Stunning and elegiac, Norwegian Wood first propelled Haruki Murakami into the forefront of the literary scene.Toru, a serious young college student in Tokyo, is devoted to Naoko, a beautiful and introspective young woman, but their mutual passion is marked by the tragic death of their best friend years before. As Naoko retreats further into her own world, Toru finds himself drawn to a fiercely … himself drawn to a fiercely independent and sexually liberated young woman.
A magnificent coming-of-age story steeped in nostalgia, Norwegian Wood blends the music, the mood, and the ethos that were the sixties with a young man’s hopeless and heroic first love.
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My favorite quote:
“Death is not the opposite of life but an innate part of it. By living our lives, we nurture death.”
This is another Haruki Murakami novel I will read many times. It is a Bildungsroman – a coming of age story not unlike several of his other’s: Kafka on the Shore, Colorless…
Set in the late 60’s the story depicts the sexual …
i have loved all of his books that I have read thus far. Really learn a lot about Japanese culture and interpersonal relationships.
Not necessarily tragic, but certainly not “happily ever after”
Haruku Murakami is one of my favorites. He takes me to worlds I would never see otherwise. This is a haunting romantic book.
I must say I did not enjoy this book. I kept reading because I kept expecting something to happen. I had a hard time identifying with any of the characters. Maybe it is a cultural divide since the book takes place in Japan. The story was sad.
I loved all the writings of Murakami’s books. Wholly original… it took me many years to find a writer so perfect forme on an imaginative level…
I love anything by this author
Maybe I’m still too new to the Murakami fan club, but move over Catcher in the Rye. There’s another entry in the growing up genre. The protagonist’s well told challenges of navigating stormy relationships made me young again.
I grew up in America, where all depictions of Japan were either ancient samurai or robotic perverted businessmen. It’s refreshing to see a depiction of 20th-century life that portrays unassuming people, students and those struggling with the same sorts of situations that I remember from my youth. There’s something freeing about American literature …
The first book to win acclaim for this favorite author. Not, however my favorite offering.
I can’t explain why this book touched me so deeply. Explaining this book is difficult, because on a surface level the story seems straightforward.
To put it simply, a young man at university dates a bunch of woman, falls in love with one girl who suffers with mental health and vows to wait until she’s ready to be with him; but then he finds it …
This is different for the author as it is mostly a love story. Of course it isn’t your normal love story.