Colourless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage

The new Murakami novel, Colourless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage was an interesting read. Lighter in the spirit world and alternative realities than usual, and more grounded in the here and now. Not one of his very greatest (The Wind Up Bird Chronicle still has that crown for me, or more recently, Kafka on the Shore), but far better than the indulgence of 1Q84. The focus on the impact of a dissolved friendship on Tsukuru struck me as particularly accurate depiction of a relationship often ignored, particularly the absence of it – the sudden dissolution of friendships which often go unnoticed.

There is a comparison to be made with Wong Kar Wai’s mildly maligned or, worse, ignored English language film, ‘My Blueberry Nights’ which has this central theme of friendships which are transient and not lasting, but which can have the same or greater value than some long term relationships. Everything has it’s time and should not overstay it’s welcome. Having recently watched the adaptation of Norwegian Wood directed by Ahn Hung Tran, I was somewhat disappointed. The film is suitably modest, but too quiet for my tinnitus to easily cope with. Something was missing from the heart of the film that is hard to pin down, but such are the problems of literary adaptations. Perhaps something more filmic, like Wong Kar Wai, would be appropriate where the form of the film substitutes for literal storytelling.

The long description of Shinjuku Station near the end of the novel is fantastic, and is particularly resonant given my interest in the station in my Getting Lost in Tokyo notation series.