Norwegian Wood (4/5★)

 Norwegian Wood

Author: Haruki Murakami

Genre: Fiction, Contemporary

My Rating: 4/5

Summary: 

Toru, a quiet and preternaturally 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. Toru begins to adapt to campus life and the loneliness and isolation he faces there, but Naoko finds the pressures and responsibilities of life unbearable. As she retreats further into her own world, Toru finds himself reaching out to others and drawn to a fiercely independent and sexually liberated young woman.
A magnificent blending of the music, the mood, and the ethos that was the sixties with the story of one college student's romantic coming of age, Norwegian Wood brilliantly recaptures a young man's first, hopeless, and heroic love.

My Thoughts: 

Norwegian Wood was unlike any book I usually read. I picked it up during a layover between flights at the airport, expecting to pass some time—but ended up completely absorbed. The writing was calm, emotional, and introspective, with a quiet depth that lingered long after I finished. I completed the entire book in just a few hours, and although it felt different from my usual reads, it turned out to be a deeply engaging and thought-provoking experience.