None of these are exactly like NW, but each of them I found as affecting, absorbing and slowly devastating in ways that remind me of it.
willywillywillwill on
No and thank god I haven’t
abouthodor on
This book is on my list of favorites. It’s possible that ‘similar voice’ means different thing to us, so with that in mind here is my list of similar books.
– The Stranger by Albert Camus — different kind of writing, Camus is writing philosophical novel, there is similar detachment in character’s voice, and similar acceptance to the things that happen
– Out Stealing Horses by Per Petterson — old man goes to a cabin in the place where he’s spent a summer with his father 50 years ago, so we switch back between him as an old guy doing things in the cabin, and his memories. I liked writing a lot and old man’s perspective felt similar to the one of Toru. More grounded, but that is a part of writing an older character.
– Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer — first novel only, there is fantastical element of investigating this nature spot, main character felt very similar. Different pov, but a lot of overlap. You might have seen the movie, it’s worth reading a book. It’s different.
– Immortality by Milan Kundera — there are a lot of characters in this book, also very philosophical. I found a voice of a main female character to be similar, and some of her inner conflict has overlap with the one of Toru.
– Memoirs of Hadrian by Marguerite Yourcenar — this one is out there, old emperor is telling story of his life. Different writing, Yourcenar has lyrical style, whole story felt like a distant memory you are getting through his eyes, to me there was similar detachment in character.
– Min Kamp by Karl Ove Knausgaard — also not confident about this one, I’ve only read the first book. It’s a coming of age story, but different in style and intention. I’ve found some overlap in tone and voice, but not so much. It’s a good book though.
– Stoner by John Williams — different pacing, and different style, there is some similarity in voice. I think this book is more if you liked Norwegian Wood, you would probably like Stoner. I would be confident in recommending that.
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– Kafka on the Shore
– Call Me By Your Name
– The Remains of the Day
– Never Let Me Go
– Normal People
None of these are exactly like NW, but each of them I found as affecting, absorbing and slowly devastating in ways that remind me of it.
No and thank god I haven’t
This book is on my list of favorites. It’s possible that ‘similar voice’ means different thing to us, so with that in mind here is my list of similar books.
– The Stranger by Albert Camus — different kind of writing, Camus is writing philosophical novel, there is similar detachment in character’s voice, and similar acceptance to the things that happen
– Out Stealing Horses by Per Petterson — old man goes to a cabin in the place where he’s spent a summer with his father 50 years ago, so we switch back between him as an old guy doing things in the cabin, and his memories. I liked writing a lot and old man’s perspective felt similar to the one of Toru. More grounded, but that is a part of writing an older character.
– Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer — first novel only, there is fantastical element of investigating this nature spot, main character felt very similar. Different pov, but a lot of overlap. You might have seen the movie, it’s worth reading a book. It’s different.
– Immortality by Milan Kundera — there are a lot of characters in this book, also very philosophical. I found a voice of a main female character to be similar, and some of her inner conflict has overlap with the one of Toru.
– Memoirs of Hadrian by Marguerite Yourcenar — this one is out there, old emperor is telling story of his life. Different writing, Yourcenar has lyrical style, whole story felt like a distant memory you are getting through his eyes, to me there was similar detachment in character.
– Min Kamp by Karl Ove Knausgaard — also not confident about this one, I’ve only read the first book. It’s a coming of age story, but different in style and intention. I’ve found some overlap in tone and voice, but not so much. It’s a good book though.
– Stoner by John Williams — different pacing, and different style, there is some similarity in voice. I think this book is more if you liked Norwegian Wood, you would probably like Stoner. I would be confident in recommending that.