The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle

Intertwined narratives weave together history, personal relationships, and existential questions of memory and identity into a gripping narrative with masterful variation in rhythm, time, tone, and voices. I loved how vivid this book is— grounded in research and rich detail capturing the politics and cultural life of Japan in the 1980s as well as the controversial historical questions about the nation’s role in the mainland during the 1930s-1940s. I was most captivated by the parts about the secret fortress in Hailar, the Battle of Nomonhan, and the interactions between the Russian, Japanese, and Chinese. I am not bothered by the way the end resists easy answers and resolutions - in fact I think that’s part of the power of the book. At times, the female characters come across as a bit stereotyped as they’re described by the narrator, who comes across as chauvinistic, especially early in the book. Some of them may be endowed with supernatural powers yet overall they seem to have less subjectivity and agency than the male characters. But after all this is Japan in the 1980s when there was a low glass ceiling and women were routinely sidelined in the workforce. Perhaps a more generous reading is possible as the book continues— that chauvinism is part of the setup, as the book is very much a self-portrait of the narrator and the characters emanate from his POV — which gradually breaks down as he undergoes an identity crisis. I switched between the kindle and audiobook version and enjoyed both. Oddly the Kindle is the American version, while the Audible version is the British version - it’s not a big deal, though it’s odd at times to hear an American narrator using “torch” instead of “flashlight” etc. Some Audible reviewers complain about the women’s voices such as May Kasahara’s - but if you continue reading, the voices do fit the backgrounds of the characters as Murakami describes them, and their diction as Murakami writes it. May, for example, is a teenager and her voice on the page is generally lighthearted and breathless, and the narrator communicates that. Overall I think the audiobook narrator effectively differentiates between the many characters’ voices, which could otherwise be difficult to follow in such a long novel. It kept me listening and reading to the end.

I remember reading somewhere that Haruki Murakami’s books are among the most-stolen from bookstores. I’m not sure why that is, but there’s no denying that the Japanese author has very devoted fans. Reading The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle was my first experience with him, and left me both sort of getting it and sort of not. It’s a hard story to describe: there’s a guy, Toru Okada, who lives outside of Tokyo with his wife, Kumiko, and their cat (which they’ve named Noboru Wataya, after her disliked brother) has gone missing. Toru has recently left his longtime job in a lawyer’s office, but is unemployed while he tries to figure out what’s next. Kumiko wants him to find the cat, and his searches for it lead him to strike up an acquaintance with a strange teenage girl, May, who lives down the block. That’s when the phone calls start. First, there’s a woman who says she knows who he is and starts talking dirty to him. But then there’s a psychic, a woman named Malta Kano, who explains that Kumiko has reached out to her to help with locating the cat. Kumiko and her family believe in things like psychics, having previously arranged for Kumiko and Toru to spend time with an old man called Mr. Honda, allegedly for spiritual consultations…but all that actually happens is that he repeatedly tells them about his experiences as a soldier in Manchuria during World War II. Toru meets with Malta Kano, and her sister, Cresta, but before long Kumiko herself disappears. She sends Toru a letter explaining that she’s left him for a coworker with whom she’s been having an affair, but he doesn’t believe this and decides to try to find her, which brings him into contact with even more strange people, including a mother and son who he calls Nutmeg and Cinnamon. And appearing throughout is the sound of a bird, that sounds like something mechanical being wound. This is a weird book, and I’m not sure I entirely understand it. It’s one of those that you finish and almost want to flip right back to the beginning and start again, to see if it makes any more sense the second time through. I think there will be a second time through, though certainly not now. And there will definitely be more Murakami. If I had to chose a single word to describe it, it would be “dream-like”. The way Murakami uses language and builds the world of the book create a feeling of constant loose connection, almost a structured free association, in which the concept that would tie everything together is just tantalizingly out of reach. It works well, and I found myself turning the pages and getting drawn further and further into it, though I suspected (correctly) that not everything was going to be tied up in a neat bow by the end. Honestly, though, once I finished it, though I felt like I liked it, I have had a hard time articulating exactly why. It was obtuse, the female characters were largely underdeveloped (though I did love May), and it felt like some storylines were just dropped like hot potatoes. But despite its flaws, it’s strangely compelling. There’s something magical and mysterious about the world as Murakami creates it, and it did get me thinking about some of the deeper themes that were explored, like our obligations to each other as people and the nature of power in relationships. It’s intellectually engaging despite the kind of haziness about it. If you’re ready for something non-traditional, I would recommend this book.

Got exactly what I ordered

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.

This is my second Haruki Murakami novel. The first being norwegian wood, which I found a little bit dissapointing and strange. It probably needs another read through. I decided to give Haruki another chance and read his masterpiece The Wind Up Bird Chronicle. The book started off quite slowly. It has some really surreal and bazaar parts which kept me interested, but also some more dragging parts. The book was simpl introducing you to the characters and showing you Toru Watanabe's "normal life" so that the effect of his life going crazy is stronger. Which it does. I found the book started to really hook me in at the part where we hear Lutenant Mamiya's long story. From then on the book is hard to put down! The book is very surreal and interesting. Not all answers are answered, the world in this book is very confusing, just like the main characters life. It's really gripping and mind boggling. Great book but it's very demanding and requires patience. I found it started to get really interesting after around 200 pages, so stick with it! The beginning isnt bad by any means, it's just not very exciting, but that makes the later part stronger!

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.