Uncluttered – that’s the word which comes to my mind when I think of Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami. The story is hardly that – the women are as complicated as they come, there is a sense of sadness, even doom about them, the love stories carry plenty of baggage. Yet Toru, the narrator, seems to rise above it all. Everything about him seems so clean, minimalist, and precise, even when he succumbs to rather confusing loves. A very engrossing book, that paints every scene with detail, at leisure, so that you can take in its beauty slowly and deeply.

And here’s the song by the Beatles that finds frequent mention in the book – a lovely one.