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The Twilight World
The Twilight World | Werner Herzog
7 posts | 7 read | 7 to read
The great filmmaker Werner Herzog, in his first novel, tells the incredible story of Hiroo Onoda, a Japanese soldier who defended a small island in the Philippines for twenty-nine years after the end of World War II In 1997, Werner Herzog was in Tokyo to direct an opera. His hosts asked him, Whom would you like to meet? He replied instantly: Hiroo Onoda. Onoda was a former solider famous for having quixotically defended an island in the Philippines for decades after World War II, unaware the fighting was over. Herzog and Onoda developed an instant rapport and would meet many times, talking for hours and together unraveling the story of Onoda’s long war. At the end of 1944, on Lubang Island in the Philippines, with Japanese troops about to withdraw, Lieutenant Hiroo Onoda was given orders by his superior officer: Hold the island until the Imperial army’s return. You are to defend its territory by guerrilla tactics, at all costs. . . . There is only one rule. You are forbidden to die by your own hand. In the event of your capture by the enemy, you are to give them all the misleading information you can. So began Onoda’s long campaign, during which he became fluent in the hidden language of the jungle. Soon weeks turned into months, months into years, and years into decades—until eventually time itself seemed to melt away. All the while Onoda continued to fight his fictitious war, at once surreal and tragic, at first with other soldiers, and then, finally, alone, a character in a novel of his own making. In The Twilight World, Herzog immortalizes and imagines Onoda’s years of absurd yet epic struggle in an inimitable, hypnotic style—part documentary, part poem, and part dream—that will be instantly recognizable to fans of his films. The result is a novel completely unto itself, a sort of modern-day Robinson Crusoe tale: a glowing, dancing meditation on the purpose and meaning we give our lives.
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Andrea313
The Twilight World | Werner Herzog
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I finished this book while sitting next to my husband, and when I turned the last page, I threw my hands in the air and crowed, "This is the exact kind of bonkers story I wanted it to be!" So, success? ? Others may disagree, but I always find a sense of surrealism in Herzog's work that I'm drawn to time and time again, and this book is no different. A quick read, compelling and bizarre, and even more enjoyable with a good drink. #BooksAndBooze

LeahBergen This sounds fascinating. 1y
Andrea313 @LeahBergen It really was! One of the most unique reads of my year; I definitely recommend it! 1y
TheKidUpstairs I'm only familiar with Herzog's films (an ex was a big fan), I've never read any of his writing. But this review makes a lot of sense to me 😂 He creates with a special brand of bonkers that, if you're in the mood for it, would hit a very specific spot! 1y
quietjenn He's such an interesting dude. I really feel like I should get more familiar with his actual work. 1y
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Andrea313
The Twilight World | Werner Herzog
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I'm intrigued by pretty much all of Herzog's work, but it was this forward that really did it for me. I am both amused and totally drawn in by this kind of self-serious artistic nonsense, and am digging in tonight with equal parts skepticism and wonder. #CurrentlyReading

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Pedrocamacho
The Twilight World | Werner Herzog
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Pickpick

Hiroo Onada, a Japanese Lieutenant from WWII, stayed at his post on Lubang Island, Philippines until 1974, when a student from Tokyo University finally convinced him the leave. Herzog, ever the fan of extreme characters, created a documentary about Onada. This book are Herzog‘s notes and impressions of Onada‘s life on Lubang.

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ARTDJG
The Twilight World | Werner Herzog
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Pickpick

👀💭

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Floresj
The Twilight World | Werner Herzog
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Fictional account of Onoda‘s 29 year campaign to secure an island for Japan after WWII, because he didn‘t know the war ended. Herzog captured the mindset of a soldier in order to make his decisions believable and logical. Quick book, was good, not completely captivating.

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Bigwig
The Twilight World | Werner Herzog
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This is a lyrical retelling of the story of Hiroo Onoda, a Japanese soldier who continued to hide and fight on an island in the Philippines for 30 years after the end of World War II. Herzog‘s style is razor-precise, dreamy, and captivating as he speculates on Onoda‘s experience of the passage of time in endless solitude. The uniqueness of the context made this book an unusually interesting character study, as well as a tragic meditation on war.

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nosferatu
The Twilight World | Werner Herzog
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An extra-short, extra-dense novel by the master himself. Reading it with Herzog‘s voice in mind adds even more punch.