Book Review: Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage, by Haruki Murakami (2013, English translation 2014)

Haruki Murakami’s novel Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage was first published in 2013, and in an English translation by Philip Gabriel in 2014. The novel tells the story of Tsukuru Tazaki, who has four close friends during high school, two male and two female. His friends all have names that include colors, but Tsukuru does not, leaving him “colorless.” Tsukuru is the only one of the five who leaves their city for college, and eventually during college the four friends break off all contact with Tsukuru, for reasons that Tsukuru does not understand.  

In the present time of the novel, Tsukuru is in his late 30’s and is prodded by his new girlfriend to seek some closure about why his friends cut him off. I’ll leave the plot summary there, especially since the plot is not always the main point in Murakami’s novels.  

Unlike some of Murakami’s fiction that I’ve read, Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki is set quite firmly in the real world, and the surreal elements that often appear in his fiction are nowhere to be found in this novel.  

Music, often so important in Murakami’s work, is a key motif in the novel. A suite of piano pieces by Franz Liszt, “Years of Pilgrimage” is frequently referenced in the novel, in particular the eighth piece “Le mal du pays.” Murakami references the late 1970’s recording of “Years of Pilgrimage” by the Russian pianist Lazar Berman. Fortunately, thanks to Spotify and other streaming services, it’s easy to find Berman’s recording and you can listen along as you read the novel. And, true to Murakami’s universe, where bossa nova always seems to appear, at a Lexus dealership “in the background an Antonio Carlos Jobim tune played.” (p.133)  

Tsukuru is a curious character, as he has gone through his life without attaching himself to very many people. He has no close friends, and he has had very few romantic relationships. As he says about himself, “But I don’t have any confidence...Because I have no sense of self. I have no personality, no brilliant color. I have nothing to offer. That’s always been my problem. I feel like an empty vessel.” (p.273) The plight of Tsukuru Tazaki is a stirring reminder of how hard it can be to make and sustain connections in this world.  

If you’re a fan of Murakami, you’ll enjoy the journey he takes you on in Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage.