Reading Murakami

I just finished reading The Strange Library, and it made me reflect on my process of reading Murakami. His stories are so outlandish to me that they sometimes feel inaccessible. Any attempt I make at interpreting what a certain symbol means ends up futile – that’s how I felt reading A Wild Sheep Chase, too. I’m not exactly sure what to make of this…

One thing Murakami does capture very well for me, though, is the whole first love and heartbreak thing. Reading Norwegian Wood and now The City and Its Uncertain Walls (to a lesser extent) makes me think back to high school in a way that is nostalgic but also uncomfortable. For me, reading Murakami tends to stir up more bad memories than good ones when the story really resonates. I find it interesting that others have a sort of therapeutic response to reading Murakami, because it feels the opposite for me. That being said…I did kind of get that feeling for a moment reading “The Ice Man,” which has been my favorite Murakami story by far. It immediately made me think of “ice men” that I had met before; there was something very real about it that I could relate to my life. In this story, Murakami captured a type of loneliness that I could understand, whereas the alienation he portrays in his novels usually feels more distinctly masculine. While Murakami's stories don't all get through to me in a way that feels satisfying, there are sometimes when I'm surprised how well he captures a feeling or idea I can relate to.

Juliet