Yesterday I was sitting in the corner of a cafe reading a book when a stranger approached me. She was caucasian, with fair skin and dark brown hair that fell straight down past her face but curled up at her shoulders, and she carried a cream tote bag around her shoulder.

“Excuse me,” she said. “I didn’t mean to interrupt, but what are you reading?”

I smiled, and showed her the cover. “Norwegian Wood, by Murakami.” I said.

“Ah,” she beamed. “Any friend of Murakami is a friend of mine.”

We chatted for a short while, exchanging favourite books and recommendations. She was a law student, I found out, and was going to spend the afternoon reading court cases. “My favourite book is To Kill a Mockingbird. I think that’s the book that inspired me to do law.”

Eventually, our conversation began to lull, and she sat down at a nearby table, while I went back to my book.

Norweigian Wood is a bit of an unusual novel in that it is more a traditional, slow-paced romance piece as opposed to Murakami’s trademark magic realism, but there are some turns of phrases that really move you, and make you think. When I first read it two years ago, I didn’t think much of it. But re-reading it now, it felt fresh, and had life in each paragraph, not in a way that bursts out at you, but one that shines dimly, like a firefly lighting a desert; gentle but sure. As I resumed reading, I found this passage:

“His name was Nagasawa. He was two years older than me, and because he was doing legal studies at the prestigious Tokyo University, he was on the fast track to national leadership. We lived in the same dorm and knew each other only by sight, until one day when I was reading Gatsby in a sunny spot in the dining hall. He sat down next to me and asked what I was reading. When I told him, he asked if I was enjoying it. “This is my third time,” I said, “and every time I find something new that I like even more than the last.”

“This man says he has read The Great Gatsby three times,” he said as if to himself. “Well, any friend of Gatsby is a friend of mine…””