Japanese Literature Read-Along: The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle: Book 3

I've finally reached the end of my three-month journey in The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle.  Thank you to Tanabata for choosing this for the Japanese Literature Read-Along.  It was my first experience with Haruki Murakami and I enjoyed it for the most part and would love to continue exploring his work.  Again, here are my thoughts on Book 1 and Book 2.

The final section of this book leaves behind some characters, the sisters Kano, and introduces two new ones -- Nutmeg and Cinnamon Akasaka, a mother and son.  Toru Okada is still the focus of the story but we also read many other narratives that are seemingly unrelated to the present.  Some things are tied up in this third book but many are not.

I ended this book with a strange feeling -- neutrality.  I'm not sure if I liked or disliked this book overall.  There were certainly parts I enjoyed and others that made me uncomfortable.  I will have to let the impressions settle for a while longer.  This one might even require a re-read for me to be able to decide.  It was a unique experience and, if this is what it is like to read Murakami, I can see the appeal.  He is no ordinary author.

Silencing the wind-up bird,
K


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