Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage

Bought this for my dad when he came to stay with me for a couple of weeks, he absolutely loved it.

After disliking the Murakami I had read before this one, IQ84, I went into this with some hesitation. I used to very much enjoy reading books by Murakami, but the more recent ones felt increasingly repetitive and worn-out.This book focuses on the title character, Tsukuru Tazaki, who used to belong to a group of five friends in high school. All the other friends had colors in their names, and went by color nicknames, while he did not. As a consequence he viewed himself as "colorless" and thought of himself as an uninteresting, empty person, albeit one who liked trains. After going to university, the others in the group cut him off without explanation, and as a result, his life was forever changed. Many years later, he goes back to the members of the group to figure out what happened and to piece his life back together. And that's the story. There is a bit more depth to it, Tsukuru's near-death experience as a result of being ostracized (oof), another story about death, explicit sex dreams, and such, but by and large this is a straightforward story of self-discovery and personal growth.I kept feeling reminded of Banana Yoshimoto while reading it, especially the last book of hers I read, The Lake. The way the characters were depicted and interacted seemed more like something she would write, but with her characters, there is something that makes them feel real. This wasn't bad, and I enjoyed reading it (especially the later scenes), but it didn't have much staying power for me.

Murakami writes beautifully. I enjoyed reading the book, but it felt like when nothing was happening, I think I was supposed to be experiencing life in an odd transcendental fashion, but it was only a little mysterious at times and them well, the multiple universes theory just seemed like someone who felt guilty about all that had happened. Which of us has not imagined life if we had not done or said X or Y, but this is just pretty typical.It did, in fact, bother me that Tsukuru never thought of confronting his old friends for 16 years and only when essentially forced to do so.. I understand how hurt comes into it, but sooner or later this generates some sort of anger. No doubt after that, you might hatch a plan to find out what happened. But not Tsukuru. he doesn't eat much, has plenty of money, loves his job as a railroad depot construction engineer, and is capable. Frankly I cannot imagine any of his personality did much for his career. He is curiously regimented, even though he hardly does anything remotely Japanese except visit his family, which, in act, makes him uncomfortable. When the guy goes out in Japan, he searches out a diner with great meat loaf instead of grabbing a delicious Ramen. Oh well! The only thing Japanese about this book is the train station with the mind boggling number of travelers.I have always wanted to read this author, and this is my first book of his, but I felt like he was adapting a kind of formula for writing this one. Essentially there were some thoughtful moments, a terrific ethereal story by a friend who enters and leaves his life silently, and then there is a great deal of repetition concerning his thoughts on why his friends might have snubbed him. His psyche is repaired afar too quickly at the end, fairy tale like, and I didn't really believe it anyway. I couldn't help feel that if Sara had another BF, then it would be wise to find another one. At he end, despite the enthusiasm, Tsukuru is still badly damaged. It takes lots of time. I also think the actual story might have been much shorter without losing a thing, but Murakami drags it out forever. Three stars for the writing.

I really like reading Murakami's books. He is a fantastic writer, who's books are just plain enjoyable to read.This book is no exception. It begins with Tsukuru being troubled by something bad that has happened to him (very troubled, very troubled). The rest of the story is his evolution away from the idea that this thing simply happened to him. After many years he finally investigates what really happened and realizes that there were other perspectives. It turned out that the main issue wasn't all about him at all; it was really more about someone else who actually suffered more than he did. We all need to better realize that the world does not revolve around us. Things do not simply happen to us, we are part of a larger whole. This book is a great example of that.The only thing I didn't like about the book was it was too short. When I finished, I thought, "is it done already?" After reading 1Q84, this one seemed like only half a book. I wanted to know more.

What a superb journey this was...I felt so connected and drawn into the life of Tsukuru that the line between he and I blurred much like the line between dream and wake....Fiction, in general, bores me to tears: mundane, scare mongering, trite etc, etc. The majesty and exquisiteness of this novel is the ability of the writer to draw you into the tale which subsequently draws YOU within yourself--- delving deep into the cavern of one's most painful and pivotal life experience, of seeing the mountain peaks of what could have been, of the angst, confusion and self-doubt that tears into defining the who and what one is.To say the novel is remarkable is an understatement. Writing that is this alive, this relatable and deeply complicated in revealing the layers of human consciousness and emotions comes few and far between. I feel that, like those with a palate to be taste testers, those who do more of their own internal self journey would appreciate the work on scale much more than the average.All in all, I finished it feeling as though I had a 7 course meal. It feed all parts of my being: spiritual, emotional, psychological and mental. Highly recommended.Thank you, Mr. Murakami, for the pilgrimage.