I have an interest in the books that authors write after completing a masterpiece. Dickens wrote Hard Times, China Mieville wrote Kraken, and Haruki Murakami wrote Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage. What these have in common is interesting. While not their best books, they are almost perfect examples of the authors’ own specific tendencies. This means that Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki features a listless male protagonist, strange quasi-magical incidents, pared-back writing style, philosophical dialogue, and much discussion of classical music. But to reduce it to a mix of the author’s cliches would be reductive, since there’s a lot more going on than that.
The story follows Tsukuru Tazaki, a man in his 30s who believes himself to be ‘empty’. When he was in school, he was one of a group of five friends, all of whom had colours in their name except for him. A year after he left for university, he was told out-of-the-blue that none of them wanted to see or speak to him ever again. It was the only time he’d experienced that kind of friendship, and the mystery haunts him until years later, when he decides to get back in touch and learn what really happened.
It’s a clever and engaging setup, and as the mystery unravels you want to know more and more of what’s going on. In the first half of the book, we are introduced to Tsukuru Tazaki and spend time getting to understand him, his experiences in school, and what they meant to him. In the second half of the book, Tsukuru meets each of his old friends in turn, and everything we’ve learnt up to that point becomes important. It’s a simple structure, but it works because of how universal Tsukuru’s story is.
If there’s a criticism, it’s that Tsukuru’s friends aren’t as fleshed out as they could be. The book isn’t long, and it wouldn’t have hurt to get to know them more as individuals, as opposed to how they relate to Tsukuru. As it is, the book feels a little thin without that strong foundation of characterisation. However, it’s easy to see why this wasn’t the case, since there are four of them, and it could easily have made the book too long. The main thing is that we get to know Tsukuru well enough for the story to have the impact it needs.
Whenever I read a work in translation, I wish I spoke the original language. While the events of the story are generally clear, you do get the feeling you’re missing out on something. However, the power of literature is that it enables communication across boundaries, and it’s miraculous that I’m able to understand what Murakami was trying to get across despite not speaking a word of Japanese. Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage is a deeply moving book, relatable to anyone who’s had difficulties with a group of friends, which is a heartbreaking thing to experience. It may not be Murakami’s best book, but it’s one that only he could have written.
Review by Charlie Alcock
It’s a clever and engaging setup, and as the mystery unravels you want to know more and more of what’s going on. In the first half of the book, we are introduced to Tsukuru Tazaki and spend time getting to understand him, his experiences in school, and what they meant to him. In the second half of the book, Tsukuru meets each of his old friends in turn, and everything we’ve learnt up to that point becomes important. It’s a simple structure, but it works because of how universal Tsukuru’s story is.
If there’s a criticism, it’s that Tsukuru’s friends aren’t as fleshed out as they could be. The book isn’t long, and it wouldn’t have hurt to get to know them more as individuals, as opposed to how they relate to Tsukuru. As it is, the book feels a little thin without that strong foundation of characterisation. However, it’s easy to see why this wasn’t the case, since there are four of them, and it could easily have made the book too long. The main thing is that we get to know Tsukuru well enough for the story to have the impact it needs.
Whenever I read a work in translation, I wish I spoke the original language. While the events of the story are generally clear, you do get the feeling you’re missing out on something. However, the power of literature is that it enables communication across boundaries, and it’s miraculous that I’m able to understand what Murakami was trying to get across despite not speaking a word of Japanese. Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage is a deeply moving book, relatable to anyone who’s had difficulties with a group of friends, which is a heartbreaking thing to experience. It may not be Murakami’s best book, but it’s one that only he could have written.
Review by Charlie Alcock
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