Stunning and elegiac, norwegian wood first propelled haruki murakami into the forefront of the literary scene. Toru recalls his life in the 1960s, when his friend kizuki killed himself and he grew close to naoko, kizukis girlfriend, and another woman, the outgoing, lively midori. As he walks through a large empty meadow with naoko, a girl he loved, she tells him a story about a mysterious well hidden in the. A freespirited drama major who says whatever is on her mindmost of the time, at leastmidori is naoko s polar opposite in almost every way. Further on in the book, it is revealed that naoko has already undergone a severe. The books theme is supposed the mirror the that of the song. Aug 11, 2010 stunning and elegiac, norwegian wood first propelled haruki murakami into the forefront of the literary scene.
I made the mistake of finishing norwegian wood on a plane. This is the book that launched murakamis career into the mainstream and its easy to see why. After reading norwegian wood twice this is what i think. Sep 04, 1987 norwegian wood begins with toru watanabe, a 37 year old man traveling to hamburg. Norwegian wood study guide from litcharts the creators. Norwegian wood is a book which derives its name from a famous 1965 song by beatles. Toru, a serious young college student in tokyo, is devoted to naoko, a beautiful and introspective young woman, but their mutual passion is. Is he burning the housenorwegian wood down, or is it a normal fire in a fireplace. Naoko lider av psykisk ohalsa och laggs in pa ett behandlingshem. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of norwegian wood by murakami.
His best friend, kizuki, just committed suicide and he is struggling to come to terms with the loss. She serves as a connection to living and to life that quiteprobably saves toru from the same fate as his friends. At the age of 17, kizuki, his best friend, decides to end his life leaving behind toru and his girlfriend, naoko, broken. I once had a girl or should i say, she once had me, go the opening lines of. Norwegian wood is a comingofage story in the manner of many american novels. Id recommend this book to friends, and im now in the middle of his 1q84 its got me hooked. Romanen gjorde murakami omattligt popular i sitt hemland till dennes stora fortret. Murakami captures the heartbeat of his generation and draws the reader in so completely you mourn when the story is done. He didnt kill himself as he is 37 and still alive, trying to remember everything of his past.
Hon hette naoko, och var flickvan till en av torus vanner. Toru s secondary love interest, midori, is a bright, talkative, adventurous student at waseda university. Norwegian wood by haruki murakami, jay rubin about the booka serious, quiet young college student in tokyo toru, is devoted to naoko, a beautiful and introspective young woman. Ive had a hard time getting into his other books killing commendatore in particular i kind of hated, but i really loved norwegian wood.
Norwegian wood depicts grief, suicide, and the resounding effects that it has on the victims of the suicide which are the ones left behind. The important thing is that naoko is dead and she never loved him and he knows. The character of naoko in norwegian wood from litcharts. Sep 27, 2011 ever since i read that book, i have been itching to lay my hands on any of the other murakami books and it was only natural that i chose one of his most popular books, norwegian wood. The norwegian wood quotes below are all either spoken by naoko or refer to naoko. Its obviousbut i have read somewhere a interpretation where tor. In 1987, when norwegian wood was first published in japan, it promptly sold more than 4 million copies and transformed haruki murakami into a popculture icon. By chance, toru meets kizukis exgirlfriend naoko in the university. If you are looking for a very good bildungsroman book then go ahead and download this book. Its my first haruki murakami book and it was really something wonderful. As his plane arrives at hamburg airport, toru watanabe hears the beatles song norwegian wood played over the speakers, bringing back an intense and painful memory, a scene from 18 years ago in 1969 when he was 19 years old. Norwegian wood is about toru watanabe and naoko who are bound together by the death of a common friend, kizuki.
Whats your interpretation of the ending of norwegian wood. First published in japan in 1987, it is this novel that propelled him into the forefront of the literary scene and made him japans biggestselling. Norwegian wood book by haruki murakami thriftbooks. Jun 01, 2011 norwegian wood was a wonderful window on the lives of the characters and the time period. Whats your interpretation of the ending of norwegian wood by. Norwegian wood i didnt understand the ending of this book, what. May 17, 2001 this book, norwegian wood feels like so. Midori brings toru back into his life, especially after the death of naoko. Further on in the book, it is revealed that naoko has already undergone a. Ever since i read that book, i have been itching to lay my hands on any of the other murakami books and it was only natural that i chose one of his most popular books, norwegian wood. Norwegian wood i didnt understand the ending of this. The character of naoko in norwegian wood from litcharts the. A deeply troubling yet poetically beautiful story, marie claire evocative, entertaining, sexy and funny. After hearing the norwegian wood by beatles, he is overcome with nostalgia and begins musing about his teenage years.
Toru bestammer sig for att karleken till naoko ar tillrackligt stor for att brev, telefonsamtal och. After reading the book, i immediately went to have a listen of the beatles norwegian wood, having never heard it before. The character of midori kobayashi in norwegian wood from. Toru and naoko are connected to each other through kizuki torus best friend and naoko is kizukis girlfriend. Norwegian wood essays are academic essays for citation. Torou, naoko, midori, reikou, nagasawa, you name it. The film was released in japan on 11 december 2010. Norwegian wood is set in the late 1960sa time of global unrest and desire for revolution and social change. This book was touching, emotional, sometimes visceral and overall both heartbreaking and joyful. It is told from the firstperson perspective of toru watanabe, who looks back on his days as a college student living in tokyo. Norwegian wood is a 1987 novel by japanese author haruki murakami. I didnt remember, who told me that either i will love it or hate it.
Jan 05, 2012 murakamis novels and short stories have often been called unfilmable, but norwegian wood is his most realistic book to date, lacking talking cats, alternate realities or surreal. Even 30 years after it was written, norwegian wood still remains haruki murakamis most famous novel. Norwegian wood borrows its title from the beatles song. Norwegian wood bears the unmistakable marks of murakamis hand. The one text that doesnt fit this description is norwegian wood.
Just the fact that watanabe chose midori over naoko shows that he chose life over. Through watanabes reminiscences readers see him develop relationships with two very different. Their mutual passion is marked by the tragic death of their best friend many years back. With the large number of allusions made to the song, it appears to me that the book could be interpreted in the manner it parallels the song. Set in the 1960s, high school student toru watanabe loses his only friend kizuki after he commits suicide. Toru watanabe is a quiet and serious young man in 1960s tokyo whose personal. Kizukis life ends leaving naoko and toru deeply unsettled. The novel is a nostalgic story of loss and burgeoning sexuality. Murakamis norwegian wood is the sort of book which begs to be examined for subtle references, a subtext here and there.
Norwegian wood was murakamis first major hit in japan and pushed the author into literary superstardom. Buy a cheap copy of norwegian wood book by haruki murakami. May 20, 20 this clip was cut from the movie norwegian wood. Norwegian wood chapter 1 summary and analysis gradesaver. Naoko s roommate at ami hostel, a woman in her late thirties who was on her way to becoming a concert pianist until a nervous breakdown ended her career. Norwegian wood haruki murakami page 36 read online free. Portrayed by kenichi matsuyama in the film version of norwegian wood 2010. Dramatic, provocative, and opinionated, midori strikes up a friendship with toru after borrowing some class notes from him one afternoon. Toru, now looking for a new life, enters a university in tokyo. August 2015 originally published on september 4th, 1987. Dec 06, 2011 rinko kikuchi as naoko in the film version of norwegian wood t he novel that raised haruki murakami to literary superstardom ranges across the seasons, but the heart of its meaning is found in winter. The novel centers around their relationship and how watanabe is forced to choose between first love naoko. Norwegian wood movie tiein edition by haruki murakami.
Naoko had been the childhood sweetheart of watanabes friend kizuki, who mysteriously commits suicide at the age of 17. The novel centers around their relationship and how watanabe is forced to choose. On the surface it is the 36 yr old toru watanabe remembering his student days and being in love with naoko. Norwegian wood av haruki murakami haruki murakami, en del av. A japanese film directed by tran anh hung viet with actor kenichi matsuyama. Norwegian wood begins with toru watanabe, a 37 year old man traveling to hamburg. Norwegian wood i didnt understand the ending of this book. This book is a perfect combination of the nostalgia and an extremely good story.
I am pretty convinced this is a somewhat convoluted interpretation but i wanted to see what other readers have to think about this. He starts the story in retrospect, focusing his gaze on his eighteenyearold self. Norwegian wood by haruki murakami book club discussion. As naoko retreats further into her own world, toru finds. He feels these memories as kicks and says they were longer and harder than usual. Norwegian wood the free library of philadelphia overdrive. Murakamis norwegian wood is a tale ill remember till my last breath. The song comes into play on the very first page of the novel, as a sweet orchestral cover version of the beatles norwegian wood murakami 3 begins to play over the speakers on a. I loved few parts of it and i wanted to enjoy that life. He promised but with the ravages of time, only a faint scintilla remained.
Norwegian wood study guide contains a biography of murakami, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. The thing that grabbed me immediately was the well its this hidden trap, no one knows where it is, if you step in it you are well and truly screwed. As toru and naoko grow even closer, naoko s sense of loss also grows. I just finished the book and have a different interpretation to offer. 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. The complexities of a bildungsroman in 1960s tokyo. Its the story of toru watanabe and the women he loved during his university days. Norwegian wood by haruki murakami, jay rubin bookchor. Murakamis novels and short stories have often been called unfilmable, but norwegian wood is his most realistic book to date, lacking talking. With kenichi matsuyama, rinko kikuchi, kiko mizuhara, kengo kora.
For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one. The lyrics to the song are on the cover page of this blog but can also be read here. It is one of the most popular books of murakami and is set in the japan of the 1960s during the period of student revolution. At torus tokyo university, leftists push for the destruction of the entire concept of the university as an institution of and for the privileged, echoing the may 1968 student riots at the sorbonne in france. Say the authors name to a random person in japan and in most cases, norway no mori is the first thing theyll say back to you. Posted on october 1, 2014 january 6, 2016 by hmadmin. Kizuki and naoko are particularly close and feel as if they are soulmates, and watanabe seems more than happy to be their enforcer. As such, norwegian wood is a novel steeped in pain, with characters that are deeply wounded, but it is also a novel of healing through the power of love.
Rinko kikuchi as naoko in the film version of norwegian wood t he novel that raised haruki murakami to literary superstardom ranges across the seasons, but the heart of its meaning is found in winter. Ive been reading books of haruki murakami and have loved the different. Norwegian wood is a simple story, simply told, with an emotion and quiet retrospection characteristic of murakamis trademark style, especially in works like south of the border, west of the sun. Norwegian wood study guide from litcharts the creators of. They grow close because they both share the same loss. Have you ever felt like you were in limbo, unable to grasp reality, questioning yourself on the meaning of. The book we are talking about norwegian wood is basically a japanese book. Toru begins to adapt to campus life and the loneliness and isolation he faces there. Apr 17, 2018 norwegian wood is a book which derives its name from a famous 1965 song by beatles. When watanabe arrives in hamburg and hears the song norwegian wood, memories of a scene with naoko from eighteen years before come back to him.