I have just finished reading Number9Dream, David Mitchell’s second novel. I have enjoyed it so much that I’ve immediately started reading his first one, Ghostwritten, which I hope to go smoother. I was very busy lately, there were whole days in a row when I couldn’t open a book, there were weeks in which I have neglected my blogs for the same reasons. Doesn’t matter now, because I have a lot to say, to write, to complain, to fulfill. If you are already subscribed, your inbox will increase its quality with my future articles.
Number9Dream by David Mitchell – Cover (I’m not sure if it’s an official one)
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All the reviews that I read about this wonderful work can not abstain from comparing Number9Dream with Ghostwritten. I don’t know if this is so important, I’ll review Ghostwritten separately when I’ll end it. I have to state from the beginning that I enormously enjoyed this novel.
Critics associate David Mitchell‘s writing with Haruki Murakami, a real Japanese literature’s giant, but Number9Dream reminded me of Ian McDonald‘s River of Gods as written by Salman Rushdie. Quirky, poetic and highly literate. Almost every stance sends you to five places at the same time. If you figure out them, you are truly gifted.
I don’t even think to consider the negative opinions, especially on forums, because it’s clear that those naggers didn’t get it.
Number9Dream – Plot
The title is obviously inspired by John Lennon’s song, #9 Dream. Also, Mitchell seems to have an obsession with number 9, exactly like John Lennon. There is a fusion of reality with dreams in the plot which basically is pretty simple. In a futuristic Japan, a 19 years old boy from a remote rural area, comes to Tokyo to find his father. The search isn’t that simple as the intentions, but the boy’s adventures in the big city are remarkable.
I can’t say it’s a coming-of-age tale, because everything happens in a few weeks or months. The story is rich. Eiji Miyake, the boy, is sweet and extremely lucky. He had a twin sister who drowned when they were ten. Their alcoholic mother left them long before that. Eiji dreams all the time and mentally chats constantly with Anju, the sister. There are excuses for everything; the mother had the twins with a rich married guy who abandoned her when she got pregnant. So, she started drinking. After little Eiji had an accident, she took the children to be raised by her mother on her native island.
He lives in a capsule on top of a video rental store. His landlord is a certain Buntaro, who is also the store’s boss. When Eiji couldn’t pay rent, he worked for Buntaro. He made friends with a sleazy law student, Daimon, and a hacker named Suga. Daimon came from big money, but he plays a prank on Eiji and eventually, they were both thrown in Yakuza’s hands.
English author, David Mitchell
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Eiji likes very much a girl with a beautiful neck who works as a waitress in a café. Somehow they got a little bit closer and he found out that she is actually a talented pianist who wants to study in Paris. Her name is Ai Imajo.
Without revealing too much, I’m going to let you read the novel yourself, I warmly recommend it. It is beautifully written and there are stories in stories in stories in stories, where one can’t be always sure if there’s a dream narrated or something really happens in Eiji’s quest for his father.
Number9Dream has nine chapters, the ninth being empty.
About the Author
According to Wikipedia, David Mitchell is an English Capricorn born in 1969, in Lancashire. He moved to Japan for a few years and during and after the marvelous experience, he wrote his first two novels: Ghostwritten and Number9Dream. This second one was shortlisted for the 2001 Man Booker Prize but lost. The winner was the Australian Peter Carey’s “True History of the Kelly Gang”. Extremely funny is that without knowing this fact, I have just watched the 2009 Ned Kelly moments before writing this short article. I’m sure the book was better…
“A book you finish reading is not the same book it was before reading it. Girls are the same, too, perhaps, in the morning”.
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Great article!
Thank you!