Name: Norwegian Wood
Author: Haruki Murakami
Genre: Drama, Romance, Psychological, Mental Health, Contemporary, Magical Realism
Rating: 4.6/5
Review:
In a cafe of Germany, a Beatles’ song “Norwegian Wood” plays, 40 year old, Toru Watanabe, reminisces of his first love, Naoko, drifting into the memory of his 20 year old self.
Toru’s best friend, Kisuke and Naoko were soulmates. On his 17th birthday, Kisuke commits suicide, leaving a huge scar on both Toru and Naoko. Two years later, Toru again meets Naoko. They both starts hanging, finding solace in each other because of their shared loss.
But on Naoko’s 20th birthday, everything changes. She disappears without a trace leaving Toru in a state of loneliness.
During Naoko’s absence, Toru befriends Midori, a fellow classmate. Midori is a perfect counterpart of Naoko. She was everything that Naoko wasn’t. Toru’s life drifts between these two women, who are so different from each other.
Murakami is an amazing writer, his writing style is magical, it drifts the mind of readers into his world. The characters are so well developed, each having their own backstory. I liked the character of Midori alot, it’s hard not to like her. The ending left me, though the stream of thoughts were suprising. The ending was not something I was expecting.
This book is amazing, and perfect for readers who wants to try Murakami’s books for the first time.
For Further Reading:
A Walk To Remember by Nicholas Sparks
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