Murakami Love

Haruki Murakami

Today's blog post is going to be about one of my favourite authors of all time Haruki Murakami. Sadly yes, he is the same guy who was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature and didn't win. For those who don't know, Haruki Murakami is one of the most famous Japanese writer. Mostly all of his books are translated into major languages and have gained huge success. He is a typical post-modernist writer whose stories have the theme of alienation, loneliness, magic realism and vague endings.

Kafka on the Shore

My first Murakami book was Kafka on the Shore. This book is beyond my imagination. Every time I read this book I come up with  a different interpretation. It is said that when you read a book you not only read but live the characters and story within and Kafka does that to you. It has a metaphysical theme to it along with suspense, humour, sexuality and magic-realism and the novel also strongly talks about beauty and power of music which is used as a metaphor throughout the novel.

After Dark

After reading Kafka I borrowed another popular book by him from a friend of mine called After Dark. I will not say this was his best work, infact I was quite disappointed after reading this book. I thought he could come up with a better one. This is a very short novel and talks about midnight encounters in Tokyo. The story is pretty deep, philosophical and illusionary. This novel takes the reader to every corner of imagination. 

The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle

The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle was my second best book after Kafka on the Shore. This book leaves you mesmerised and wanting for more. This book is surreal, mysterious and makes you think deep and question about certain aspects of your life that you normally don't notice. The characters are beautifully crafted and they drift in and out of the novel. Murakami blurs the lines between reality and imagination. The best part is that there are a lot of questions which are left unanswered by the end of the novel (some may find it frustrating), leaving it up to the reader to interpret it. 

The picture below perfectly sums up Murakmi novels for everyone. 

    

Picture Courtesy: Incidental Comics 

Sadly I have read only three of his books uptill now, but I have already bought and borrowed his other two famous books Norwegian Wood and Sputnik Sweetheart and plan to read soon. For all of those who haven't read any of Haruki Murakami novels please read them whenever you get the time, he is one author you wouldnt want to miss. Whereas others who have already read Murakami are free to share their thoughts and tell me their favourite book of his. Would love to discuss my Murakami love with others.

P.S.- I am not open to hatred towards Murakami.

Happy Reading until my next post :)