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A review by spottedtea
Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami
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.
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.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Adult/minor relationship
Moderate: Suicide