Genre:- Romance, Fiction, Bildungsroman
Overall Rating: 3.5*
Hmm! Quirky, unsettling, entangled love stories, coming of age is what Norwegian Wood is all about.
The foremost experience of reading the initial few lines from this book is the link between Music and Memory.
Authored by Haruki Murakami in 1987 and set in the late 60s in Japan during evolving times, this novel gives the readers a one-of-a-kind experience of love and hate, happiness and sadness at the same time.
It is a first-person, retrospective narration through the lens of the protagonist Toru Watanabe.
At 37, when Toru hears the song Norwegian Wood by Beetles on an airplane, his heart takes him 20 years to the past when he was just 17 years old. All the memories of his lost love, friends, university, and his teenage experiences flash before him.
Norwegian Wood describes the life of a teenage college boy, Toru, and how the death of his best friend, Kizuki at the age of 17 changes his life forever.
‘All I knew- with absolute certainty- was that Kizuki’s death had robbed me for ever of some part of my adolescence. But what that meant, and what would come of it, were far beyond my understanding.’
Toru is indecisive and confused in his relationships in an attempt to maintain distance from the world. His not-so-stable relationships with the two main characters of this novel Naoko and Midori and later in the years his closeness with Reiko is a surreal experience. Kizuki’s girlfriend Naoko and Toru’s classmate Midori are two very unique female characters who are the stark opposite of each other.
While Toru is still trying to understand his loyalties and love for Naoko and Midori, one of them ultimately gets lost in a sanatorium and secludes herself forever. The events that follow are heart-wrenching exhibit of teenage fantasy, sexual liberation, and a lingering feeling of love that pierces your heart and mind at various stages.
This is not a normal romantic love story but a constant reminder that love without closure is like a slow poison.
The rhythm of the book is mellow and the writing is very descriptive. Some chapters are long and a bit stretched. There is an overall sad and miserable demeanor to the story.
Although, each character is beautifully carved, it is disappointing that the female characters are shown broken, depressed, vulnerable, and unable to get their lives on track. Recurring mental illness in all the female characters is disturbing to read when all the characters irrespective of their gender are somewhat traumatized in their way.
The theme of the book is literature, suicide, mental illness, raw love, sexuality, and music.
Throughout the book, there are interesting cultural, musical, and literature references that are a breath of fresh air in an otherwise dark and slow-paced story. Since Toru is always reading, the author has plugged in gems from the literature in this novel.
Overall, this journey highlights Survival Skills. Toru carries along with his life in all circumstances and does not submit to death.
The narrative and Toru’s monologue are articulated beautifully. Murakami is an ace author and he has managed to create a stir amongst the audiences with this disruptive, yet exceptional story.
The last few chapters are extremely tragic and I couldn’t help but notice that for several days I was in a different zone, mentally after reading Norwegian Wood.
'Forehead pressed against the glass, I shut my eyes and waited. At last, Midori’s quiet voice broke the silence: “Where are you now?”
Where was I now?
Gripping the receiver, I raised my head and turned to see what lay beyond the phone box. Where was I now? I had no idea.'
Literature references mentioned in this book that are worth reading:-
- The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
The Centaur by
The Magic Mountain by Thomas Mann
- Beneath the Wheel by Hermann Hesse
