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Hitori Nakano

Train Man: The Novel (Del Rey Books (Paperback)) Paperback – April 24, 2007

by Hitori Nakano (Author)

4.4 64 ratings

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An instant bestseller when it was first published in Japan, Train Man became a multimedia sensation, generating a smash-hit TV series, a blockbuster film, and multiple manga series. Now here’s the novel that started it all.

Boy—bashful and not overly brave—defends girl from obnoxious drunk on a Tokyo train. Girl sends boy a thank-you pair of pricey Hermésteacups. Boy’s a geek and doesn’t know what to do next. End of story for most nerds—but this one turns to the world’s largest online message board and asks for help, so for him it’s just the beginning. This matchless love story is told through a series of Internet chat room threads.

As Train Man, our hero charts his progress and unveils each new crisis—from making conversation to deciding what to wear on a date and beyond—in return, he receives advice, encouragement, warnings, and sympathy from the anonymous netizens. And Train Man discovers the secret to what makes the world go round—and proves we really do live in a universe where anything can happen.

Print length

416 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Del Rey
Publication date

April 24, 2007
Dimensions

4.99 x 0.85 x 7.45 inches
ISBN-10

0345498690
ISBN-13

978-0345498694
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Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Del Rey; NO-VALUE edition (April 24, 2007)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 416 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0345498690
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0345498694
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 13.6 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 4.99 x 0.85 x 7.45 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #1,567,699 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #318 in Feel-Good Fiction
- #498 in Computers & Internet Humor
- #1,237 in Comedic Dramas & Plays

Customer Reviews:
4.4 64 ratings

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4.4 out of 5

64 global ratings

5 star		64%
4 star		19%
3 star		9%
2 star		6%
1 star		3%

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Nichole Bellow

Spoiler Alert

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on September 9, 2013

Verified Purchase

** spoiler alert ** This is a unique novel for several reasons:

1)This novel became a huge hit in Japan. It became such a phenomenon that it spawned a film, a stage play, several manga versions, and a television series/special. (Side note: the film is available in the States on DVD and is fairly sweet. The mangas are also available. The play and tv series can be found streaming online.) All in the span of a few years.

2)It’s really just the (translated) manuscripts of several threads from the online chat site 2ch. So when you are reading the novel, it really looks (and feels) like you are reading an online forum. (Interesting side fact: it seems that 200 or so pages were taken out of the “novel” before it was published. Why? No idea.)

3)It may or may not be based on actual events. With most believing that Train Man wasn’t real and the story was made up by an unknown poster on the boards.

a) The love story between Train Man and Hermes is really just too perfect, too easy. A 22 year old geek (lover of anime, computers, and porn) saves a 20-something woman from a drunk on a train. As thanks she sends him two Hermes teacups. Train Man goes onto 2ch to ask for advice and ends up calling Hermes. In two months Train Man goes from a geek to the boyfriend of Hermes. Hermes: who is beautiful, rich, has a fabulous job, and who doesn’t really mind Train Man’s anime/game/computer obsessions. A little too good to be true, but sweet nonetheless.

Other Stuff:

The translation of the Del Rey version of the novel is really really (painfully at times) basic. Also, a lot of emoticons are used, so there are some pages with just huge graphics on them. Oh, and since everything is told to use by Train Man (who his geek friends chiming in their own thoughts/experiences/fantasies) we never really get to know Hermes; she’s strictly a one dimensional love interest in the novel.

It’s not a bad novel, but it’s not life changing either. (I actually think the film, stage play, and tv series gave the characters more depth.) The novel is a quick read and it wasn’t offensive or boring. I think if it were translated a bit better, it would have made for better reading, actually.

Finally:

So yes, it is a bit like a fantasy. But, that’s okay. Because I think, at the end of the day, it’s not just a love story between Train Man and Hermes. But rather it’s a message to the socially awkward and the technical world as a whole. We spend so much time on online communities and social network sites that we forget about the real world. Maybe, in some way, the book is really trying to tell us: get up, get off the computers and phones, and get out there – do something and become who you wish you really were.

I would give it a 3.6 out of 5 stars. Worth the read. But, I do think the film/play/tv series are better – if only for the character development.

6 people found this helpful

Helpful

Reading Bifrost

A Reading Bifrost Review

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on June 6, 2016

Verified Purchase

“When I first came across a Train post in real time,
I didn’t think it was anything special.
Watching him hum and hah over calling or not calling
made me want to beat some sense into him.
When he had dinner with Hermes and her friend
I doubted there would be a follow-up date.
But right after that… Train shot out at lightning speed…”

There are two main characters in this book: Train Man, our geeky hero, and Hermés, the lovely lady rescued by our shy otaku (geek). Train Man is as geeky as they come. He spends his free time roaming Akihabara [...]

The entire book is created by forum posts from the Japanese site 2channel (
[...]. It consists of Train Man himself telling netizens his story of meeting Hermés on the train and the various netizens giving their advice on contacting her and eventually dating advice.

The forum format can be annoying, but mostly it adds to the story. The netizens use ASCII to create elaborate pictures and expressions for their posts, and many of their posts are heartfelt. Of course, you also have those irritating few posters.

Even if you’re not into Japanese culture, Train Man is an innovative love story that brought together a community of netizens and tons of fans through the book and various other mediums. Any self proclaimed geek, or even if you’re just shy when it comes to relationships, will find something to enjoy in this story.

*Naka no hitori
The author’s name is a Japanese term for all the people on the message board. I’m not quite sure on the translation, but it’s basically something like “one person among many”. (If anyone has a better translation please correct me on this, my Japanese is getting horrible.)

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Michael Valdivielso

Where is started...kind of...

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 21, 2007

Verified Purchase

A boy, a hard core anime fan, a gamer, a guy who sends his time living, sleeping, eating Geek related subjects and all that goes with it, saves some women on a train from a drunk. And this book is about what happened to him from his point of view. But in message board form! There is lots of editing, there had to be, just this is the main threads, the major points of his story, from when he gets a thank you note from one of the younger women, to their first date and budding romance. These threads are collected from over a three month period, so I doubt you get every single message, but it's not half bad as a story. I started at 5 PM and out it down about 9:30 PM, so if you're a fast reader, that's how long it will take. If you are slower than me, or wish to savory it, then you may take a whole day. Lots of humor, internet artwork and everything else that makes a story great.
Now, there is a debate of if this really happened or if somebody was pulling the Geeks' chain, but don't forget. Even the most solid fact becomes a legend afterwards, so why stress out about it?
Now three different mangas, a movie AND a TV series!

8 people found this helpful

Helpful

KNN

I can see why Hitori Nakano's book, Train Man ...

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on July 15, 2015

Verified Purchase

I can see why Hitori Nakano's book, Train Man is popular. While the trope is cliched it does seem to resonate with how the network (e.g., discussion boards) are a major platform for communication - this is the height (and will continue to expand) of digital communication. Even Hitori's writing style reflects on our writing style(s) of a digital realm, which was perhaps novel at the time. Overall, this book is enjoyable and one of those books that you could read in one sitting. It's hard not to root for the main protagonist - as cliched as he is.

Helpful

Alex

Romantic story about a boy and his internet chat board and a girl.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on March 30, 2015

Verified Purchase

The story is told by Train Man on an internet chat board. Train Man tells his story about his act of helping out some ladies on a train from a drunk, and ends up asking advice about how to handle a girl that seems to be thanking him. The people on the internet chat board make some lighthearted jokes about Train Man's predicaments but many also come around to giving him good advice on how to handle things. It is a very interesting romance story between a hopeful boy who relies on his internet friends to help him make the most of his situation with a beautiful girl.

Helpful

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Beegood

An interesting read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on June 2, 2013

Verified Purchase

I found reading this enjoyable, don't expect anything deep, but if you are in love with a nerd or geek, you will find it touching. I loved the interesting character art (for want of a better word) although I felt at times they were being used to 'pad' the book out.

bookfreak

Worth the try.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on February 4, 2014

Verified Purchase

The book arrived on time in good condition. I like the layout of the book. It makes it feel authentic like a real chat or blog. Worth reading, especially if you have read the manga beforehand.

One person found this helpful

sharon hannigan

Three Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on December 12, 2014

Verified Purchase

good book

TheDanzing

A Love Story for the Internet Age

Reviewed in Canada 🇨🇦 on October 21, 2016

Verified Purchase

This book is a strange read for anyone unfamiliar with internet culture, but at its core it is a very cute love story told in an unconventional fashion.

Instead of a first or third person perspective the story is told through a series internet message board posts. In Japan, one of the most popular websites is an anonymous internet message board called 2channel. The story begins with the protagonist recounting his tale about how he saves a girl from a drunk who was harassing her on a train. The protagonist quickly develops feelings for the girl but is too awkward to ask her on a date-- until his internet friends give him words of encouragement, that is. The story quickly develops from there and one of the best things about it is all of the creative ascii art used on the message board. For those who are unfamiliar, ascii art is simply the act of creating images with written characters. Here's an example:

　∧＿∧
（・∀・）　
（　　つ
し＿＿）

That's supposed to be an ascii cat waving. Not sure if it will display properly but you get the idea. The book is filled with incredibly complex examples it. In the context of the story it works very well, and it is not something you'll see in other books. The climax of the story is particularly touching and I would recommend this book to anyone. Overall 10/10, a great book for fellow Internet Nerds.

Ezequiel Merino Cabrera

Los geeks tienen vida en la red y aqui se cuenta como influyo en la real de uno

Reviewed in Spain 🇪🇸 on September 17, 2022

Verified Purchase

Un copypaste de un canal de 2-channel que narra la conversion de soltero friki y viegen a triunfador tras ayudar a una chica en el tren frente a un acosador y no ser capaz ni de pedirle su numero.

Es una maravilla de la naturaleza.

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