Japan’s most highly regarded novelist now vaults into the first ranks of international fiction writers with this heroically imaginative novel, which is at once a detective story, an account of a disintegrating marriage, and an excavation of the buried secrets of World War II.
In a Tokyo suburb a young man named Toru Okada searches for his wife’s missing cat. Soon he finds himself looking for his … for his wife as well in a netherworld that lies beneath the placid surface of Tokyo. As these searches intersect, Okada encounters a bizarre group of allies and antagonists: a psychic prostitute; a malevolent yet mediagenic politician; a cheerfully morbid sixteen-year-old-girl; and an aging war veteran who has been permanently changed by the hideous things he witnessed during Japan’s forgotten campaign in Manchuria.
Gripping, prophetic, suffused with comedy and menace, The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle is a tour de force equal in scope to the masterpieces of Mishima and Pynchon.
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Still my favorite book of all-time. I re-read it a few summers ago and it held up after many years between re-readings. I love the intersections of real and surreal in this book, from Mr. Wind-up Bird’s adventures in Tokyo, abroad, and in the well. What really stuck with me were all the little things. The feel of sweat on the skin. The empty alley behind his house. His trips to the dry cleaner. And especially Cinnamon. I don’t know why this book means so much to me. It just does.
Since I read this book a long time ago I can’t properly explain its appeal–all I can say is that it is completely unpredictable, mystical and kind of mind-blowing. Murakami surprises me with his books since they are all so very different. The ones I like are the weirder ones, and this on is that in spades! I highly recommend for all those craving a strange and unusual read that cannot be explained in a rational way!
You have to suspend reality a little bit to read Murakami but this was a favorite of mine. I remember so many more plot details and characters from the two Murakami novels I’ve read than I do of many other books/authors I read. I loved this book!
Imaginative in a manner I’ve never before encountered. Reminded me of reading Gabriel Garcia Marquez for the first – and millionth – time. Simply beautiful, even in its heart-breaking moments.
Excellent storytelling that leaves you wondering what happened and wanting more.
I have to write this review on my phone because my laptop hasn’t ever let me access BookBub. It is something that would happen in this novel where the bizarre is de rigeur. This is my first Murakami, but as I explain in my longer Goodreads review, I know understand Japanese films much, much better. Think urban magic realism.
My very first Murakami…Can’t say enough about this author. Have never been disappointed by any of his novels and I’ve read them all. I’m always sad when the last page is turned and eagerly awaiting his next offering.
One of my favorite books. A cat runs away, leading its owner into a surreal quest through his neighborhood, a local well, crowded train stations and his dreams. It’s hard to describe, but if you like magic realism I highly recommend it. His main characters are often somewhat lost 30-something men, and some people tire of that after a while, but the worlds they inhabit are so wonderfully unique I keep coming back. His chef d’oeuvre, in my opinion. Give it a try.
The action shifts constantly, but rather than leaving the reader feeling dislocated the author guides you through a shifting landscape that re-examines concepts of love, loyalty and memory and what it means to be anchored in this world.
Very interesting book that takes the reader to places real and surreal. There is more. There is lost love. There is magical realism. The author’s style carries the reader along.
My first foray into Murakami was not disappointing
The twists and turns of the protagonist’s adventures is uniquely unpredictable.
Great read, wonderful writhing style, page turner, leaves you thinking.
Well written, different, entertaining
This is one of Murikami’s very best books.
This was the first Murakami book I read, and one of the few books I have read more than once. I have since purchased and read at least 7 other books by this author.