The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle (Book One)
By Haruki Murakami
(Vintage, Paperback, 9780679775430, 1998, 624pp.)
This post shares my thoughts on book one. If you are reading along with me and have not finished book one, save this post for later as it may contain spoilers.
What was your initial reaction after reading the first few chapters?
My initial reaction was that this was straight-up Murakami. It opens with the preparation of a simple meal, music is mentioned, a strange phone call interrupts the mundane. It’s expected if you’ve read any of his other books, but at the same time, it’s like coming home. It’s comforting and lulls me into a false sense of security.
What do you think of the characters? Do you have a favorite?
I am a bit further along in the book than I expected to be at this writing but what I’ve found is that my favorites keep changing. Since this is an update for book one, I’d have to say that in book one, my fave character is May. She’s odd but in a likable way. Innocent but at the same time, worldly. She puts things simply and what she says makes sense. I am intrigued by her.
What about the story? Is it interesting? Predictable?
The elements are predictable. Murakami has a thing for ears. Specifically the shape of ears. This book is no exception. Food preparation is always showcased in some way and with Toru, many of the meals are simple meals. Meals that you’d expect a single man to eat. A hint at what’s to come? Possibly.
There’s also the missing cat. Murakami loves cats or he hates them because they are often tortured or abused in some way (although we have not seen any abuse in book one). There is also prostitution and awkward sex! Let’s not forget the musical references. Murakami loves his music and will often insert musical references into his books. For 1Q84, the publisher created a Spotify playlist (might have to be logged in for that link to work) that I listened to while reading that book, but I didn’t find anything for this book. I’ve Googled a few of the musical references to hear the pieces though. Oh, and he is really into reading too so there are lots of literary references as well.
As for the story, it’s very odd. In book one, Toru lives a simple life with his wife, Kumiko. He’s unemployed and she works outside of the home. Their cat goes missing. A strange woman calls and tries to have phone sex with Toru. A rather odd neighbor girl (May) befriends Toru. There is a vacant alley that has some importance and a vacant house with bad vibes. Two sisters, Malta and Creta materialize. Both have special talents some of which are still being cultivated. There is a lieutenant with a story. It’s all so surreal and odd yet so compelling. It’s about as interesting as it can be without dropping acid before reading it.
Are you surprised by anything you’ve read thus far? If so, what?
I didn’t expect to fly through book one as quickly as I did. It’s more readable than some of his other books. I remember reading Kafka on the Shore and thinking about fifty pages in that this guy must have been hallucinating while writing the story. I didn’t have that reaction with this one. One thought seems to lead to another and there seems to be more of a flow to this story. I was a little surprised by the end of book one. I was warned that this particular part was gruesome and it was, but it didn’t weird me out as much as the cat scenes did in Kafka. Maybe because the actual scene in question was rather short and didn’t go on for that long. Or maybe the manner in which it was detailed was a little too clinical for me to be totally weirded out by it. Either way, I got through it without a hitch. I know from some of the comments on Twitter that this was not the case for most of you.
How does the writing make you feel?
Calm. Relaxed. He alternates between mundane and surreal which puts me in a dreamy state. Dreamy might be a stretch for some of the parts but I so often feel as if I am floating in a calm body of water. There is no “loudness” to his novels. Everything is quietly done, even torture! The flip side to this is that many of the characters come across as apathetic. Something happens, and their reactions are very measured. Maybe it’s a translation thing. My friend is reading it in Japanese and she said she’d let me know if the characters come across that way in Japanese. You remember the tsunami that hit Japan a few years ago? Such devastation yet the people were so calm. Maybe it’s a cultural thing.
What food or drink have you been craving since reading book one?
People that read Murakami for the first time expect there to be a lot of talk about Japanese food but most of his food references are not Japanese at all. He loves Italian food. Spaghetti is popular. Omelettes are popular too. And what is it about potato salad? But there is one dish that he cooked early on that involved beef and green peppers. I made that dish! I took pictures and everything. Here is a small photo. It was really good. But what I have been craving the most since reading book one is BEER. Yep. He mentions it quite a bit.
Anything else you want to add?
So far, this is my favorite Murakami book. That could change as I finish each volume but book one is staying with me far longer than any of his other books have.
What do YOU think so far? If you want to comment, add a comment to this post or use the hashtag below to find us on Twitter. If you did a write-up on your blog, use Mister Linky below to add a link to it.
You do not need to comment at all if you don’t want to! Next up, book two and we have until April 28th to finish it. Thanks for reading along!
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