Norwegian Wood Readalong - 5&6
I am terrible with reviews because I am so self-conscious of my writing. Also, the point of reviewing is to share your opinions, so you're laying your thoughts on the internet and shouting "judge me!", while you've but a plastic keyboard to defend yourself. Can you see why I've tried to avoid doing them? Oh well - new year, new resolutions, new attempts at reviewing, so please bear with me! /<end terrible review disclaimer>
I inked a sketch of Nakao
Chapter 5 & 6 worked out perfectly this week because they covered Toru's trip to Ami Hostel - but Chapter 6, why were you so long?! On the flipside, chapter 5 was only 5 pages, but I hate when chapters are lopsided like that.
Chapter 5 - Toru finally receives a letter from Nakao - it's frustrating to find that she's off in her own nicely secluded world with a very supportive Reiko at her side, while Toru can't properly enjoy life because he can't forget her. The hope that Nakao could write back one day and that she could get better - tugs a listless Toru back and forth from living his own life and hanging on to the past for Nakao. He numbly goes through classes and girls and won't cement anything down for the future, because there's always that chance that Nakao could call, could ask him out for another walk - could love him back.
Chapter 6 - ahhhh I'm such a prude. The whole chapter made me so uncomfortable but I have been warned about the book, so I'm going to cover my eyes and read between my fingers, haha. I know that Ami Hostel is all about the "sharing is caring" philosophy which includes sharing skills, sharing gardening/upkeep duties, and sharing emotional hardships, but an explicit form of kiss and tell with a complete stranger (Reiko) in the room? I kept forgetting that she was not in the bathroom, nor the kitchenette, nor the garden - until she commented here and there. I am aware that Nakao has entrusted all her secrets to Reiko and trusts her completely, but I'm surprised that for such a private person like Nakao, he's pretty chill with discussing Such Things with Nakao in the presence of a stranger. Murakami redeems himself by having Reiko divulge her story to Toru, so it's all good in the end. I sympathized with Reiko, but her words for the former piano student were so heated and hateful that I found myself questioning the validity of her side of the story. How many times can you mentally snap, see the "caution" and "suspicion" in everyone's eyes, and submit to your paranoia - yet persist that your way of viewing the situation is absolute? All's well that ends well because Reiko has found solace in Ami Hostel and has adjusted to a quiet, convent-like life. Toru goes back to the "real" world to work and school, so I guess we'll find out how well that suits him - NEXT WEEK!
Look at you readin' the book! And dude, you did an illustration! That's awesome. And something none of the others of us can apparently contribute. If I tried, it'd be smiling stick figures, with maybe one of them holding a flower.
ReplyDeleteYeeah, I don't know how to take the thing with Reiko and her pupil. I mean...it could be all true. And why would she make it up or exaggerate it? Unless she had some weird..deep-seated thing. I don't know. I don't care enough about the book to really think through it too much.
Yeah - that girl could have been shady, but Reiko Reiko Reiko... you just don't go along with a teenager and then blame her for everything. Man, that whole experience must have been so surreal!
DeleteI like drawing :) It's like the blog equivalent to fixing margins and font size on a paper :P
I love that you brought up Reiko possibly being an unreliable narrator when she shared her experience with the piano student. It wouldn't have occurred to me at all, but I think it's a valid point.
ReplyDeleteI'm a little meh about this whole book. ESPECIALLY since everyone and their librarian has raved about Mr. M. I'm kinda finding myself like ^ not really caring enough.
Not saying that Reiko's completely off her rocker since she's recovered and is telling the story 7 years later, but if this teenage girl was seriously a manipulative psycho girl who twisted everything up, this would be a Stephen King novel with crazy plot twists. Which it isn't since nothing's really going on.
DeleteWhile I love the characterizations and how I find myself frustrated with Toru's apathy towards everything except his unrequited relationship with Naoko, I'm not head over heels for this book either... and this is supposed to be the book that *everyone* in Japan has read. :-/
Beautiful illustration! You are very talented.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with you about Reiko being disingenuous. There was something very off about the way she told Toru about the incident with her piano student. Her whole monologue was one of the most uncomfortable things I've ever read. I'm hoping that Murakami meant for the reader to be uncomfortable during that scene, otherwise it's just so, so twisted.
Rayna - thank you for your kind comment! Even though my blog's been dead until I revived it recently, so I'm glad that the readalong brings me such nice company :)
DeleteMurakami's like a pro at making me feel uncomfortable now. I don't mind if the scenes get graphic, but you're right - she's sitting there, speaking this entire monologue without pause. I wonder how they took care of that in the movie - that's awfully long (and bad) scripting.
If anyone judges your writing, you should use your keyboard to whack that ruffian in the head. I'll help.
ReplyDeleteThat incredibly personal conversation in front of Reiko WAS a little awkward, wasn't it? It didn't help that she kept chiming in. I'm often accused of being an oversharer, but there's a line, people!
Megs - LOL at the keyboard suggestion... something tells me that you may have done it before... and I don't expect you to confirm nor deny :)
DeleteI guess Reiko evened it out by sharing her story as well. I had to go back and re-read a bit of it after seeing what everyone else had to say. Given the circumstances - they're in the mountains in the middle of nowhere, so it's not like Reiko would tell anyone about their conversation anyway. Still, it's weeeeird...