’s writing style is easy and interesting to read. His ability to recreate life without romanticism is itself charming. The lucid normalcy of Norwegian Wood and honest sexuality makes for a refreshing read where scintillating sensationalism has saturated itself into a genre of romance. The narrator witnesses and experiences much, but does not attempt to explain what he does not know, and for that he is appreciated. Without patronising or proselytising, the simplicity of existing is coloured by the difficulty of living. I enjoyed every page for the writer’s keen ability to touch upon the nature of memory, love, and the inevitability of death, and how this forms and ideates our relationships with others.

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fergascod's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Un llibre amb una atmòsfera molt trista. Tots els personatges estan atravessats per la desgràcia. Segurament no l’hauria d’haver llegit tenint en compte com estic últimament, tot i que potser sí.

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booonbooon's review

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emotional reflective sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0


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hunnylemon's review against another edition

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medium-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

0.25

those were three days i’ll never get back. i don’t know why everyone recommends this as a good starter to murakami novels it is shite and the only thing that kept me reading was knowing what will happen to the manic pixie dream girl and her side piece (the main character apparently). there are too many things wrong with this book it felt like i was reading a much more graphic version of “looking for alaska”

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lagaialettrice's review against another edition

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fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

1.75


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froggoz13's review against another edition

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dark reflective
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

I am very conflicted due to the themes of pedophilia and homophobia and the misogynistic undertones that aren't adressed anywhere in the book. I don't like the characters and don't see myself being drawn to them or worried for them. I experienced the story as very strange and uncomfortable. 

The writing style is good and descriptive in a pleasant way but the dialogues are often quite direct. Overall I did want to continue reading the vook and find out what would happen next but I did not particularly enjoy reading it. 

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claukv's review

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challenging dark emotional 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

2.5


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jeancambareri's review

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reflective sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0


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