A chilling read, this is an account of the Tokyo subway attack in 1995 from the point of view of those who experienced it. The first part is a collection of interviews with survivors or relatives of victims, and the second is a set of interviews with former members of the Aum Shinrikyo cult. The sometimes seeming repetitiveness of the stories (on the way to work, sudden strange smell, etc etc) do not numb but rather emphasize the randomness of acts of devastation that do not differentiate between victims. We are also given a partial picture of the workings of the cult, the leader, and the men who took part in the attack. It gives us an idea of the appeal of such groups, and the motivations of people who join them. There is plenty of food for thought after a reading of this book, and they are not easy to digest. ( )

On March 20, 1995, the religious cult Aum Shinrikyo released the poisonous gas, sarin, into a series of subway trains. Murakami conducts a series of interviews with the victims (both direct and indirect) of these attacks. While he explores their stories, more importantly he explores the psyche of those involved and their reactions to the attack and others around them.

The victims' stories, although they begin to become a bit repetitive, provide incredible insight into the Japanese mindset. Why was the victim treatment delayed? What prevented information about the attack from being spread efficiently and quickly? How does the Japanese way of doing things affect their everyday lives? And with major disasters such as this?

As one victim says "Keeping quiet is a bad Japanese habit."

At the end a few interviews are included with Aum Shinrikyo members (some still involved, others not) that also shows an amazing inside view to the cult's inner workings. Some actions you can't even believe both in terms of members actually living such cruelty or performing such cruelty and you're also stuck in disbelief that the police were none the wiser as to what was going on.

At the end, Murakami succeeds in his attempt in understanding the Japanese psyche and how it may have aided the cult in going through with the attacks and making it more successful and how it may have impaired the Japanese from truly comprehending the situation.

As an accompanying read I highly suggest Ian Reader's [Religious Violence in Contemporary Japan], an in depth following of the Aum Shinrikyo from their meek beginnings to their rebirth as Aleph. ( )

Interesting read. The book starts out with interviews of some of the victims of the sarin gas attack in the Tokyo underground, March 1995. Not knowing so much about this attack, this was interesting, yet after a while also a bit repetitive. The stories are sad, shocking, and even a bit scaring for a commuter like me. They made me wonder: how would I behave in such a situation? How different are the Japanese from Europeans, or do commuters all over the world behave the same? Are we commuters a scaring kind of subculture, living hours of our days in public transportation, no communication with our fellow travellers, absorbed in our own thoughts and worlds, like zombies? Do we get stuck in this zombie world even if we experience a life threatening attack? Do we prefer to continue on to our jobs, even if we cough, even if our vision is seriously troubled, even if our fellow travellers are left on the ground, mortally wounded? This is what struck me most, how these people had their routines, and wanted to stick to it to the utter end. And now, most of them find it hard to talk about this event, because most of all, they want to forget, continue the old routine.

What fascinated me more, however, was the second part of the book containing interviews with Aum followers and former followers. The interviewees were not involved in the Sarin gas attack, not even indirectly, but they were part of this cult. Who were these people? Were they really the monsters that were described in the media? It struck me - and it feels a bit cruel to say this - that these people were so much more interesting characters. It seemed to me that Murakami really did his uttermost best to write down the statements of the victims with a lot of respect, and that he sincerely detests the gas attack, let me be clear about that. But in the end, he too was more interested in the people who committed the crimes, or were at least part of the organization responsible for the attack.

Having read several of Murakami's novels I am not amazed by his interest in the Aum followers. These people seem to have more than a few characteristics in common with Murakami's main characters. Most of all, they wonder about the world, about the meaning of life, they feel they cannot adapt to the routine of daily life, they do not feel at home in a capitalist and materialistic world, they are looking for a kind of spirituality that they can't find in the standard religions. They feel they need to retreat from the "normal world" to find a deeper truth within themselves. This reminded me strongly of the guy in the Wind up bird chronicles, the guy who sat at the bottom of an empty well for I don't know how many days.

It seemed to me that in the short notes of the author, the preface, the conclusions, Murakami is visibly searching for answers within himself, answers to questions like: why do I - and my main characters - have so much in common with these people, could I have committed a crime as horrific as this gas attack, where did it all go wrong? How did all these intelligent and sympathetic people end up in a crazy movement? In the end, he seems rather happy to have found at least one difference, which is that he accepts the confusion and the illogic ways of reality, that he uses them in a positive (literary) way, instead of turning away from them like the Aum followers did. Still, he isn't that sure, ending his book with the sentences: "That might very well be me. It might be you." ( )

Honestly, I haven't read many nonfiction books, but out based on my general concept of them, Murakami's Underground is not your average nonfiction. Sorry to stereotype but apart from your average boring book, Murakami really gets into the story. Based upon interviews he himself made, including personal information, Murakami never lets you forget that these are REAL people that stumbled upon REAL and terrifying event. Upon reading the book you realize and understand the situations the people were in and how they feel now. Surprisingly the peoples' feelings about the attack, and their psyche are a bit different from what I expected.

Fascinating book following the events surrounding the ‘Sarin’ nerve gas attacks that took place on 20th March 1995 on the Tokyo underground train system, carried out by members of the Japanese cult AUM.
Murakami has done an excellent job in his documentation of the event, speaking to both victims and perpetrators alike, in order to get the full picture of this terrifying and senseless act. Providing an insight into the considerable aftermath these events have had on the consciousness of the Japanese people as a whole. Very sensitive handling of his material, written from a highly personalized perspective, he manages to get to the heart of the matter without resorting to sensationalism or tabloid mentality. Well researched, with much persistence in some cases in getting the victims to come forward to talk.

Second Murakami book I read after 'Kafka On The Shore' and pleasantly surprised by his none fiction writing. ( )