Reviews tagging 'Suicide attempt'

Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami

126 reviews

meg_reads83's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective relaxing sad

• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual content, Suicide, Terminal illness, Blood, Suicide attempt, and Injury/Injury detail

annahollamby's review against another edition

slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

1.0

boring and incredibly unlikeable. found myself wondering so many times if the author has ever actually met and interacted with a real woman before. like genuinely. the way he talks about women and sex is gross and pathetic. yet more complex female storiess and characters lost to the male gaze and the manic pixie dream girl trope. also sincerely What The Fuck (r.e. the supposed lesbian character realising she's a lesbian because of a 13 year old 🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮 only for her lesbianism to be cured in the end by (you guessed it!) a penis... Fucking Gross. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Rape, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Grief, Suicide attempt, Lesbophobia, and Gaslighting

letter_planet's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Death of parent

skaiaa's review against another edition

medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character

2.75

It was good, but defs different to what I expected! Another review I read about the 'sickness' (eventually leading them to commit suicide) being passed on from Kizuki to Naoko, then finally to Toru (main character), and he calls out to Midori for help but its too late is such an interesting theory! Also, sooo much sex I was not expecting that (idk just the vibe I got from how I've heard  norwegian wood being talked about and how popular it is)./

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt

vinicoelho's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

The only other Murakami I have read is Kafka on the Shore so that is my frame of reference for this book. As in Kafka on the Shore I can appreciate Murakami's beautiful writing style and the way he can conjure an image or describe feelings in a tactile way. I would say this book is more approachable than Kafka on the Shore since it sheds the magical realism element and focuses on the increasingly complex relationships between the characters. Aside from the protagonist, characters can feel a touch two dimensional at times, defined only by their relationship to Watanabe but I think this reflects how we see people in our own lives sometimes, the only perspective we have is our own. The story certainly shows its age both in the comments made by some characters and the way the female characters are sometimes portrayed, Toru finds himself in a love triangle between the archetypical manic pixie dream girl Midori and the depressed-but-in-a-hot-way Naoko. The book really took a nosedive towards the end

where after a beautiful conversation and 'funeral' ceremony between Toru and Reiko, the wise, older sister/aunt figure to him and Naoko (the only relationship spared at this point from Toru's sad and tortured horny tendencies) have a raucous night of vividly described sex

and felt like it ended on an abrupt note - a tired cliche.

Overall this was an enjoyable read and I did find myself engrossed in the characters and their stories and how they interacted with each other, I just wish it was spared of Murakami's usual old man horniness

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Sexual content

tengoku088's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Probably the best book I ever read.  It's sweet at times, sad at others, it is written wonderfully, the pages flow like nothing. A must read 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt

pepelu's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

gfiore11's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective medium-paced

• 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

4.0

This is a book that sticks with you as you reflect on what just happened. Rife with possibile interpretation, I could easily read this again and experience a different book. Absurd is some ways, but not magical like some of Murakami’s other books. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt

theperfectblues's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Sexual assault, Suicide, Medical trauma, and Suicide attempt

sammm_888's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Dementia, Suicide attempt, and Death of parent

Moderate: Death, Eating disorder, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury