Murakami's books are very hard for me to review/write about. Before I sat down to write this, I went back to look at my reviews for the other works I've read by him. They weren't helpful in the least. Two of the reviews were extremely brief and for the other book, it appears that I just left a star rating and went on with my life.

So, I guess I'll start by saying that Murakami has moved into my list of favorite authors. His writing style is so smooth, so idiosyncratic, and his subject matter is such an odd mix of the mundane and the otherworldly, that I'm consistently impressed and mystified. I can never figure out how he's achieving any of his effects, and, more importantly, as I'm reading, I simply don't care. I don't know how he makes scenes about getting dressed or making dinner fascinating. I don't know how he makes me care about his oddball characters and their ridiculous, obtuse conversations. I don't know how he keeps me interested in a story about people being possessed by a sheep.

But he does. And I guess that's what's important.

“I don't really know if it's the right thing to do, making new life. Kids grow up, generations take their place. What does it all come to? More hills bulldozed and more ocean fronts filled in? Faster cars and more cats run over? Who needs it?”

This is the first book Murakami wrote as a full-time novelist, and his third overall. The third book in the Rat Trilogy, the story revolves around a strange mystery surrounding an enigmatic sheep in Hokkaido, and how the narrator starts on an adventure to find something that even he can't grasp properly. Here, Murakami touches up on themes like right-wing politics in Japan, and ear fetish.

Take a dip into this fast-paced mystery with a strange surrealistic undertone, as we smoke Seven Stars and enjoy the dull, cold weather of Sapporo, searching for a long-lost friend.

Wonderful continuation of his first great cycle, an essential early Murakami.

Fino's Murakami Reviews - Novels
Hear the Wind Sing (1979/1987-2015)
Pinball, 1973 (1980/1985-2015)
A Wild Sheep Chase (1982/1989)
Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World (1985/1991)
Norwegian Wood (1987/1989-2000)
Dance Dance Dance (1988/1994)
South of the Border, West of the Sun (1992/2000)
The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle (1995/1997)
Sputnik Sweetheart (1999/2001)
Kafka on the Shore (2002/2005)
After Dark (2004/2007)
1Q84 (2010/2011)
Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage (2013/2014)
Killing Commendatore (2017/2018)

Fino's Murakami Reviews - Short Story Collections and Misc
The Elephant Vanishes (1993)
After the Quake (2000/2002)
Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman (2006)
Men Without Women (2014/2017)
First Person Singular (2020/2021)
Underground: The Tokyo Gas Attack and the Japanese Psyche
What I Talk About When I Talk About Running (2007/2008)

Haruki Murakami ran a jazz club in Tokyo prior to his career as an author. And it’s not just the presence of music in his novels that provides evidence of that. It’s also the books themselves which have a very “jazz like” feel to them. Murakami himself has said:

"It's kind of a free improvisation. I never plan. I never know what the next page is going to be. Many people don't believe me. But that's the fun of writing a novel or a story, because I don't know what's going to happen next. I'm searching for melody after melody. Sometimes once I start, I can't stop. It's just like spring water. It comes out so naturally, so easily."

An approach like that means there is plenty of opportunity to riff on a theme, to digress, to take sudden turns for no apparent reason, to go back and forwards.

In fact, to read this book feels rather like being in someone’s head as they are dreaming. There’s a girl who is quite ordinary until she exposes her ears when she becomes extraordinarily attractive and who directs a lot of the action by her powers of intuition. There’s a shadowy presence of a man known only as Boss. There’s a race against time in which nothing happens for prolonged periods. The dreamlike quality of the book is increased by the fact that the narrator often seems to have decisions made for him but then ends up in a conversation where his actions have been aimed at a specific objective: at one point he apparently randomly smashes a guitar to pieces and then later provides an explanation for this almost like a dream where you rationalise weird behaviour by bizarre explanations that make sense within the dream. There are mysterious letters from an old acquaintance (The Rat after whom the trilogy of which this is the last part is named) including a photograph of a sheep. There’s a man in a sheep costume. There’s a Sheep Professor.

As you would expect in a book called A Wild Sheep Chase, sheep play an important role. But the exact nature of that role isn’t quite clear. Further evidence of the dream-like nature of the book. It could be that a sheep is in charge. Of everything.

It’s a thoroughly enjoyable read, probably enhanced by Murakami’s improvisational approach. If the author doesn’t know from page to page where the story is going, there is not really any way the reader can second-guess him! Although when someone is instructed to connect the green wire to the green wire and the red wire to the red wire, you do sort of know where that particular action is going to lead.

It's the sort of genre bending/mixing that Murakami does like no one else. You either love him or hate him. For me, it's the former.

„Колкото и да набирахме скорост, беше невъзможно да избягаме от скуката. Обратно, колкото по-бързо се движехме, толкова повече хлътвахме в скуката. Ах, естеството на скуката!“


Хареса ми сюрреалистичното „Преследване на дива овца“, но не успя да ми впечатли колкото очаквах. За мен, тази книга е симпатичен литературен сън! Сюжетът е доста шантав и заплетен, като Мураками отново обръща внимание на типичните за своето творчество теми. Главният герой има обикновен и скучен начин на живот, обаче към даден момент се оказва забъркан в загадъчни перипетии...





„В аквариума на паметта ми винаги беше късна есен.“


„Времето наистина е едно дълго, непрекъснато парче плат, нали? Обикновено режем късчета време, които да ни подхождат, затова се заблуждаваме да мислим, че времето ни е по мярка, то обаче продължава да си тече и тече.“


„ Познанието е фантазия — отсече мъжът. — Да приемем, че всичко, което ви казвам сега, не е нищо повече от думи. Както и да ги редя и да ги пренареждам, пак няма никога да успея да ви обясня формата на Волята, която Шефа притежаваше. Обяснението ми няма да покаже нищо друго, освен връзката между самия мен и Волята чрез връзка на словесно равнище. Така отхвърлянето на познанието е свързано с отхвърлянето на езика. Защото когато тези два стълба на западния хуманизъм — познанието на индивида и еволюционната приемственост — изгубят значението си, езикът също се обезсмисля. Индивидът, какъвто го познаваме, престава да съществува и всичко се превръща в хаос. Вие преставате да бъдете неповторимо създание само по себе си и съществувате просто като хаос. За разума съществуването е комуникация, а комуникацията е съществуване.“

Reading Murakami is like experiencing someone else's dream. Trying to review Murakami is like trying to remember your own -- scattered events, confusing narrative lapses, inexplicable elements, petrified whale penises. A series of images:

n  nn  n

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And then you wake up. And wonder what that was all about.

ولی جدی کی به جز موراکامی میتونه درباره‌ی پیدا
کردن یه گوسفند داستان به این خوبی بنویسه؟؟؟ :))))

آپدیت: دارم سریال تویین پیکس رو میبینم و شباهت های ریز و جالبی بین سریال و این کتاب هست مخصوصا فصل دوم. اگه این کتاب رو دوست داشتین حتما سریال رو ببینین ^____^

คนที่อ่านงานของมูราคามิน่าจะแบ่งเป็นสองประเภท ประเภทแรกคือพวกที่ปาหนังสือทิ้งตั่งแต่ยังไม่จบบทแรก ประเภทที่สองคือพวกที่อ่านจนจบ

คนประเภทแรก พวกนี้จะน่าอิจฉามากเพราะพวกเขาถอนตัวได้ทันก่อนที่อะไร ๆ จะสายเกินแก้ แถมยังมีเวลาเอาไปอ่านหนังสือดี ๆ เล่มอื่นได้อีกเพียบ ส่วนคนประเภทที่สองพวกนี้จะหลงใหลกับสิ่งที่เกิดขึ้น พวกเขาจะดื่มด่ำกับบรรยากาศ ทุกตัวอักษรบนหน้ากระดาษ ทุกความรู้สึกจะทำให้คนเหล่านั้นดำดิ่งไปจนถอนตัวไม่ขึ้น ซึ่งก็น่าอิจฉาเช่นเดียวกัน

แต่มันจะมีพวกประหลาด ๆ ซึ่งจัดเป็นชนกลุ่มน้อยประเภทที่สาม พวกเขาจะอ่านจนจบเหมือนกัน แต่แปลกมากที่คนพวกนี้จะเกลียดหนังสือที่ตัวเองได้อ่านไปพร้อมกับการก่นด่าและสาปส่ง แต่ที่แปลกยิ่งกว่านั้นคือพวกเขาจะตามอ่านมูราคามิแม่งแทบทุกเล่ม ซึ่งพวกนี้แหละที่น่าสงสารที่สุด

براي من كتاب خواندن فراتر از خواندن كتاب است.؛ماشين زمان است و جادو كه يكنواختي و واقعي بودن زندگي را كمرنگ كند،هاروكي موراكامي با جزئيات بي نظير و تركيب عناصر روزمره و تبديل آن ها به موجودي شگفت انگيز ميتواند من را با خود همراه كند و مفهوم زمان و سكوت و تنهايي را به شكل متفاوتي دوست داشتني كند."شكار گوسفند وحشي"سرشار از استعاره ها و شخصيت پردازي هاي ظريف و توصيفاتي هست كه هر زماني ممكن است معني جديدي از آن ها را بفهمم؛كتابي نيست كه فراموش شود

My friend will be highly disappointed in me for this, as he's lending me all of Murakami's books one by one (I will be 100% taking a break after this one), but this is a DNF for me.
This isn't like Kafka on the Shore where I hated it, this is just lack of interest for me. To be quite frank, I don't have any desire to make the effort to finish the 2/3 I had left.
I do not think Murakami's magical realism and I are meant to be. I love his stories about nothing with in depth character studies, but when it comes to his plots, I don't mesh well.
Guess it will make a fun topic of discussion with my friend.

Murakami himself said that his writing career really only began with A Wild Sheep Chase, and I can see why.

While his first two novels aren't "bad" per se (although I guess this is a rather subjective take), they do lack in certain areas. What A Wild Sheep Chase does better than its predecessor(s), is the fact that it has a more solid structure. It follows a clear plot (although one could argue as to how "clear" it is, since it does occasionally venture into the surreal) which makes it possible for the reader to get more invested in the story.

In my review, I compared Hear the Wind Sing and Pinball, 1973 to Hopper Paintings, due to the melancholy, detached feeling that those novels conveyed to me. A Wild Sheep Chase feels more like a shabby hotel lobby to me. Why? Honestly, I'm not so sure. Maybe because this book just feels like it would make for a perfect travel companion, because a) it makes you want to go out and Experience Things and b) it follows two people who go on a rather crazy adventure (a wild sheep chase, if you will) and I'd imagine it would be great to read on the go. A Wild Sheep Chase does not stay in the same place, and it almost dares you to get up and go do some exploring - or perhaps discovering? - of your own.

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The writing, once again, really worked for me here. I love the way Murakami portrays alienation in his characters, as it's something I can somehow relate to. [Side note, characters in Japanese literature generally seem to have a bit more of a "skewed" perception of reality (at least that's what I've gathered so far) and I think that's why it almost always works for me.]

I also loved the settings in this book, especially the semi-closed setting at the end (which I cannot talk about due to spoilers) and whenever I pick up my copy of A Wild Sheep Chase I find myself transported back, if only temporarily, to those places. It's incredible how vivid they still appear in my mind. Murakami definitely knows how to create atmosphere with his settings.

Now, you may be thinking: Why is this weirdo (me) praising this book so much, yet she's still giving it "only" 3.5 stars?

Do not fret, my friend.

Here is what I didn't like about this book:

There is one thing in literature that I dislike above everything. Yes, even above annoying characters, and slow pacing, and the miscommunication trope. I hate it even more than the sentence "She let out a breath she didn't know she was holding in". (Yes, I went there.)

The thing is.... I don't like being confused.

Especially when I know I'm not supposed to be confused.

As in, technically everything is supposed to at least kind of make sense, but my head for some reason just WILL NOT wrap its silly little mind around it. And what's worst of all? I know it's probably my fault (and that is pretty much unacceptable, for I am not supposed to feel shitty about myself. I'm soooooo great actually. Nothing should EVER be My Fault, you know?)

Somehow, I couldn't quite follow this book at times, and I feel like a lot of things are still lost to me, making the plot a fragmented, half-formed thing. Again, this is not the books fault, but entirely mine - I'm sure it makes sense to the general audience, (or at least they are aware of what is supposed to make sense and what isn't) - and I'm the one at fault here.

Sucks to say, but it is what it is.

Amen.

Conclusion (TLDR):

I really liked A Wild Sheep Chase! And the crazy part is that I feel like the more time passes, the more I like this book (which is an incredibly rare and thoroughly welcome phenomenon, if you ask me). I already want to reread this novel, because I think I might actually fall in love with it if I just gather all of the things I missed the first time and put them into place.

I'm excited to read Hardboiled Wonderland and the End of the World next month!

Well, that's all I have to say.

Thank you for reading!

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n  PROJECT MURAKAMI:n

I have decided to read every novel that Haruki Murakami has ever written, in chronological order (yes, even after what happened with Kafka on the Shore*....). I read roughly one book per month and then summarize all of my thoughts in reviews like these.

Ratings & Reviews:

1) Hear the Wind Sing & Pinball, 1973 ★★½

2) A Wild Sheep Chase ★★★½

3) Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World ★★★
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*Basically, I posted an obviously satirical rant on how gross I think milk is and thousands of people took it a little too seriously and brutally murdered me in an Instagram comment section. (I am not kidding btw). Sometimes I lie awake at night thinking about how someone said I probably have weak bones...

Man kelis kartus yra nutikę taip, kad žmonės sugadina rašytoją. O jums būna? Pažinojau labai Haruki Murakami mylintį žmogų, kuris man atrodė nemalonus, (nesigilinsim į nemalonumo priežastis.)bet Murakamį jis tiesiog skiemenuodavo - koks tobulas rašytojas. O mane toks išaukštinimas taip atbaidė, kad niekaip negalėjau prisiverst skaityt. Niekaip. Logiškai suprasdama kodėl taip vyksta ir neatmesdama galimybės, kad Murakamis galėtų būti išties puikus, ryžausi pirmoms trumpoms jo knygelėms. Jose patiko įžanga, autoriaus tiesioginis žodis. Ir viskas. Bet ta įžanga man žadėjo, kad gali būti geriau.

Pastaruoju metu, atradau naują saviapgaulės būdą - knygų, kurių neprisiruošiu skaityt, bandau suklausyt. Ir, žinokit, veikia!

Taigi, prisikaupiau ir Avies medžioklei.