Seven stories of solitary men severed from the women in their lives, in Murakami's register of loss and quiet surrealism.
Books mentioned in Men Without Women (6)
Uncle Vanya by Anton Chekhov: “"The play was a Meiji-era adaptation of Chekhov's Uncle Vanya. He played the role of Uncle Vanya." (Drive My Car)”
Franny and Zooey by J. D. Salinger: “"has anyone ever translated Franny and Zooey into the Kansai dialect?" (Yesterday)”
Sanshiro by Natsume Sōseki: “"It reminded me of the novel Sanshiro, a typical country-boy-bumbles-his-way-around-the-big-city story." (Yesterday)”
Kokoro by Natsume Sōseki: “"It was on Kokoro, a novel by Soseki Natsume, that summer's reading assignment." (Scheherazade)”
A Thousand and One Nights: “"Like Queen Scheherazade in A Thousand and One Nights" / "this Scheherazade had nothing in common with the beautiful queen of A Thousand and One Nights" (Scheherazade)”
Hyakunin Isshu by Fujiwara no Atsutada: “"'Having seen my love now / and said farewell / I know how very shallow my heart was of old...' Tokai intoned. 'Gonchunagon Atsutada's poem,' I said." (Yesterday)”