i had a false start with hard boiled wonderland..and got in after reading wild sheep chase, love the books...but I do recommend the audio editions, helps get through the long parts.
@MrDragon007 re you said ''I've read all his books that are available in English or Dutch, and that includes Norwegian wood, of which I have that nice early Kodansha edition in two volumes, translated by Alfred Birnbaum who's in my opinion Murakami's best translator.
I though that NW was pretty good, really, but it is not my favorite." So which is FAVE?
Thank you for your review. I liked it very much. I found it by surfing for Janacek's Sinfonietta. I happened to receive 2 copies of the American version for Christmas from people who know I enjoy reading Murakami.
Just finished 1Q84 in its English one-giant-novel form. It was absolutely addicting, and the writing was just superb! Murakami is simply a fantastic writer and story-teller. I finished all 925 pages of it in just two weeks. Not bad for a sixteen-year old. ;D
Anyway, this novel makes me want read more of Murakami's work. You're explanation was lovely by the way (and your accent is great, too)!
the only book worth reading by Murakami is NORWEGIAN WOOD. Read that book and you will understand why. End of a story. Case closed. But do read it before you flame me. His entire "career" after that book was staged managed by marketing execs in cahoots with bottom line spread sheets. And they purposefully kept Norwegian Wood out of the limelight and the market in the USA in order to create the "persona" to sell these other books. Read NW and you will understand that all the rest is mere hype.
@MrDanbloom I've read all his books that are available in English or Dutch, and that includes Norwegian wood, of which I have that nice early Kodansha edition in two volumes, translated by Alfred Birnbaum who's in my opinion Murakami's best translator.
I though that NW was pretty good, really, but it is not my favorite.
Great review :) Started reading the norwegian edition recently. Only at page 100 or so, but for now I gotta say it's great! The third book isn't out yet in norwegian so I'm really gonna take my time reading it.
Thank you very much for your review, it's really great compared to other Murakami reviews. I personally just loved seeing all of the editions you own. An original copy of Norwegian Wood has been a hole in my collection for a long time. Thanks so much!
Mr Dagon! Great, in-depth (without being too spoilerific) review! Really this is one of the best discussions of Murakami's work I've ever seen, particularly on YouTube! I can't thank you enough for your interesting discussion. Even though you have a bit of a strong accent, I was able to understand everything you said and you said it better than more native English speakers could have. I must say I'm a bit disappointed in the English translators, though, that they couldn't get this out quicker
@MrDagon007 I have read Kafka on the Shore and I enjoyed that too. I've also finished Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman and After the Quake. I'm reading The Elephant Vanishes and I have just started the audio version of Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World. Thank you for introducing me to this author!
I'm a huge Murakami fan and I can't wait for an english edition of 1Q84.
I've just finished reading his "A Wild Sheep Chase", the book on 2:00. For those who liked the Sheep Man, I recommend reading "Dance, Dance, Dance", it's kind of a sequel to a "Wild Sheep Chase".
I also must agree with you, Norwegian Wood (the movie) is vaguely competent to be good as the book. For me, it was missing something that would "spice" things up.
Ik heb je review geluisterd omdat ik erg benieuwd was wat een ander er nou van zou vinden, en gek genoeg vertel je precies het omgekeerde van wat ik ervan vind! Ik vond juist dat de eerste twee boeken een spannende snelle verhaallijn hadden, maar het derde boek vreselijk langdradig en voorspelbaar was - heel on-Murakami vond ik het. Teleurstellend zelfs.
Maar goed, bedankt voor je review! Interessant om een andere mening erover te horen :)
@Sidzeflits Bedankt voor je feedback. Ik vond dat ie in de eerste twee delen echt een editor kon gebruiken, omdat er zoveel herhaling was. Bijvoorbeeld, hoe vaak er +- hetzelfde werd verteld over Tengo's oudere vriendin. Deel 3 heeft dat probleem niet, maar het is natuurlijk zo dat je voelt dat de verhaallijnen zich aan her sluiten zijn, en daarom is er misschien iets minder van die Murakami sfeer. Vond je de detective geen razend interessant personage? Groetjes!
I don't comment much, so I wanted to take a moment to thank you again for the vids. I love your channel. Knives and books and food. No better combination. I always look forward to new vids from you. This one is no different. Nice one! So, thanks and have a great one my friend.
Dagon, I am curious on the subject of literature, do you like to read books with themes that you identify with, or are you happy to read books with themes you find alien or even objectionable?
For example, supposing you had never felt alienated from society or confused about your identity, would you still enjoy Catcher in the Rye? Or if you believed very strongly that man can and ought to control nature and advance technologically etc, could you enjoy Frankenstein?
@An0nEeMouse In general I love to discover books that feel unique. Usually I don't really mind if the book has themes that are alien to me. An obvious example is "Lolita" (ok, there is so much more in the book than the high level story, but still) is one of my favourite books. A few other examples are Thomas Ligotti's elegant but nihilistic short horror stories (granted, I appreciate them only in small doses), or some Charles Bukowski stories which are often full of self-destructive behaviour.
A Japanese novel that starts with an allusion to Janacek is definitely something that would normally catch my attention! But here's my problem: How can I justify reading a volume of 1600 pages when there are still thousands of pages of Proust's "Recherche" waiting to be read? - Yes, I know, it's a kind of an intellectual luxury problem.
That aside, I really enjoyed your excellent review. I'm always amazed by your widespread interests and knowledge.
@stschmalhaus Yes, the Proust should be really worth the time investment. From what I heard, once you get going in it, you don't want to read anything else. Even so, I am not sure when I'll get around reading it...
@zigzagskunket It is the classical composition Sinfonietta by the Czech composer Janacek. Not a piece that many people know. Search for it here on Youtube, there are various fragments online, several of them uploaded because of its importance in the 1Q84 novel.
Thank you for another excellent review. I have enjoyed reading other books you have recommended so I am looking forward to reading '1Q84' as well. For now I will start with 'A Wild Sheep Chase.'
@LakesideReader "A Wild Sheep Chase" is an early Murakami novel, and already very good and definitely original. I think you'll like it. From my previous reviews, do track down "The Restraint of Beasts".
@LakesideReader i wouldnt start with a wild sheep chase because it is an earlier work and not as powerful but norwegian wood, dance dance dance (which is kind of Wild Sheep's sequel that i read first) or Wind up bird Chronicles.
i had a false start with hard boiled wonderland..and got in after reading wild sheep chase, love the books...but I do recommend the audio editions, helps get through the long parts.
maczuka 1 week ago
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@MrDragon007 re you said ''I've read all his books that are available in English or Dutch, and that includes Norwegian wood, of which I have that nice early Kodansha edition in two volumes, translated by Alfred Birnbaum who's in my opinion Murakami's best translator.
I though that NW was pretty good, really, but it is not my favorite." So which is FAVE?
MrDanbloom 1 month ago
Thank you for your review. I liked it very much. I found it by surfing for Janacek's Sinfonietta. I happened to receive 2 copies of the American version for Christmas from people who know I enjoy reading Murakami.
gms
gs547 2 months ago
Just finished 1Q84 in its English one-giant-novel form. It was absolutely addicting, and the writing was just superb! Murakami is simply a fantastic writer and story-teller. I finished all 925 pages of it in just two weeks. Not bad for a sixteen-year old. ;D
Anyway, this novel makes me want read more of Murakami's work. You're explanation was lovely by the way (and your accent is great, too)!
Rissykinns 3 months ago
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the only book worth reading by Murakami is NORWEGIAN WOOD. Read that book and you will understand why. End of a story. Case closed. But do read it before you flame me. His entire "career" after that book was staged managed by marketing execs in cahoots with bottom line spread sheets. And they purposefully kept Norwegian Wood out of the limelight and the market in the USA in order to create the "persona" to sell these other books. Read NW and you will understand that all the rest is mere hype.
MrDanbloom 3 months ago
@MrDanbloom I've read all his books that are available in English or Dutch, and that includes Norwegian wood, of which I have that nice early Kodansha edition in two volumes, translated by Alfred Birnbaum who's in my opinion Murakami's best translator.
I though that NW was pretty good, really, but it is not my favorite.
MrDagon007 1 month ago
I found your review very very helpful, and very interesting to hear, thank you.
loveislikemusic 3 months ago
Comment removed
martinvoet 3 months ago
Awesome video! I hope you do more that are similar!
vigil 4 months ago
Okay I must admit that I am addicted to Haruki Murikami novels. I've listened in the past. 1984 will be my first text.
louisejbjb 4 months ago
woow....i really need to buy 1Q84 -1-2-3 ( you cant blame me for not having it, since i am only a poor student:D Lol.)
MrLilort 4 months ago
i just started reading this author...i´m in love with his art ..can´t wait
ToniSkit 6 months ago
Great review :) Started reading the norwegian edition recently. Only at page 100 or so, but for now I gotta say it's great! The third book isn't out yet in norwegian so I'm really gonna take my time reading it.
Mewfan 6 months ago
Comment removed
scavengedfantasyname 7 months ago
Thank you very much for your review, it's really great compared to other Murakami reviews. I personally just loved seeing all of the editions you own. An original copy of Norwegian Wood has been a hole in my collection for a long time. Thanks so much!
AkiraSuzuki93 7 months ago
As an interpreter, I must admit that your on-the-fly translation was quite impressive. Cheers.
Yupiyeahs 7 months ago
@Yupiyeahs Thanks for the kind words. Looking back, I should have prepared a translation, as I think it should have been more fluent.
MrDagon007 7 months ago
@MrDagon007 But not nearly as interesting. ;-)
Yupiyeahs 7 months ago
Mr Dagon! Great, in-depth (without being too spoilerific) review! Really this is one of the best discussions of Murakami's work I've ever seen, particularly on YouTube! I can't thank you enough for your interesting discussion. Even though you have a bit of a strong accent, I was able to understand everything you said and you said it better than more native English speakers could have. I must say I'm a bit disappointed in the English translators, though, that they couldn't get this out quicker
84paratize 8 months ago 3
@84paratize Thanks for the kind words !
MrDagon007 8 months ago
Will you ever sell your copies of the Norwegian Wood?
hotcoffee15 9 months ago
@hotcoffee15 Probably Never. Now I know they are collectible meanwhile, so perhaps if someone offers me a princely sum in 10 years...
MrDagon007 9 months ago
@darquetime I just finished 'A Wild Sheep Chase' about an hour ago. I liked it so I'll be moving on to 'Dance Dance Dance' next. Thanks!
LakesideReader 10 months ago
@LakesideReader For me, Dance Dance Dance was an unecessary sequel. But it is entertaining. Also check out Kafka on the Shore.
MrDagon007 9 months ago
@MrDagon007 I have read Kafka on the Shore and I enjoyed that too. I've also finished Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman and After the Quake. I'm reading The Elephant Vanishes and I have just started the audio version of Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World. Thank you for introducing me to this author!
LakesideReader 9 months ago
@LakesideReader The hard-boiled wonderland is one of my favourite murakami novels. Fond memories of unicorns...
MrDagon007 9 months ago
Thank you! Very insightfull review :) Cant wait for Portuguese editions!
RealityBits 10 months ago
5、虚構を書く小説家にとって現実は反虚構だ。しかし、不確かさの中の彼らに敢えて不確かな世界は不必要なのは自明だ。は虚構の反対の存在だ。だから現実性すら不確かな若者が「 不確かな虚構をあえて読む筈がない 」なぜなら、不確かな世界そのものが若者の世界だからだ。
KazukiHaruno 10 months ago
4、でなかったら頻繁にそんな言葉で二度聞きしないと思うから。であれば若者は先から年寄りは不可思議な存在なのかもしれない。また別に彼ら同士でもよく使われる。してみると彼らにとっても現実は現実感に確かさのないものみたいだ。
KazukiHaruno 10 months ago
3、歳を重ねるごと私は現実が現実であることに覚束なさを感じて来る。そういう私がものをいうとよく 「 マジ ？」という反応がある。そこから帰納して考えると年寄りとはワンダリングな生物のようなものらしい。
KazukiHaruno 10 months ago
2、大体、彼が好きだという人はロウティーンの女の子だ、少なくとも私が話したなかでは。
KazukiHaruno 10 months ago
私の16歳の若いイスラエリアンの女の子は彼の熱狂的なファンであり、彼の話題になった時、彼を 「 Haruki Sukebe 」といった。獣医を目指す可愛子ちゃんだ。私はネットで多くの人と話すが
KazukiHaruno 10 months ago
I'm a huge Murakami fan and I can't wait for an english edition of 1Q84.
I've just finished reading his "A Wild Sheep Chase", the book on 2:00. For those who liked the Sheep Man, I recommend reading "Dance, Dance, Dance", it's kind of a sequel to a "Wild Sheep Chase".
I also must agree with you, Norwegian Wood (the movie) is vaguely competent to be good as the book. For me, it was missing something that would "spice" things up.
Btw, I love your accent, excellent review! :)
selfintuition 10 months ago
Nog een Murakami fan!
Ik heb je review geluisterd omdat ik erg benieuwd was wat een ander er nou van zou vinden, en gek genoeg vertel je precies het omgekeerde van wat ik ervan vind! Ik vond juist dat de eerste twee boeken een spannende snelle verhaallijn hadden, maar het derde boek vreselijk langdradig en voorspelbaar was - heel on-Murakami vond ik het. Teleurstellend zelfs.
Maar goed, bedankt voor je review! Interessant om een andere mening erover te horen :)
Sidzeflits 10 months ago
@Sidzeflits Bedankt voor je feedback. Ik vond dat ie in de eerste twee delen echt een editor kon gebruiken, omdat er zoveel herhaling was. Bijvoorbeeld, hoe vaak er +- hetzelfde werd verteld over Tengo's oudere vriendin. Deel 3 heeft dat probleem niet, maar het is natuurlijk zo dat je voelt dat de verhaallijnen zich aan her sluiten zijn, en daarom is er misschien iets minder van die Murakami sfeer. Vond je de detective geen razend interessant personage? Groetjes!
MrDagon007 10 months ago
I don't comment much, so I wanted to take a moment to thank you again for the vids. I love your channel. Knives and books and food. No better combination. I always look forward to new vids from you. This one is no different. Nice one! So, thanks and have a great one my friend.
jnpsmith 10 months ago
@jnpsmith Thanks again for the friendly comments !
MrDagon007 10 months ago
Dagon, I am curious on the subject of literature, do you like to read books with themes that you identify with, or are you happy to read books with themes you find alien or even objectionable?
For example, supposing you had never felt alienated from society or confused about your identity, would you still enjoy Catcher in the Rye? Or if you believed very strongly that man can and ought to control nature and advance technologically etc, could you enjoy Frankenstein?
An0nEeMouse 10 months ago
@An0nEeMouse In general I love to discover books that feel unique. Usually I don't really mind if the book has themes that are alien to me. An obvious example is "Lolita" (ok, there is so much more in the book than the high level story, but still) is one of my favourite books. A few other examples are Thomas Ligotti's elegant but nihilistic short horror stories (granted, I appreciate them only in small doses), or some Charles Bukowski stories which are often full of self-destructive behaviour.
MrDagon007 10 months ago
A Japanese novel that starts with an allusion to Janacek is definitely something that would normally catch my attention! But here's my problem: How can I justify reading a volume of 1600 pages when there are still thousands of pages of Proust's "Recherche" waiting to be read? - Yes, I know, it's a kind of an intellectual luxury problem.
That aside, I really enjoyed your excellent review. I'm always amazed by your widespread interests and knowledge.
stschmalhaus 10 months ago
@stschmalhaus Yes, the Proust should be really worth the time investment. From what I heard, once you get going in it, you don't want to read anything else. Even so, I am not sure when I'll get around reading it...
MrDagon007 10 months ago
MrDagon what was the name of the song playing in the taxi?
zigzagskunket 10 months ago
@zigzagskunket It is the classical composition Sinfonietta by the Czech composer Janacek. Not a piece that many people know. Search for it here on Youtube, there are various fragments online, several of them uploaded because of its importance in the 1Q84 novel.
MrDagon007 10 months ago
Very interesting I'll have to pick up the books when they reach the us :)
zigzagskunket 10 months ago
Love all your reviews!
SuperFanny12345 10 months ago
Thank you for another excellent review. I have enjoyed reading other books you have recommended so I am looking forward to reading '1Q84' as well. For now I will start with 'A Wild Sheep Chase.'
LakesideReader 10 months ago
@LakesideReader "A Wild Sheep Chase" is an early Murakami novel, and already very good and definitely original. I think you'll like it. From my previous reviews, do track down "The Restraint of Beasts".
MrDagon007 10 months ago
@LakesideReader i wouldnt start with a wild sheep chase because it is an earlier work and not as powerful but norwegian wood, dance dance dance (which is kind of Wild Sheep's sequel that i read first) or Wind up bird Chronicles.
darquetime 10 months ago