Scan barcode
bookwarmm's review against another edition
2.0
The writing kept me going through this one… if it hadn’t been for all this mess of misogynistic sex weirdness it could’ve actually been a decent book.
If you’ve read this book and you are a guy in your early twenties struggling with grief, loneliness and the uncertainties of becoming an adult then I want to inform you that no there won’t be some magical woman showing up to please you every time you feel lonely and numb. There won’t be no women to undress in front of you , give you a blowjob or talk about her wild sexual fantasies to you just bc they happen to be that way. We have better things to do lol (maybe I live in a completely different world than everyone else idk but that’s my opinion). Especially if you spend so much time with yourself in your room. I know that book is set in 1960 and I don’t know for sure what that time was like but I just like to believe that the random sexual things in this books are as unrealistic as a 13 year old girl raping a 30 y.o. women but ohhh that also happened to be part of this book.
Can someone tell me what is going on in the authors mind? Did he like writing about Reiko getting wet from the things her 13 fucking year old student was doing to her and the fact that Reiko kept asking for her to stop but ohhh it’s still important for us to know that she was super aroused???!!!! I’m sorry but all I can think of is that this was some kind of weird fantasy of Murakami’s he enjoyed writing about and maybe even turned himself on with ughh!!!
Okay and again ik this takes place in 1960 but why does Toru (the protagonist) have to hang around with that disgustingly sexist friend of his and yes he may be a complete misogynistic, self-centered, rich dickhead but I still like to hang out with him bc he has great qualities that outweigh being a jerk… Yeah we might live in a time of cancel culture now but still I would hope that ppl are and were able to tell where the limits to sympathy towards certain ppl are ughhhhh
Ohh and then there is also all this ableism and making fun of Toru’s roommate who seems to have some ocd or autistic tendencies which I find quite problematic.
If you’ve read this book and you are a guy in your early twenties struggling with grief, loneliness and the uncertainties of becoming an adult then I want to inform you that no there won’t be some magical woman showing up to please you every time you feel lonely and numb. There won’t be no women to undress in front of you , give you a blowjob or talk about her wild sexual fantasies to you just bc they happen to be that way. We have better things to do lol (maybe I live in a completely different world than everyone else idk but that’s my opinion). Especially if you spend so much time with yourself in your room. I know that book is set in 1960 and I don’t know for sure what that time was like but I just like to believe that the random sexual things in this books are as unrealistic as a 13 year old girl raping a 30 y.o. women but ohhh that also happened to be part of this book.
Can someone tell me what is going on in the authors mind? Did he like writing about Reiko getting wet from the things her 13 fucking year old student was doing to her and the fact that Reiko kept asking for her to stop but ohhh it’s still important for us to know that she was super aroused???!!!! I’m sorry but all I can think of is that this was some kind of weird fantasy of Murakami’s he enjoyed writing about and maybe even turned himself on with ughh!!!
Okay and again ik this takes place in 1960 but why does Toru (the protagonist) have to hang around with that disgustingly sexist friend of his and yes he may be a complete misogynistic, self-centered, rich dickhead but I still like to hang out with him bc he has great qualities that outweigh being a jerk… Yeah we might live in a time of cancel culture now but still I would hope that ppl are and were able to tell where the limits to sympathy towards certain ppl are ughhhhh
Ohh and then there is also all this ableism and making fun of Toru’s roommate who seems to have some ocd or autistic tendencies which I find quite problematic.
silentreadernaomi's review against another edition
2.0
Het is voor mij de eerste keer dat ik oprecht niet weet wat ik over een boek moet zeggen, of hoeveel sterren nou echt past bij mijn gevoel over dit boek.
Het boek kwam traag op gang, het duurde sowieso even voordat ik in het verhaal zat. Er zaten prachtig geschreven stukken in, met de bekende poëtische diepgang van Murakami. Er waren echter ook momenten dat ik het boek weg wilde leggen en nooit meer wilde uitlezen.
Vond ik het mooi? Vond ik het disturbing? Vond ik het saai? Vond ik het dromerig? Ik vond het allemaal, en dat maakt dat dit boek eigenlijk niet voor mij te recenseren is.
Met vlagen prachtig, maar bij het uitlezen met een vreemd gevoel achtergebleven.
Het boek kwam traag op gang, het duurde sowieso even voordat ik in het verhaal zat. Er zaten prachtig geschreven stukken in, met de bekende poëtische diepgang van Murakami. Er waren echter ook momenten dat ik het boek weg wilde leggen en nooit meer wilde uitlezen.
Vond ik het mooi? Vond ik het disturbing? Vond ik het saai? Vond ik het dromerig? Ik vond het allemaal, en dat maakt dat dit boek eigenlijk niet voor mij te recenseren is.
Met vlagen prachtig, maar bij het uitlezen met een vreemd gevoel achtergebleven.
bella613's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- 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
4.5
I like the way Murakami writes, as if he must tell a story that really happened and not as if he's creating one.
I didn't love this book the way I loved Killing Commendatore. It was not quite what I expected, especially after hearing it was this book that exploded Murakami into fame. But I did connect with it. As it is with Murakami, there are some uncomfortable sections of the book. But there are some uncomfortable moments in life, so... it's sort of beautiful that he captures it so intensely?
I found myself most drawn to Naoko in this story. Midori as a character is someone I would probably not enjoy spending time with in real life, but added to the story in a mostly positive way. I didn't like Toru much in the same way that one might not like oneself. Listening from his pov felt like looking back on one's own life and seeing all the flaws and mistakes and self-centered choices that were made. But he was very real. That's one thing I also love about Murakami: all of his characters feel undeniably real.
My favorite part of the book was probably the long letter describing the sanatorium and the following visit to the sanatorium.
I didn't love this book the way I loved Killing Commendatore. It was not quite what I expected, especially after hearing it was this book that exploded Murakami into fame. But I did connect with it. As it is with Murakami, there are some uncomfortable sections of the book. But there are some uncomfortable moments in life, so... it's sort of beautiful that he captures it so intensely?
I found myself most drawn to Naoko in this story. Midori as a character is someone I would probably not enjoy spending time with in real life, but added to the story in a mostly positive way. I didn't like Toru much in the same way that one might not like oneself. Listening from his pov felt like looking back on one's own life and seeing all the flaws and mistakes and self-centered choices that were made. But he was very real. That's one thing I also love about Murakami: all of his characters feel undeniably real.
My favorite part of the book was probably the long letter describing the sanatorium and the following visit to the sanatorium.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, Mental illness, Rape, Alcohol, Sexual content, Suicide, Death, and Grief
ezrasupremacy's review against another edition
3.0
i finally made it! this was very different from what i expected, and definitely the worst book i could have started my murakami journey with — not because of the book itself, but because of me. i expected something a little, i don’t know, magical realism-esque, but turns out this is about as real-life as murakami gets.
either way, i’m proud of myself for making my way through. i neither enjoyed this particularly, nor did i dislike it. i just thought it was okay.
next time i read murakami i’ll be sure to pick a book better suited to my personal tastes.
either way, i’m proud of myself for making my way through. i neither enjoyed this particularly, nor did i dislike it. i just thought it was okay.
next time i read murakami i’ll be sure to pick a book better suited to my personal tastes.
groteskingg's review against another edition
emotional
funny
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This book tingles a part of my heart i thought had died a long time ago.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Sexual assault
aliya7's review against another edition
2.0
From the very first page, I knew that this book is going to be depressing maybe it was the writing style. Whatever I read actually impacts my whole day and for some reason, I had terrible nightmares and very negative/sad days when I was reading this book.
Taru is an ordinary boy with a messed-up past not knowing what he really wants like most teenagers.
Midori was a lively girl sometimes she annoyed me but I liked her overall.
Naoko, for some reason I don't have strong opinions about her.
Reiko, I find her very evil for some reason. She definitely did help Naoko a lot but her whole story didn't sit right with me.
Reiko and Taru having sex definitely ruined the ending for me.
The ending was confusing at first but then I drew my own conclusions about it. I think Midori and Taru did end up together.
Taru is an ordinary boy with a messed-up past not knowing what he really wants like most teenagers.
Midori was a lively girl sometimes she annoyed me but I liked her overall.
Naoko, for some reason I don't have strong opinions about her.
Reiko, I find her very evil for some reason. She definitely did help Naoko a lot but her whole story didn't sit right with me.
Reiko and Taru having sex definitely ruined the ending for me.
The ending was confusing at first but then I drew my own conclusions about it. I think Midori and Taru did end up together.
jamic3's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5