tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2023956444265128672.post5979320324390381393..comments2024-03-28T00:47:44.556+08:00Comments on The Reading Life: "The Wind Up Bird Chronicles" by Haruki MurakamiMel uhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08714473754458914681noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2023956444265128672.post-940632537870833292010-05-21T11:39:18.794+08:002010-05-21T11:39:18.794+08:00I've read some Murakami. My favorite is Hard-B...I've read some Murakami. My favorite is <em>Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World</em>, with <em>The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle</em> coming on a close second. I didn't like <em>Sputnik Sweetheart</em> at all. I found some of his novels - <em>South of the Border, West of the Sun</em>, <em>Norwegian Wood</em>, <em>A Wild Ship Chase</em>, <em>After the Quake</em>, and <em>Kafka on the Shore</em> - a bit too repetitive although not without their merits. The mix of surreal events, personal introspection, and Japanese social realities is presented in a very soothing manner: entertaining in spite of the melancholy. Thanks for dropping by <a href="http://karlomongaya.wordpress.com" rel="nofollow">(mis)readings</a>.karlohttp://karlomongaya.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2023956444265128672.post-5800610151531718262010-05-15T01:30:42.611+08:002010-05-15T01:30:42.611+08:00What a great site, and how wonderful to find all t...What a great site, and how wonderful to find all these reviews on Murakami, my favorite living writer. I just finished WHAT I THINK ABOUT WHEN I THINK ABOUT RUNNING, and his description of the "flywheel" he has to get turning in order to train for long-distance running (and long-distance writing) is one of the best metaphors for sustained creative endeavor I've ever come across. Waiting impatiantly for IQ84, which is available in Japanese only at this point and seems to be taking forever to cross over into English.<br /><br />Have you read his book about the Aum Shinrikyo subway Sarin attacks?<br /><br />Anyway, thanks for this site. It's a knockout.Timothy Hallinanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00551263887774445511noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2023956444265128672.post-5351564038901128202010-05-12T03:42:07.608+08:002010-05-12T03:42:07.608+08:00Yeah, I'm thinking Murakami's not my type ...Yeah, I'm thinking Murakami's not my type and when you say "a bookish boys lit" I'm a bit more convinced of that lol.Rebecca Reidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06062252252301802298noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2023956444265128672.post-22120661993889979922010-05-09T09:19:36.701+08:002010-05-09T09:19:36.701+08:00SH-I agree the themes of Murakami as well as actua...SH-I agree the themes of Murakami as well as actual events that occur are overlapping<br /><br />Bethany-I did read your excellent post and will read Norwegian Wood as soon as I finish Sputnik Sweetheart-hopefully I will be reading it my mid-week-when I do I will link back to your post<br /><br />Mrs B-yes that scene was hard to take and hard to imagine having to have the memory of seeing that in person in the forefront of your mind for the rest of your lifeMel uhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08714473754458914681noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2023956444265128672.post-71993992887275762922010-05-09T08:49:45.248+08:002010-05-09T08:49:45.248+08:00Mel, I read this years ago, over ten years actuall...Mel, I read this years ago, over ten years actually and I can never forgot that scene where a man is skinned alive. I think its one of the most horrifying scenes I've ever read. This was my first Murakami and in my opinion one of his best.Astrid (Mrs.B)https://www.blogger.com/profile/00504736603540947661noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2023956444265128672.post-26449639711293308192010-05-09T08:04:16.280+08:002010-05-09T08:04:16.280+08:00This was a great post for me to read today! I'...This was a great post for me to read today! I'm looking for another Murakami to read - and this sounds great! I just finished and reviewed Norwegian Wood today, and you can take a look over at my blog: http://subtlemelodrama.blogspot.com <br />Dance Dance Dance sounds very intriguing too!Bethanyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14467655046379247950noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2023956444265128672.post-11784656755463474872010-05-09T08:00:54.226+08:002010-05-09T08:00:54.226+08:00I didn't find the adventure the protagonist ha...I didn't find the adventure the protagonist had in The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle as amazing as others found it. I've read many of Murakami's books so far, but I think they're too much for me. Like the things that happen are so subtle that they are not detected by me, such as when I read A Wild Sheep Chase, which I thought was awful. I found that his novel Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World was my favourite. The adventure was so unique that I was impressed by it. It was also the first book I read of his. The thoughts that the characters had in Kafka on the Shore were interesting, but it's a book that Murakami said should be read twice to understand fully; I don't know if I have the time for that. <br /><br />Overall, I find that a lot of the themes in Murakami’s novels are overlapping. The characters go on a surreal journey that they cannot fully describe, but they know that it happened. Many of the characters are nameless while others change their names. I read somewhere that when Murakami was younger, he fell into a well, so I truly think that that experience inspired his writing.Hhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13545002086680505220noreply@blogger.com