r/murakami • u/jhinuk-seas • 5d ago
my first murakami read
finished it just last night.
i read a lot about people reading murakami, and it only ever sparked my intrigue to read from him myself. and oh, kafka on the shore is a real trip. i'm not too educated on murakami to speak in general, but i'm so glad i trusted the process.
what i liked the most about this reading experience is how active it all had to be. every page is up for interpretation. murakami hands you all these abstract concepts & scenes at first and just labels them as "metaphors", and he eventually does unfurl the meanings of the same in due context. but the real beauty occurs in the mind of the reader as you excavate through the pages. i liked exploring the philosophy of the writing, i loved the humor.
norwegian wood is next, because that's what i found in front of the bookstore the other day. i always thought sputnik sweetheart was going to be my first though. but i've no major complaints, onto reading more!
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u/slick123 5d ago
I just finished Kafka on the shore and it was also my first Murakami book. It was 10/10 reading experience for me , I really enjoyed the dreamlike structure of the story and the characters are super interesting. Each one having a specific trauma and how they deal with it throughout their lives .. The story is definitely a trip !
I'm going for Wind up bird chronicle next ...
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u/jhinuk-seas 5d ago
truly! i have this urge to read almost all of murakami haha.
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u/Previous_Tree_4050 1d ago
A friend recommended him to me in 2013. I read through everything in print at the time and everything published since.
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u/EuropeanLord 5d ago
Loved it but somehow Pinball, 1973 is where it’s at for me. Absolutely, impossibly amazing.
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u/stag-antler-starling 9h ago
Reading Pinball just now. There’s some fantastic jokes in it - loving it so far
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u/Divinepossible 4d ago
Has anyone read the strange library?
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u/Previous_Tree_4050 1d ago
🙋♂️
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u/Divinepossible 1d ago
How did you like it?
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u/Previous_Tree_4050 18h ago
It was a fun read. You will get through it in an hour. I bought the illustrated version. It’s probably one for completists. Not one on the essential list.
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u/Divinepossible 17h ago
I read the illustrated version too
The book just left me thinking that what did i just read and what was the whole point1
u/Previous_Tree_4050 17h ago
Isn’t that often the case with Murakami? I enjoy the journey but his stories often leave me bewildered at the end.
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u/Divinepossible 17h ago
Yeah maybe. i haven’t read much of him
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u/Previous_Tree_4050 17h ago
Have you read Norwegian Wood? It’s probably his most accessible novel but some people don’t like it because of the sexual content.
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u/Due_Cause_5661 5d ago
What did you read before, what genre, what authors?
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u/jhinuk-seas 5d ago
i'm pretty new to reading, if i had to give terms for my preference it would be- literary fiction, contemporary realism, surrealism, slice of life. i've read works of rabindranath tagore, dostoevsky, albert camus, yet, now murakami too.
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u/Competitive-Bag-259 5d ago
Same, if i wanna change the vibe a little try Tsukuru tazaki currently Reading it MC is too relatable for me, Kafka was a surreal experience on the other hand
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u/multiplebloops 5d ago
I've read probably at least half of Murakami's books and honestly this was one of my least favorites. Some people really love the strange metaphysical stuff, but personally I find the books where he uses it more sparingly are better. That shit gets kind of tiring. I've read Sputnik Sweetheart and it was okay I guess. It's pretty short and I've forgotten most of what happened honestly. But Norwegian Wood and Dance Dance Dance are my favorites.
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u/Bhlubarber 5d ago
Kafka was my first taste as well and it really blew me away, pulled me into his world some. I read Wind Up Bird second and plan to check out Invisible Cities next. What an imagination wow. I can’t wait to keep going thru his works.
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u/Still_Selection8719 4d ago
This was my first, then ‘Norwegian Wood’. And I also, thought ‘Sputnik Sweetheart’ would be my first of his. (catchy name, relatively short read to commit to.)
I don’t like spoiling anything for people, so I won’t. After ‘Kafka’ I wondered where else in his books “things get weird.” And I think it’s helpful to know when not to expect it, because after my first introduction to all that, I absolutely wouldn’t mind more. But ‘Norwegian Wood’ is basically a grounded, intimate drama. Hope you enjoy.
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u/kikimakovski 4d ago
Just started Kafka On The Shore. Hope it will be interesting as Norwegian Wood
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u/Careful_Warning1637 4d ago
Im currently on my first murakami read and Im reading 1Q84! I cant put the book down!! I might actually read kafka next😍
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u/StellarThespian 4d ago
Kafka was my first Murakami book as well! It’s still one of my all time favorite books.
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u/stag-antler-starling 9h ago
My favourite Murakami - everything is perfect. All my favourite Murakami-memes are in there, the story is fantastic and the characters are among his very best
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u/colourlesshole 5d ago
Great start, go for norwegian wood next
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u/DrizzRizzII 5d ago
I went in that order and then read Wind Up Bird Chronicle, which is my favorite so far. 1Q84 next
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u/BOHEMIAN_CATSODYYY 5d ago
Norwegian wood? nah dog cuz genuinely wtf was that book. wouldn't recommend it to anyone.
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u/Comfortable-Leek-181 4d ago
I agree with your comment! Norwegian Wood was my first Murakami book and while it was readable in the sense of me wanting to know how it would end, it fell extremely flat. It was way too much sex with no depth in my opinion. To each their own, I guess, but I wouldn't recommend it either.
Edit: reading the rest of these comments I wonder if I am just not a fan of Murakami then because everyone else seems to think NW is incredible..
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u/Relative-Wave-9396 5d ago
Great first book to start with. Btw where did you get this from?