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Title: Underground : The Tokyo Gas Attack and the Japanese Psyche by Haruki Murakami ISBN: 0-375-72580-6 Publisher: Vintage Pub. Date: 10 April, 2001 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $14.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.38 (26 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: fascinating
Comment: Japanese novelist Haruki Murakami, profoundly disturbed by the 1995 sarin gas attack on the Tokyo subway by religious cult Aum Shinrikyu, set out to discover not only why it happened, but what elements of the Japanese psyche "allowed" it to happen.
Murakami readily admits not being a social scientist, and the brief analytical sections make that abundantly clear. Not that he does a bad job in summation of the interviews, it is just that the interviews largely speak for themselves.
In addition to roughly 60 interviews with survivors of the gas attack, there are a dozen or so interviews with former or current members of Aum Shinrikyu. The combination of testimonies by these two groups of people (victims and cult members) makes for incredibly compelling reading.
Murakami's esteem as a writer is surely what even allowed this project to get off the ground. Most people would've probably ignored an average journalist or more likely, the average journalist wouldn't have been able to spend the time and financial resources necessary for a project of this magnitude.
These fascinating accounts should interest any student of religion, history, psychology or Japan.
Rating: 3
Summary: Moving and informative, but lacking background
Comment: First, I must state that I am a huge fan of Murakami and consider some of his novels to be among the greatest literature of the twentieth century. "Underground" is a departure from his unique brand of fiction and is a unique brand of non-fiction. It recalls the Tokyo subway attacks of 1995 and the cult behind the attack, all from the point of view of victims and cult members.
My problem with the book is that I read it without enough knowlege of the attacks and the cult, Aum Shinrikyo. Victim's accounts mention names and events that meant nothing to me. A preface would have been helpful; perhaps to preserve the tone of the book, it could have been culled from different press accounts or trial testimonies.
What is excellent about this book is that Murakami's interviewing style is not like a reporter--he allowed all interviewees to review and edit their testimonies and if in the end any decided they didn't want their piece printed, he honored their wishes. What results is not lacking in impact.
The victim stories, particularly the woman who is partially paralyzed and brain-damaged, are moving.
The accounts of Aum members, on the other hand, are chilling. Even after all that happened (and the sarin attacks were only one of many of Aum's crimes), many of them still belong. Most of them just don't get that they were/are part of a destructive cult that used them as worker ants after robbing them of all their money.
The book also gives insight into the Japanese mindset. As an American with no close Japanese friends, I was a little taken aback at some of the common reactions and beliefs stated in the book, such as people who have breathed sarin and can barely see or walk, and yet their only thoughts are "I have to get to work."
A very good book, moving and informative. Two stars demerit because there is way too much that the author assumes the reader already knows. My guess is that the book was written for Japanese readers.
Rating: 5
Summary: A touching departure from Murakami's usual fare
Comment: I admit I was a bit hesitant to read non-fiction from this author because of my fondness for his fictional style, but a few pages in I found there was nothing to fear. Murakami's subtle style presents a very personal glimpse into the aftermath of this event, one that forever changed a society not accustomed to such a random, unthinkable act (sound familiar?). The fact that he interviewed both victims and perpetrators of the attacks added hugely to the account, revealing an element of disorientation and confusion common to both sides. Murakami is clearly not a historian or a journalist, but this is actually an asset to the book's mood. I cannot wait to read Murakami's next venture into non-fiction.
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Title: After the Quake: Stories by Haruki Murakami ISBN: 0375413901 Publisher: Knopf Pub. Date: 13 August, 2002 List Price(USD): $21.00 |
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Title: The Elephant Vanishes : Stories by Haruki Murakami ISBN: 0679750533 Publisher: Vintage Pub. Date: 28 June, 1994 List Price(USD): $14.00 |
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Title: A Wild Sheep Chase : A Novel by Haruki Murakami ISBN: 037571894X Publisher: Vintage Pub. Date: 09 April, 2002 List Price(USD): $14.00 |
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Title: South of the Border, West of the Sun : A Novel by Philip Gabriel, Haruki Murakami ISBN: 0679767398 Publisher: Vintage Pub. Date: 14 March, 2000 List Price(USD): $12.00 |
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Title: Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World: A Novel (Vintage International) by Haruki Murakami ISBN: 0679743464 Publisher: Vintage Pub. Date: 02 March, 1993 List Price(USD): $14.00 |
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