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3.85 AVERAGE
3.85 AVERAGE
Norwegian Wood wasn’t what I was looking for in a Murakami book. His style of writing in this was different to his usual style, and while I can appreciate it, I much prefer his other books. I thought some parts were a bit dull, and I didn’t care about some of it.
Toru Watanabe is a college student, who has lost his best friend to suicide, and wants to be with two girls at once. One, his former best friend’s girlfriend, who is overcome by grief and ends up at a sanatorium, and the other, who is very bubbly and extroverted, and also has a lot on her plate.
I love Murakami’s writing style; he can make the most boring and mundane things come to life, and I think this is what helped me through the book. That being said, there wasn’t a lot I liked about the story itself. I like the traditional, surreal Murakami, and so my expectations were vey different to what was delivered. I found most of the characters quite irritating, although they were very unique, and each had a very developed personality. The only thing I really hated about the book were the sex scenes, two of which were especially unnecessary and uncomfortable to read.
For me, the main issue was that it wasn’t what I wanted from a Murakami book, and I probably wouldn’t have picked it up had it been written by somebody else.
Toru Watanabe is a college student, who has lost his best friend to suicide, and wants to be with two girls at once. One, his former best friend’s girlfriend, who is overcome by grief and ends up at a sanatorium, and the other, who is very bubbly and extroverted, and also has a lot on her plate.
I love Murakami’s writing style; he can make the most boring and mundane things come to life, and I think this is what helped me through the book. That being said, there wasn’t a lot I liked about the story itself. I like the traditional, surreal Murakami, and so my expectations were vey different to what was delivered. I found most of the characters quite irritating, although they were very unique, and each had a very developed personality. The only thing I really hated about the book were the sex scenes, two of which were especially unnecessary and uncomfortable to read.
For me, the main issue was that it wasn’t what I wanted from a Murakami book, and I probably wouldn’t have picked it up had it been written by somebody else.
emotional
hopeful
reflective
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:
Complicated
emotional
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book took me back to my first few depressive years moving away from home for uni. Hauntingly sad yet beautiful, like watching an old sad movie the umpteenth for comfort on a rainy Sunday.
dark
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I read this the first half of this book over the course of two weeks and the other half in one night.
What drew me into the book was the first half. I was engrossed by Murakami’s narrative style, the sentences weren’t too dragged on. They were clear-cut yet had depth to them which an average reader or analyst of literature can appreciate.
However, I did not expect the amount of sadness, loss and grief to be packaged in a coming-of-age. Murakami addresses the death so ruthlessly, just a mention and then tortures the characters who are grieving over mountain of pages long. I really did not expect so many of them to die. I mean it was shocking for the first two characters but then the MAIN one? Naoko dying caught me off-guard and I felt like for such a monumental character her death was written quite briskly and Toru didn’t seem so bad going through her death except taking time off school. What made me unable to sympathise with him was how he had the audacity to sleep with Reiko after that. I mean, how? Proof that men just see intimacy differently.
I’ve been warned how Murakami writes his female characters and there some parts I was certainly put off by. The character I felt had injustice in their development was Midori. It was literally manic-pixie-dream girl packaged in a book written in the 80s. I really wished that she at least gave Toru a longer piece of her mind and decided to torture him more with her absence or silence. And the ending scene. I am unable to grapple with how the book ends. Perhaps it is due to a fault in translation or the effects of reading a book at 2am but I think that the last paragraph doesn’t do the book justice especially when you compare it with the opening chapters of the book. It just lacks in substance for me.
Anyway, this is my first Murakami book. I might pick up more of his stuff later but I think I need to get away from coming-of-age stories in literary fiction for a while. This was a lot to take in.
I would like to extend to Murakami the credit of making me realise how much I enjoy reading. Also, I found out I am actually a binge reader. So yeah, props to him I guess. I suppose from now on when I get in this dilemma to either scroll through YouTube or pick up a book I will choose the latter because I definitely won’t be disappointed.
What drew me into the book was the first half. I was engrossed by Murakami’s narrative style, the sentences weren’t too dragged on. They were clear-cut yet had depth to them which an average reader or analyst of literature can appreciate.
However, I did not expect the amount of sadness, loss and grief to be packaged in a coming-of-age. Murakami addresses the death so ruthlessly, just a mention and then tortures the characters who are grieving over mountain of pages long. I really did not expect so many of them to die. I mean it was shocking for the first two characters but then the MAIN one? Naoko dying caught me off-guard and I felt like for such a monumental character her death was written quite briskly and Toru didn’t seem so bad going through her death except taking time off school. What made me unable to sympathise with him was how he had the audacity to sleep with Reiko after that. I mean, how? Proof that men just see intimacy differently.
I’ve been warned how Murakami writes his female characters and there some parts I was certainly put off by. The character I felt had injustice in their development was Midori. It was literally manic-pixie-dream girl packaged in a book written in the 80s. I really wished that she at least gave Toru a longer piece of her mind and decided to torture him more with her absence or silence. And the ending scene. I am unable to grapple with how the book ends. Perhaps it is due to a fault in translation or the effects of reading a book at 2am but I think that the last paragraph doesn’t do the book justice especially when you compare it with the opening chapters of the book. It just lacks in substance for me.
Anyway, this is my first Murakami book. I might pick up more of his stuff later but I think I need to get away from coming-of-age stories in literary fiction for a while. This was a lot to take in.
I would like to extend to Murakami the credit of making me realise how much I enjoy reading. Also, I found out I am actually a binge reader. So yeah, props to him I guess. I suppose from now on when I get in this dilemma to either scroll through YouTube or pick up a book I will choose the latter because I definitely won’t be disappointed.
dark
reflective
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
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes