Men Without Women is the new short-story collection by Haruki Murakami, consisting of seven stories. I bought it on Audible, where it runs just over seven hours. The seven stories are all about - you guessed it - men who have either lost a woman or who have trouble in love. The main characters range from an older and successful plastic surgeon to a cockroach who finds himself turning into Gregor Samsa.
Anyone can write weird. What makes Murakami so special is that his characters are haunting and memorable while throwing in the occasional giant frog, disappearing elephant, or sheep-man. I've read everything he's written that's been translated into English, minus one or two of his non-fiction books, and I eagerly await each new work that comes out. This collection is a very good introduction to Murakami to anyone who hasn't read him; it's a lot of fun, and I might even re-read it.
Thank you for sharing this. I have seen his name, and I've wondered about his work. For years, I neglected reading short story collections, and I have some catching up to do. Ted Chiang's short story collection, "Story of Your Life" is what woke me up, and from your description, Haruki Murakami's stories may be the next one on my list.
ReplyDeleteHe also wrote Colorless TsTsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage, which we discussed once. Colorless is by far his darkest novel, and it isn't a good introduction to his work. I've read every novel and every short story Murakami has produced that has been available in English, and I've read some of his non-fiction. He's one of the greatest living writers, as much as I hate "ranking" art and literature, and many argue that his best work is in the short-story medium.
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