Men Without Women

This collection was inconsistent. Some high points, some low points, but mainly in the middle. While Murakami\’s style comes through, I don\’t think this collection shows him off very well. I would think a person new to Murakami might think \”what\’s the fuss?\” after reading this. Many of the main characters have strange but strongly held beliefs. That isn\’t unusual for Murakami characters, but most of them had little to offer otherwise, so some of the stories came off as just strange. Of the stories, I thought \”Kino\” was the best. Kirby Heyborne has a neutral, flat delivery; seemingly perfect for Murakami. The problem is that in the (rare) instances where the text called out for an emotional reading, Heyborne couldn\’t or didn\’t follow through.

A man meets his wife\’s lover and finds out he likes the guy. A Tokyoite teaches himself to speak with a Kansai accent. A bug turns into Gregor Samsa. People disappear. Men and women remain enigmas to each other. Sadness. Loneliness. We\’re in Haruki\’s World. There\’s a familiarity to all these stories, and yet, they never fail to entertain. Murakami doesn\’t top himself here, but neither does he show a loss of talent. If you liked his other short stories, you\’ll most likely enjoy these. The converse is also true.

“That\’s what it is like to lose a woman. And at a certain time, losing one woman means losing all women. That\’s how we become Men Without Women.” — Haruki Murakami, Men Without Women This is a soft Murakami. A lot of his novels are dreamlike, but this one seems more like an emotional smell than a memory. There just isn\’t a lot to grab onto. It reminded me of petting a sea anemone flower at a local aquarium. I knew I was doing it. I was even thrilled a bit as I was doing it. It just didn\’t register in the way I predicted. Anyway, the book is a series of short stories, I\’ve included my ranking for each: 1. Drive My Car – 2. Yesterday – 3. An Independent Organ – 4. Scheherazade – 5. Kino – 6. Samsa in Love – 7. Men without Women –

I\’m sorry I tried to like it. I like endings to a story but I guess it makes you think about …..

? does modern urban life seem uncertain, mysterious and almost “inhuman” at times ? would it help to read an author who can lovingly tease out these struggles ? if haruki murakami wins the nobel prize one day, would it surprise you by its\’ title, murakami\’s wonderful book invites comparison to ernest hemingway he tells us about a series solitary men struggling to understand and interact with women each of the men finds this task slow, difficult, enigmatic and, at times, defeating i suspect murakami believes men\’s true selves are ground down by modern life their awkward attempts to reach out to women are really attempts to find themselves murakami\’s tender insightful text lends an all-embracing nobility to these struggles

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