Haruki Murakami

[Pinkpaper]

Hello,
If I have posted this in the wrong place, please move as appropriate, thank you
I thought I would start a topic about Haruki Murakami, since quite a few of our members enjoy his work.
Haruki Murakami, born January 12, 1949) is a popular contemporary Japanese writer and translator. His work has been described by the Virginia Quarterly Review as "easily accessible, yet profoundly complex".
Novels ~
(The year shown is the year the book was published in English)
1987 Hear the Wind Sing
1985 Pinball, 1973
1989 A Wild Sheep Chase
1991 Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World
1994 Dance Dance Dance
1997 The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle
2000 Norwegian Wood
2000 South of the Border, West of the Sun
2001 Sputnik Sweetheart
2005 Kafka on the Shore
2007 After Dark
Further information can be found Here (Source ~ Wikipedia)
I have read so far by Haruki Murakami, 'The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle', 'Kafka on the Shore' and 'Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman' and they have all made an impact, Haruki Murakami is amazingly talented and his characters are memorable, just an excellent writer. I have on my TBR pile, 'Dance Dance Dance', 'South of the Border, West of the Sun' and 'Sputnik Sweetheart'
http://i227.photobucket.com/albums/dd93/...rakami.png



This post has been edited by Weave: 20 March 2009 - 07:29 AM

[Pippa]

This is one author I keep looking at and looking at at the store, and yet never taking home. Is there a unifying thing to his work, a theme, a method, or are they all induvidual?

[BRickson]

It's okay. I guess I'll just have to try him out.

[AmorA]

Freewheeling Andy said:Norwegian Wood sits apart really, but I guess the unifying thing of the other books is that theoretically very mundane japanese men in very mundane lifestyles get mixed up in weird semi-mythical systems. Sort of like magical realism, but very strictly defined and very Japanese and without the stupidity of a lot of magical realism. It's all very deliberately unexplained.

[jenniwhittaker]

I read The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle several years ago but it left me feeling a bit bewildered and unsatisfied - I felt I'd missed the point, somewhat. However, that was when I purely read 'Women's Lit' which I don't tend to touch these days, so perhaps it's time to try another?
Would you say Norwegian Wood would be a good one to 'start' with, Andy?

[DualGemini]

I recently read After Dark, which I enjoyed, although I did wonder if I was missing the point somewhat. But I have been informed by friends who have read lots of his novels, that After Dark is not one of his better ones.

[Ironicarm]

I'd like to read some Murakami. Also OH is very into Japan and likes reading also. What would be a good one to start with?

[Deyan]

My copy of 'A Wild Sheep Chase' arrived today

[Luvinpadfoot]

I really love murakami. I first read "hard boiled wonderland" and it just blew my mind. Nothing else has quite matched up to the sheer surreality of that one for me. I've read kafka on the shore, wind up bird and some of a collection of short stories I forget the name of.
There's also an illustrated short story by Murakami [URL="http://www.blueblanket.net/Steph/Make/Visual/Perfect/"]here[/URL], the 100% perfect girl.
Wondering now whether to read Norweigan Wood or to re-read hard boiled wonderland.

[Margaret]

I have read (so far) by Haruki Murakami ~
A Wild Sheep Chase
Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman
Kafka on the Shore
South of the Border, West of the Sun
The Wind Up Bird Chronicle
And on my TBR Pile ~
After Dark
Dance Dance Dance
Sputnik Sweetheart
I also have the Murakami Diary 2009, its lovely, it has extracts from his books and lovely pictures :yes: