Contemporary Japanese writer born in 1949. His books are not only bestsellers in Japan, but all over the world. His books are translated into over 50 languages.
Best-known for his books Norwegian Wood, Kafka on the shore, After Dark and many more.
Many of his books have been made into films.
His books have themes and titles that invoke classical music, and he personally is a big fan of classical and jazz music. Murakami has said that music, like writing, is a mental journey. He uses music as a communicative medium in some books.
I really like the fact that he didn't start writing until he was 29, and before that he didn't write a thing and wasn't even remotely creative. I find that quite inspiring.
He keeps himself to himself, a loner, not too fond of groups. Therefore he relies mostly on his wife to read his novels for him.
Norwegian Wood
Toru Watanabe hears a Beatles track after a long airplane flight, his memories are returned to his days as a young student and his love affair with the beautiful but damaged Naoko. Toru walks beside Naoko for the last time in the snow-blanketed woods surrounding the mental institution where she is undergoing intensive therapy. Shortly afterwards Naoko commits suicide in that frozen landscape, and while Toru's life continues, a part of him remains forever wandering in winter.
I would quite like to read this book after reading up on its contents. However i'm not sure i'll study Murakami for this particular brief. Sounds a little too deep and intense to illustrate, I would rather go for something a little more light hearted that I can play around with a bit more.
Donna Tartt
- An American author born in 1963, in Mississippi. Best known for her books 'The Goldfinch' , 'The secret history and 'The little friend', which have won multiple awards.
I was pretty close to choosing Donna Tartt, as 'The secret History' sounds like a really gripping read.
It follows the story of a closely knit group of six friends in New England at a small elite college. Its an inverted detective story. One of the six students is the story's narrator, Richard Papen, who reflects, years later, on the situation that led to a murder within the group, the murder being confessed at the outset of the novel but the events otherwise revealed sequentially. In the opening chapter, as the reader is introduced to Papen, we are told of the death of student Edmund "Bunny" Corcoran, although few details are given initially. The novel explores the circumstances and lasting effects of Bunny's death on the academically and socially isolated group of Classics students of which he was a part.
Love the sound of this book, and I probably would have chosen it if i hadn't looked at Leaonora Carrington. However I will keep Donna Tartt in mind as I would like to read her books in the near future.
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