Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami

The very last book I had to read for the Book Junkie Trials was a book that intimidates me. What intimidates me as a reader is probably quite different from a lot of people - it's modern and post modern literature. Ask me to read Shakespeare? No problem. A 500 page Victorian era brick? Easy. Deeply weird and technical science fiction? Bring it on. When it comes to contemporary literature though, I start to lose my cool. I struggle to understand and enjoy stories where authors deviate from traditional forms and structures, especially when it's difficult to tell what's real and what's not. These types of literature are tough reads for me, and even though I want to learn more about these periods, I basically have to force myself to pick up books from them.

So when it came time to pick my intimidating read for this challenge, I decided to go with something from this general time period. I settled on Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami. It has the added benefit of being on my Classics Club list as well, so I could finally cross another one of those off my list with it. I did not think that this would be an overly difficult book for me, as it is fairly short and definitely not the most challenging of Murakami's works (at least as far as my Googling has been able to determine), but I still felt apprehensive about it. I got started anyway, determined to finish it before the end of the Trials.

The plot of the novel centers on Toru Watanabe, a Japanese college student in the 1960s. As the start of the story, he is struggling to process the recent suicide of his best friend, Kizuki. He has been profoundly affected by the loss and feels very ambivalent about his future. On a train one evening, he runs into Naoko, Kizuki's old girlfriend. They haven't spoken since the suicide, and it's clear that she is having a hard time processing it as well. They begin meeting for walks around Tokyo, and before long, romantic feelings develop between them.

The relationship between the pair is complicated; the memory of Kizuki always seems to be standing between them. Eventually, Naoko's grief takes a turn into mental illness, and she goes away to live in a treatment facility, leaving Toru lonely and indecisive about how to proceed with his life. After visiting Naoko in treatment, he decides to wait for her to recover, in hopes of moving in together and building a life once she is feeling better. However, as the months stretch on, it becomes more and more difficult for him to see the way forward. Naoko's condition begins to deteriorate, and Toru meets another young woman, a classmate named Midori, whose vitality offers him a brighter vision of what his future could be. Unsure of what to do, he must learn some difficult truths about love, grief, and moving forward after a tragedy.

I feel very split about Norwegian Wood. There were things I liked about it and things I didn't. I will elaborate on both in a moment, but first I want to comment on my initial apprehension. It turned out that I didn't need to feel intimidated about this novel at all. The magical realism and surrealism that characterizes many of Murakami's works is absent here. In fact, in looking at some reviews for the novel after I finished reading, I saw many people claim that this is his most realistic and straightforward work. I had no problem following the story and there was nothing particularly non-traditional about it. So, I was okay with that.

As for what I liked, it begins and ends with the writing. Murakami is clearly an incredibly gifted wordsmith. His prose is rich, imaginative, and a little unsettling. Throughout the novel, Toru and Naoko's sadness felt heavy and real - it oozed out of the text and went straight to my head. It was very successful at impacting my real-life mood; I was in a fog of gloominess while reading. I realize that doesn't sound great on its face, but it does make for a deeper reading experience, especially when you take into consideration that this is a novel where not a whole lot happens. It is very character driven and slow. In many other writers' hands, this story would be boring, but Murkami's writing was so enjoyable that I didn't mind the lack of action. I wasn't exactly on the edge of my seat, but I was still engaged in the story.

What I didn't like about the novel is a bit more difficult to explain. There seemed to be a very male immaturity running throughout the text. Toru comments frequently on the breasts of all the female characters, for example, and a lot of emphasis is placed on sex and masturbation. Nearly every woman in the story engages in some kind of sexual activity with him, and these encounters are described in abruptly frank detail. I'm not opposed to this type of content in stories, but the way it was included here felt weird. Each time a new female character was introduced, I was just waiting for her to have sex with Toru, and I was basically never disappointed. His prowess in the bedroom was unrealistic as well, with more than one character claiming that no other sex will compare with the sex they had with Toru. These parts of the story felt juvenile, like a teenage boy was describing an ideal sexual future for himself. It verged into the realm of ridiculous in an otherwise very serious and emotional novel.

Running alongside this issue for me was the depiction of women in general in this story. They don't fare very well. Most are weak, ill, overly emotional, or a combination of the three. Naoko, for example, despite being one of the main characters, is largely absent throughout the plot. Her instability is her defining character trait, and she seems only to exist to further Toru's character development, rather than be a character in her own right. Another major character, Reiko, is also defined through her instability as well. She is Naoko's roommate at the mental health facility, and she is a combination of a typical manic pixie dream girl and a sexual predator. Again, she exists only to help Toru mature. I would have preferred the women in the story to be a bit tougher, or at least more realistic. In this element of the novel, Murakami reminded me strongly of John Green - a male author creating zany, unpredictable girls to help a cool, nice guy protagonist grow up.

I know that last two paragraphs sound harsh, but I definitely didn't dislike this novel. The writing was strong enough to help me get through what I wasn't crazy about, and I was moved by the story overall. I was reminded strongly of Catcher in the Rye while reading. Much like that novel, Norwegian Wood is a coming of age tale featuring a disillusioned young man unsure of what to do with his life. There is a similar heaviness in the tone of both stories and Toru and Holden share several traits. Fans of one will most likely be fans of the other. It's worth picking up, if only to experience the writing.

For me, I think that this was a good read, but probably not the best choice for my first Murakami novel. It diverges significantly from the humor and magical realism he is known for. I would like to pick up a work more indicative of his signature style in the future. The irony is not lost on me that I started reading this book apprehensive about techniques like this and then finished it wanting to see more of them, but hey, the life of a reader is strange sometimes.

On a side note, finishing this novel marks the halfway point in my Classics Club challenge! Out of the 100 novels I plan to read by the end of 2021, I have now completed 50. I am only a few books behind where I should be at this point, meaning I have made up a lot of ground after the failure that was 2018's reading. I'm hoping to catch all the way up and maybe even get a little bit ahead by the end of this year. I'm going to have to pick up the pace though, because there are still a lot of really long classics on that list.

On another side note, this is my last book in The Book Junkie Trials. I have completed all 17 of the prompts and become quest champion! Participating in this challenge pushed me to read a total of 17 books this month, which is a personal reading record for me!


Challenge Tally
Book Junkie Trials (The Giant Squid - Read a book that intimidates you) 17/17 - Complete!
Classics Club (#10 on my list): 50/100 

Total Books Read in 2019: 55