I read HBW a long time ago and haven't revisited it since, but the impression it left was lasting. It struck me as one of Murakami's most "out there" and comedic novels - I remember laughing often at the absurdity of the real-world portions, set against the bland, frank city where people are stripped of their personalities. It wasn't immediately the most compelling of his works to me, but the wild and funny journey it took me on was far from forgettable. The strange city left me with a lot of questions, and the book made a very distinct impression.
Going into TCAIUW on its release date, I was anticipating something as wild as HBW, and that's not what I found. Instead, I was met with a slow-burning, beautifully written story that feels entirely disconnected from HBW's world, outside of the obvious parallels between the two cities. At first, this caught me off guard, and I kept waiting for the book to start feeling like a "Murakami novel" in the way I expected - full of his usual absurdity - but that moment never came. While there are characters who die and linger as spirits, and the town itself is obviously strange and unusual, most of this book feels grounded and calm in a way that sets it apart from much of his other work.
I think this disparity reflects both where Murakami is in his career and the specific context of this story. TCAIUW was written to finally complete a novella from very early in his career, which makes me think he wanted to approach it with as much composure and intention as possible - to put the story to rest the right way. And though I hope it isn't a factor, Murakami is getting older, and a slower, more measured pace might simply be a truer reflection of where his head is at now.
Overall, I'm a huge fan of both books. But I wanted to share my experience with the gap between two stories that, on the surface, seem closely related, and in my opinion, really aren't.
- kevin
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