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3.35 AVERAGE
3.35 AVERAGE
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Book 72 out of 200 books
"Pinball, 1973" by Haruki Murakami
Trilogy of the Rat #2
"Pinball, 1973" is the second novel by Haruki Murakami, as well as the second novel of the Rat Trilogy. The novel returns to the main narrator of the previous novel as now he works as a freelance translator and at the same time, taking a liking towards Pinball, a hobby of his.
The novel gets weirder, with twin sisters sleeping simultaneously with the main character, it is getting even more grimmer.
MY THOUGHTS:
Murakami's second novel is one of his that I dislike. This novel was badly planned in my opinion, or probably I just forgot some of the plot of this novel, but still- it is still a badly planned novel.
I did like the previous novel and the next and last of the trilogy "A Wild Sheep Chase" due to the more enjoyable nature of the latter novel.
This book is a rather inconsequential novel of Murakami's. I don't know if he couldn't think of better things to write or not.
"Pinball, 1973" by Haruki Murakami
Trilogy of the Rat #2
"Pinball, 1973" is the second novel by Haruki Murakami, as well as the second novel of the Rat Trilogy. The novel returns to the main narrator of the previous novel as now he works as a freelance translator and at the same time, taking a liking towards Pinball, a hobby of his.
The novel gets weirder, with twin sisters sleeping simultaneously with the main character, it is getting even more grimmer.
MY THOUGHTS:
Murakami's second novel is one of his that I dislike. This novel was badly planned in my opinion, or probably I just forgot some of the plot of this novel, but still- it is still a badly planned novel.
I did like the previous novel and the next and last of the trilogy "A Wild Sheep Chase" due to the more enjoyable nature of the latter novel.
This book is a rather inconsequential novel of Murakami's. I don't know if he couldn't think of better things to write or not.
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I'm not sure if I like this more or less than the first one, hear the wind sing. It is a good book though, and was fun to read.
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Murakami's second novel, like his first, shows him finding his way towards the literary voice he later established. It once again follows the ups and downs of the unnamed narrator, working with his business partner in an English translation service, and The Rat, an aimless college friend of the narrator who has money to live on but little distinct sense of purpose.
The story itself is quite thin. The narrator, whose professional life already has him feeling like he is in the doldrums at the age of twenty-five, finds himself seized with nostalgia for a rare pinball machine he used to play three years ago. (His oddball personal life, in which a pair of more-identical-than-identical twins inexplicably takes up residence with him, sharing his bed but not his emotional life, only to leave with little fanfare at the end of the book, plays little role in the story other than to supply some silly incidents.) The glimpse of the mature Murakami we get is when our narrator, with the help of a pinball enthusiast university lecturer, tracks down the elusive pinball machine in what can only be described as a carefully curated pinball machine morgue kept by an unnamed, obscure collector. The frigid, sterile-yet-still-unwholesome pinball machine warehouse gives us a glimpse of the mature Murakami, who describes with aplomb a scene mysterious and uncanny, vaguely threatening and yet also a metaphor (I think) for modern Japan's relationship with its own past.
The Rat, meanwhile, decides to leave town because, not to put too fine a point on it, he ends up in a very brief romantic relationship whose emotional significance is too much for him to handle, so he retreats from it into emotional unavailability and, finally, dissolution and escape. I mean, sometimes you're just not ready for an actual adult relationship, sometimes you need to work on you, but The Rat seems to lack even the ability to say that to someone.
All in all, not a great book. The Murakami enthusiast will find some points of interest, but if you are otherwise wanting to see Murakami at his best, pick up [b:The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle|11275|The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle|Haruki Murakami|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1327872639l/11275._SY75_.jpg|2531376] instead.
The story itself is quite thin. The narrator, whose professional life already has him feeling like he is in the doldrums at the age of twenty-five, finds himself seized with nostalgia for a rare pinball machine he used to play three years ago. (His oddball personal life, in which a pair of more-identical-than-identical twins inexplicably takes up residence with him, sharing his bed but not his emotional life, only to leave with little fanfare at the end of the book, plays little role in the story other than to supply some silly incidents.) The glimpse of the mature Murakami we get is when our narrator, with the help of a pinball enthusiast university lecturer, tracks down the elusive pinball machine in what can only be described as a carefully curated pinball machine morgue kept by an unnamed, obscure collector. The frigid, sterile-yet-still-unwholesome pinball machine warehouse gives us a glimpse of the mature Murakami, who describes with aplomb a scene mysterious and uncanny, vaguely threatening and yet also a metaphor (I think) for modern Japan's relationship with its own past.
The Rat, meanwhile, decides to leave town because, not to put too fine a point on it, he ends up in a very brief romantic relationship whose emotional significance is too much for him to handle, so he retreats from it into emotional unavailability and, finally, dissolution and escape. I mean, sometimes you're just not ready for an actual adult relationship, sometimes you need to work on you, but The Rat seems to lack even the ability to say that to someone.
All in all, not a great book. The Murakami enthusiast will find some points of interest, but if you are otherwise wanting to see Murakami at his best, pick up [b:The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle|11275|The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle|Haruki Murakami|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1327872639l/11275._SY75_.jpg|2531376] instead.