This probably won’t be too long of a review since I’m still processing everything I’ve read and honestly I’m going nowhere today lol. My mind is fuzzy. My ditzy ass just refilled my medication and managed to lose it the same day so it’s going to be…a weird month.
I find that when I read novels by Japanese authors I am always missing something. It could be that something is lost in translation but also perhaps that it’s something culturally I will never understand and that’s okay.
I think this book is the very definition of magical realism. Curses, talking cats, KFC colonel pimps. Everything was surreal but it was wonderful in its own way. The plot is simple, 15 year old Kafka Tamura runs away from home with no real destination in sight. He just wants to get away from his father who we never (lol) meet but it is implied he is not a good person. Kafka’s mother and sister left earlier in his life and he is truly all alone. He winds up in a small prefecture and heads immediately to a library which is quite different than any other he has been in. He’s drawn there and there is a reason. Along the way we meet Oshima (my favorite), Miss. Saeki, and of course there are the adventures of Nakata and Hoshino. Nakata can speak to cats which is A+++
This book is nothing I’ve read before and I’m grateful for that. It was beautiful, melodic, haunting, and shocking. There are some aspects I absolutely did not like and could not read (cat scene for one) but it pushes boundaries and opens worlds and voids that I of course never thought of before I read it. This definitely makes me interested in more of Murakami’s works. He has a delicate, amazing way of worldbuilding and telling a story.
Thanks to Arian for buying me this for Christmas and harassing me nonstop until I read it 🙂 ❤
🐈 🐈 🐈 🐈 4/5 pretty kitties
Okay I really need to read Murakami now!! I had been so nervous but you make him sound a lot more accessible than I thought. Great review Amanda 🙂
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thank you so much!! he’s definitely different and some parts i was like WTF is this but i’m happy I read it. I really want to read Norwegian wood mow.
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I had a similar experience with The Wind Up Bird Chronicle by Murakami as well. Beautiful, haunting, kinda difficult at points. Great review!
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ooooh i’ll have to check those out! thank you doll 🙂 yeah he definitely has a way of writing and leaves you thinking.
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Great review Amanda! I don’t think there’s really anything that can be said to prepare someone for the… oddity that is Murakami? I mean, this book had a mixed bag of so many elements! It’s weird but also delightful although there were definitely things I didn’t like about it too lol I’m still not sure whether I want to read more of him yet 😅
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that’s the PERFECT way to put it. like there was so much where I was like what in the hell this is not okay but I also appreciate the weird frankness
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I think one of the comments I hear the most about Kafka’s work is “WTF” LOL especially “WTF did I just read and why” 😂
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great review amanda! this is one of two murakami’s i’ve read, but i LOVED it, and i’m looking forward to reading more! (even though i could NOT read that cat scene, ugh!)
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thank you so much! yeah as soon as I saw where that was headed I was like NOPEEE
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Talking cats?? I am sold!
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they are the BEST
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