The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle

The book is narrated by Toru Okada, a jobless dude, who lives with his wife. He likes spaghetti and lemon drops. He gets bizarre calls at home. One day, their cat disappears, so Toru goes out to look for it. What follows is a series of strange characters and stranger incidents, in the past and in the present, that turn Toru's life upside down. After the disappearance of the cat, it becomes quite difficult to describe what this book is about, and I think that's an appropriate metaphor for our lackluster protagonist's life, because it's hard to figure out why certain things happened. Did his descent into darkness begin with the disappearance of the cat? Was it because of a secret his wife had been hiding? Or did it have its roots in the WWII? These are questions I cannot answer, and I believe that Murakami never wanted the reader to answer them. The Wind-up Bird Chronicle is loaded with engaging philosophies of life, death and identity. The boundary between reality and meta-reality is permeable and malleable. At the core, this book seems to be an exploration of fate. Toru moves from passivity to activity as he struggles to engage with destiny or bend fate to his own needs. There are so many aspects to the story that move the characters outside of their own willpower, and it was fun to watch the struggle. The writing is lively, the dialogue is crisp, and the characters are mesmerising.

🍋When Life gives you lemons, can you really make Lemonade? . A Japanese Cryptographer from the army was once sent to Western Manchuria. He travelled with three others, one being a disguised senior officer and two other juniors. The senior on reaching the location acquired an important scroll that was believed to save Japan. One fateful night on their return, they were captured by Mongols and two other soldiers from Soviet. By the time Cryptographer woke up from his sleep, one of his teammates vanished into thin air, another was already dead, he senior was being skinned like a goat and he laid as a mass of flesh. When the enemy realised these did not process the important documents, they let go of the soldier. They spared his life by throwing him in an old well. It was a desert, nobody would possibly find him there, he was supposed to die a slow death of hunger and thirst. . What changed him, was the well. Despite the plunging darkness and unaware of earthly time, he stayed there at the bottom of the earth assuming there would possibly be a saviour. . What was so special about the depths and crawling darkness? . 50 years later, now a high school teacher, he happens to meet a Youngster in his 30, Mr Toru Okada. Mr Okada is in search of his existence. He quit his job in a law firm, his only goals are to search his missing cat, Noburu Wataya, whom he has named after his brother in law. Get his wife's laundry, cook and clean. . Death of an acquaintance brings both together. They exchange life stories thus unfolds a series of unknown and weirdest events. . This is my first #Murakami The title makes sense after a few pages. One day when nothing goes right, Okada finds himself in his neighbour's empty well looking for what the soldier believed. The term must be "Hope" . Wind up bird is what Mr Okada believes winds the spring of nature and keeps earthmoving, he calls himself "wind up the bird". That summarised the painting, "bird in the well". . Stories from Japanese history and a weird bewitched plot in #Tokyo Suburbs. Men and women from different walks of life, exchanging stories. The story is a chronology of two years divided into three parts. . Apart from wonderful translation, weirdest plot twists, amazing story, I noticed it was quite repetitive. Stories kept repeating page by page. 600 pages worth of Wonderful ride into fantasy, nightmares, psychological games and a confused man. This sort of disappointed me and I was determined to finish it..like a compulsion rather read with interest. Yet This should not keep you away from the fact the story is engaging and exciting.

Just another masterpiece by Murakami!!

Very good Book

Came in good packing and no damages...Go for ittt

Not in a good condition although brand new.

You can imagine the whole picture when you read the book and the concept it brings in.

It has come in really good condition, perfectly new

Fast delivery and very nice cover Like it !

After leading a just too normal life, still --stagnant, one would say-- the main character of this story leads to the unknown -- he is looking desperately for his wife-- down into the corridors of the unconscious --his unconscious, anybody's unconscious.... A light in the dark, this work is a masterpiece that surpasses magical realism: it's got something else. What is that something else that Murakami presents in each book? A profound understanding of the psyche. A great reading experience.

Murakami jak zwykle świetny, to się rozumie samo przez się. Jednak druk tej książki jest o wiele mniejszy, niż np. 1Q84 tego samego wydawcy. Na początku małe literki bardzo mi przeszkadzały, miałam wrażenie, że umniejszają wartość tej świetnej książki. Potem się nawet przyzwyczaiłam, ale i tak uważam, ze tak nie powinno się publikować książek. Chyba, że na okładce da się ostrzeżenie, że literki miniaturowe. Nie rozumiem, dlaczego tak wydano tę powieść, nie ma ona nawet połowy liczby stron, co trzy tomy 1Q84, wydane w jednym tomie i normalnej wielkości czcionką.

Loved it. Murakami is a genius

Bisher kannte ich Herrn Murakami nicht - ich muss es gestehen. Anlass eines seiner Bücher nun zu lesen, war mein erneuter Versuch, meine kläglichen Englischkenntisse aufzufrischen. Jetzt habe ich die Hälfte hinter mir und bin gefesselt: Die Geschichte eines Anti-Helden. Erst verliert er seinen Job, dann läuft seine Katze weg, dann seine Frau, noch dazu mit der Begründung, dass sie mit ihm keine sexuelle Erfüllung gefunden habe. Armer Kerl. Murakami erzählt dicht und mehrschichtig, lässt Grenzen zwischen Traum und Wirklichkeit verschwimmen. Er beschreibt Momente mit Präzision, dehnt diese eigentlich kurzen Augenblicke und lässt sie mit allen Sinnen wie in Zeitlupe erfahrbar werden. Er flechtet neue Figuren in die Geschichte ein, gebrochene Charakter, eigenwillig, ungewöhnlich, traumatisiert, die alle scheinbar einen Umgang mit ihrer jeweligen Biografie gefunden haben. Ich stehe freiwillig sehr früh auf, um noch eine halbe Stunde lesen zu können, weil ich unbedingt wissen will, ob und wie der unglückliche Held aus seinem Labyrinth findet.