Scan barcode
thebookofbanana's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
The worst of these men is the 52-year-old plastic surgeon in The Lying Organ. Having never been married, he carries out multiple simultaneous affairs with married women. He prefers to not "deal" with the emotional side of a relationship at all, valuing only quick satisfaction from intermittent women who will not ask for anything more. Yet, when he falls for one of these women and his worldview is challenged, he doesn't re-evaluate his life; he chooses to do nothing and remain confused. So, when the woman leaves him, and her husband, for a third man, playing her own game, the man has a breakdown. Instead of it being a learning experience, in the wake of the first challenge to his easy life, he chooses to starve himself to death. Tad bit melodramatic, mate. Men will do anything except go to therapy, I swear.
The only story that was exempt to these problems was Drive My Car, the story of an actor whose wife has passed away. They loved each other, but he discovers that she had been actively cheating on him with many partners over the years. The idea of the story is that you can't truly know someone no matter how much you're in love with each other. It's possible that there may be some dissatisfaction beyond that love, and this is just a fact of life that needs to be accepted to move on. An interesting idea.
However, even this story wasn't great, especially when compared to the fantastic 2021 film directed by Ryusuke Hamaguchi. The film allows the characters feelings to develop organically and logically, in comparison to the short story where everything is just stated.
Overall, just very disappointing. I still want to try one of his longer works to see some of his more fantastical ideas on display. There wasn't much of that here.
Maybe M told her husband how beautiful my penis is. When we lay in bed in the afternoon, she used to lovingly hold it on her palm and gaze at it like she was admiring the legendary crown jewels of India. “It’s sooo beautiful,” she would say.
https://lithub.com/a-feminist-critique-of-murakami-novels-with-murakami-himself/
Graphic: Misogyny
Moderate: Suicide
abookwormspov's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Addiction, Animal death, Chronic illness, Death, Drug use, Mental illness, Misogyny, Self harm, Sexual content, Grief, Medical trauma, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Classism
lovelylilelle's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Graphic: Body shaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicide, and Grief
keqingtan's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Moderate: Death and Misogyny
fionnlister's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Misogyny and Sexual content
ccs's review against another edition
- Loveable characters? No
3.5
Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, and Toxic relationship
audc's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
A lot of mention of songs (appreciated that).
There’s an amount of stuff written that I don’t understand what the author was trying to get across or whether they really are ignorant (;misogynistic).
“That really turned me on…Maybe it was because I was so turned on that my period started almost immediately after that.”
Unfortunately, the relationships that are explored between men and women is sexual (often with infidelity on the woman’s part) and the way women described often relates to whether they’re conventionally attractive or unattractive.
Very simple, nail-on-the-head descriptions. Perhaps, that’s possibly why many of the stories just blend together monotonously.
I had a lot of questions about what a book titled “Men Without Women” would be about.
At first; When would a man not have multiple women in his life? What sort of impact did these women have one these men’s lives?,
And later; Does a relationship with a woman/women only count through a consensual agreement? What about friendships?
“…losing one woman means losing all women.”
Favorites: (Drive My Car) , (An Independent Organ) , and (Samsa in Love) I just liked the premise of the story.
The last story (Men Without Women) was an okay ending.
Graphic: Addiction, Cancer, Child death, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, and Alcohol
Moderate: Infidelity, Sexual content, and Grief
Minor: Bullying and Emotional abuse
bookishlucy's review against another edition
Moderate: Misogyny