Haruki Murakami and the Music of Words

Rating:
Summary: Part biography, part literary criticism, all a must for fans
Review: As a previous reviewer mentioned, this book consists mostly of Rubin's literary criticism of all Murakami's works. This includes some things that are not readily available in English, especially things not available in book form. Rubin does, however, include excerpts of the material he discusses and he mentions magazines where Murakami's short stories have been published. Notes on translation are excellent, as is the bibliography.
While this book is not a straight-up biography, I think complaints about a lack of biographical material are unfounded. There is a lot of information about the chronology of Murakami's life and that of his wife, as well as insights into his thoughts on Japan and Japanese society. It is well known that Murakami is very private, and I was actually surprised at how much of a glimpse into his life and feelings Rubin was able to give us.
A note of some caution: although Rubin does not reveal everything in his criticism of Murakami's novels and short stories, I recommend that before reading this book you read as much of Murakami's works as you can get your hands on. This is partly because of spoiler issues, but mostly because it is the way to get the most out of Rubin's comments. And if you're anything like me, you will want to go back and re-read everything after seeing Rubin's take on the material -- unlike another reviewer, I feel that it is valuable to hear as many opinions as possible about Murakami as well as about any other writer.

Rating:
Summary: Part biography, part literary criticism, all a must for fans
Review: As a previous reviewer mentioned, this book consists mostly of Rubin's literary criticism of all Murakami's works. This includes some things that are not readily available in English, especially things not available in book form. Rubin does, however, include excerpts of the material he discusses and he mentions magazines where Murakami's short stories have been published. Notes on translation are excellent, as is the bibliography.
While this book is not a straight-up biography, I think complaints about a lack of biographical material are unfounded. There is a lot of information about the chronology of Murakami's life and that of his wife, as well as insights into his thoughts on Japan and Japanese society. It is well known that Murakami is very private, and I was actually surprised at how much of a glimpse into his life and feelings Rubin was able to give us.
A note of some caution: although Rubin does not reveal everything in his criticism of Murakami's novels and short stories, I recommend that before reading this book you read as much of Murakami's works as you can get your hands on. This is partly because of spoiler issues, but mostly because it is the way to get the most out of Rubin's comments. And if you're anything like me, you will want to go back and re-read everything after seeing Rubin's take on the material -- unlike another reviewer, I feel that it is valuable to hear as many opinions as possible about Murakami as well as about any other writer.

Rating:
Summary: The literary phenomenon that is Haruki Murakami
Review: First of all, don't buy this book purely for biographical purposes, hoping to get some hidden insight on Murakami's life. It is clear that Murakami values his privacy intensely and Rubin goes to great lengths to respect that. Also, what information is given about Murakami will pretty much conform with what you probably could've assumed about him. This book, more than anything else, is a chronological literary criticism of Murakami's works up through "after the quake." Rubin does a good job of analyzing many of the running motifs and themes that occur in Murakami's books (wells, corridors, birds, and elephants, to name a few). It is clear that Rubin has a hard time being a Murakami fan and a Murakami scholar at the same time, but he seems to do a good job remaining impartial (although it is clear which books are his favorites and which are not!)

My first experience with Murakami was when I read "A Wild Sheep Chase" a year and a half ago, and before I knew it I had read every major novel and short story he'd written, finishing Pinball 1973 just last week. I read the books in an order that pretty much had nothing to do with the order they were written (beware that the order that the English translations came out in is often quite different than the original order). As a result, reading the details Rubin gives behind each of the books and about the growth that Murakami experienced along the way were among the highlights of the book for me and helped to solidify the ties that hold his books together. Murakami fascinates me because he is still growing rapidly as a writer and a person and the growing pains as well as the links to his past work are found in each work if you know what to look for.

Rubin spends the most time in this book discussing "The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle," which for me was an incredibly thrilling and frustrating book at the same time. Murakami had so many excellent storylines and so many running motifs, but many seemed to frazzle and die out by the end. Some call this piece Murakami's masterpiece, but I have a feeling that when all is said and done, this will be seen as a transitional piece: the first work where Murakami fully takes on the responsibility he feels towards the Japanese people. Murakami tackled so many issues with such brilliance (the Nomonhan Incident in particular) that I look forward to seeing where this new focus takes Murakami in the future. Some of his more recent work ("Sputnik Sweetheart" comes to mind) seem more of a step backwards than real progress, but there is no way Wind-Up Bird is a mere aberration.

Perhaps more so than any other writer, we as readers have the interesting opportunity to watch Murakami grow and experiment before our very eyes. If you haven't already, definitely try to get your hands on some of the earlier novels and short stories Rubin mentions ("Hear the Wind Sing" in particular) to get an even better grasp of where Murakami has started from.

If you are a serious fan of Murakami and want a better understanding of the thinking behind his works and a bit of an analysis of the works themselves (remember that as an individualist, Murakami believes his books have no one, strict interpretation!), "Haruki Murakami and the Music of Words" is a must-have companion to Murakami's works. Reliving Murakami's works through Rubin's analyses is a joy.

Rating:
Summary: The literary phenomenon that is Haruki Murakami
Review: First of all, don't buy this book purely for biographical purposes, hoping to get some hidden insight on Murakami's life. It is clear that Murakami values his privacy intensely and Rubin goes to great lengths to respect that. Also, what information is given about Murakami will pretty much conform with what you probably could've assumed about him. This book, more than anything else, is a chronological literary criticism of Murakami's works up through "after the quake." Rubin does a good job of analyzing many of the running motifs and themes that occur in Murakami's books (wells, corridors, birds, and elephants, to name a few). It is clear that Rubin has a hard time being a Murakami fan and a Murakami scholar at the same time, but he seems to do a good job remaining impartial (although it is clear which books are his favorites and which are not!)

My first experience with Murakami was when I read "A Wild Sheep Chase" a year and a half ago, and before I knew it I had read every major novel and short story he'd written, finishing Pinball 1973 just last week. I read the books in an order that pretty much had nothing to do with the order they were written (beware that the order that the English translations came out in is often quite different than the original order). As a result, reading the details Rubin gives behind each of the books and about the growth that Murakami experienced along the way were among the highlights of the book for me and helped to solidify the ties that hold his books together. Murakami fascinates me because he is still growing rapidly as a writer and a person and the growing pains as well as the links to his past work are found in each work if you know what to look for.

Rubin spends the most time in this book discussing "The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle," which for me was an incredibly thrilling and frustrating book at the same time. Murakami had so many excellent storylines and so many running motifs, but many seemed to frazzle and die out by the end. Some call this piece Murakami's masterpiece, but I have a feeling that when all is said and done, this will be seen as a transitional piece: the first work where Murakami fully takes on the responsibility he feels towards the Japanese people. Murakami tackled so many issues with such brilliance (the Nomonhan Incident in particular) that I look forward to seeing where this new focus takes Murakami in the future. Some of his more recent work ("Sputnik Sweetheart" comes to mind) seem more of a step backwards than real progress, but there is no way Wind-Up Bird is a mere aberration.

Perhaps more so than any other writer, we as readers have the interesting opportunity to watch Murakami grow and experiment before our very eyes. If you haven't already, definitely try to get your hands on some of the earlier novels and short stories Rubin mentions ("Hear the Wind Sing" in particular) to get an even better grasp of where Murakami has started from.

If you are a serious fan of Murakami and want a better understanding of the thinking behind his works and a bit of an analysis of the works themselves (remember that as an individualist, Murakami believes his books have no one, strict interpretation!), "Haruki Murakami and the Music of Words" is a must-have companion to Murakami's works. Reliving Murakami's works through Rubin's analyses is a joy.

Rating:
Summary: simply great. puts everything in perspective
Review: first of all, i would recommend that you read all of murakami's books before you tackle this one, otherwise you'll just be left in the dark. overall, this book gives you the major themes and influences behind murakami's works, and how they relate to each other. the bifurcation of worlds, Rubin tells us, is present in all of his stories, either explicitly or implicitly. and throughout this book, we see murakami evolving. he struggles with what it means to be a japanese writer, especially one who has nothing much in common with his predecessors. we also see murakami, a loner by nature, coming to grips with fame and all its implications. but this is not a biography. what little biographical detail there is is presented as mere background information for how each novel was written. altogether, this book will not disappoint. rubin's writing style is clear and precise, and his analysis is right on. rubin, my friend, you got the job done. hats off gentlemen, hats off.

Rating:
Summary: simply great. puts everything in perspective
Review: first of all, i would recommend that you read all of murakami's books before you tackle this one, otherwise you'll just be left in the dark. overall, this book gives you the major themes and influences behind murakami's works, and how they relate to each other. the bifurcation of worlds, Rubin tells us, is present in all of his stories, either explicitly or implicitly. and throughout this book, we see murakami evolving. he struggles with what it means to be a japanese writer, especially one who has nothing much in common with his predecessors. we also see murakami, a loner by nature, coming to grips with fame and all its implications. but this is not a biography. what little biographical detail there is is presented as mere background information for how each novel was written. altogether, this book will not disappoint. rubin's writing style is clear and precise, and his analysis is right on. altogether, rubin has written a great critique of murakami. hats off gentlemen, hats off.

Rating:
Summary: Good Primer To Murakami's Work - But Not a Good Biography
Review: Having been Murakami's translator for many of his best novels and stories, Jay Rubin has written a solid introduction to Murakami's work in general. There are many great insights in this book, especially dealing with the aspect of translating Murakami's Japanese itself. The most helpful of these was the differentiation of the two versions of Japanese first-person narration - boku and watashi - and problems for this kind of narration to translate properly into English. Since most Japanese literature (according to Rubin) features these first-person narration techniques and not a third-person one (a 'default' narration of western literature), Murakami's narration could seem very interior. This insight helped me understand why Murakami seemed to heavily favor such a narrative technique (which I tended to view as a monotonous trait)- it's a cultural difference, rather than a writerly one.

The biographical information of Murakami is sketchy at best, though. Much of it is regurgitated pastiche of already existent info. As I was looking forward to find out about the man who wrote about such fantastic things, I was disappointed to find out the psychological probing of any kind was absent.

But get this book if you don't know much about Murakami or his work - it's an excellent introduction.

Rating:
Summary: Sheep, INKlings, and Shoko Asahara
Review: I'm a poor graduate student, so I usually wait for a book to come out in paperback before I purchase it. With this book I made an Exception. I started reading Haruki Murakami only little over a year ago, but I have read all of his books thathave been released in the United States. _Haruki Murakami and the Music of Words_ is written by Jay Rubin who translated Haruki Murakami's massive novel The Wind Up Bird Chronicle and other works by Murakami. Rubin gives the reader a closer look at the man and the writer Haruki Murakami. The reader learns a bit about Murakami's background, not too much, but the reader sees where Murakami got some of his ideas. The readers learns a little about Murakami back in the 70s when he and his ran his Jazz club "Peter Cat," and how Murakami wrote his first two novels Kaze no uta o kike and 1973-nen pinball at thekitchen table after a long day of chopping onions among other things. Rubin does a fine job delving, but not too deeply into Murakami's novels and short stories, several of which have not been translated into English yet. We also learn a bit of how Murakami lived at Princeton and in Cambridge, and also of his meeings with American writers. A good book for all Murakami fans.

Rating:
Summary: Great info for the Murakami fan
Review: If you're like me, you're a huge fan of Haruki Murakami, but don't know much about him other than that he's one of Japan's most famous contemporary authors. This book definitely bridges the gap. It's mostly a literary criticism of his novels and short stories, but also includes as much biographical information as the author could find. I personally learned a lot about the underlying themes of Murakami's novels, and was also gratified that someone else thought "Dance, Dance, Dance" wasn't as good as his others. The book makes it clear how Murakami has changed over time and how the characters and events in his novels are inspired by his own life.

Rating:
Summary: The reader from the dolphin hotel is right and wrong
Review: This book is about 50% Rubin's analysis of Murakami's work, about 30% biographical, about 10% about the translation work and differences between Japanese and English, and about 10% "interview style" where we get a few inside details on The Man Himself. This much is true: Anyone expecting a lot of information about The Man Himself should be a little disappointed. The book bills itself as granting more info than it does. I suspect this is out of Rubin's own deferrence to Murakami's privacy. He treads delicately on the info of the author's life in the biographical sections and when we do get a smattering of Murakami's own words about himself (and it's rare), it feels like nuggets culled from stray emails rather than from a sustained closeness of the translator to his author-friend. That's a shame, but it doesn't mar the book, which is a real resource for English readers without a real roadmap of his lesser works. Knowing which stories I need to seek out is so much easier, and understanding the significance of Murakami's first two novels is much better illuminated than before-- given their basic unavailability in print in English.

For me, Rubin's translations are my favorites. I simply have to disagree with the reader from the dolphin hotel. The touch that Rubin gives to his translations is very delicate and appreciated. I too have had a chance to peruse Binrbaum's NW translation, and although I can't find it directly lacking in any way, I simply prefer the Rubin version.

I really wish Rubin had gone a lot further into understanding what it takes to translate Murakami. This is the area in which he has very unique knowledge compared to the rest of us and he only rarely tells us much about it. Sure, there is a subtext in this book about what it is like to translate certain things, but it was not enough.

I rec this book highly to any Murakami fan, especially those that liked HBW&TEOTW and TWUBC --- Rubin dwells on these books plenty (in addition to NW, which sort of goes without saying ... if not for re-translating NW, Rubin would not have the credibility to get this book into print). This volume may have its flaws, but I think a career summary of HM comes at the right time, and Rubin is a good man for the job.