Norwegian Wood, a novel written by Haruki Murakami. Translated to English by Jay Rubin. Page 328-329.

"Hey there, Kizuki, I thought. Unlike you, I've chosen to live — and to live the best I know how. Sure, it was hard for you. What the hell, it's hard for me. Really hard. And all because you killed yourself and left Naoko behind. But that's something I will never do. I will never, ever turn my back on her. First of all, because I love her, and because I'm stronger than she is. And I'm just going to keep on getting stronger. I'm going to mature. I'm going to be an adult. Because that's what I have to do. I always used to think I'd like to stay seventeen or eighteen if I could. But not anymore. I'm not a teenager anymore. I've got a sense of responsibility now. I'm not the same guy I was when we used to hang out together. I'm twenty now. And I have to pay the price to go on living."

NON-SPOILER REVIEW

I have spent the majority of 2025 and a little of 2026 reading this book, spending a little over 6 months reading the first half of the book. When I experienced depression however, I began reading the book in passion, as I find that I relate to the character of this book. Not Toru, but Naoko, the problematic one that hates themselves in a fog of uncertainty of the direction of life. But the most underlining characteristic I share with Naoko, is how I have someone to love. A normal person, that I love wholeheartedly, but is happy to face me, to love me back despite the difficulties I am going through with myself.

In short: Norwegian Wood is a melancholic themed novel about growing up. Growing up and letting go of the teenage spirit of careless and mindless living. Of holding up through unspoken pain and keeping on standing on both feet, facing through the price of living. It's beautifully written, with extensive exploration of mental issues and human feelings like happiness, freedom, loss, and love. The characters in this novel are diverse, and are the types of people that you'd meet sometime in your life. This book is about life.

For this book, I'd give:

4,5/5