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Comments (41)

What did you think about this title?
1 to 25 of 41 items
Aug 10, 2022jillybee72 rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
I barely know how to describe the way Murakami transports you to another way of moving through the world.
Jun 04, 2022FinnLang rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Excellent!
May 18, 2022daveelton rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
This was my first novel written by Murakami and I really really liked it. The sort of state between dream and real where something is actually happening but it's taking place in an alternate reality was something that really scratched an…
Sep 24, 2021
Andy Hudson and Rachel Yoder mentioned this writer.
Jul 07, 2021JCLChrisK rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
Hmm. That was . . . curious. Puzzling? Most of the time while reading it I was simultaneously bored and mesmerized. Excellent writing and fascinating content, but I wanted more plot. No, that's not right. I wanted a protagonist who wasn't…
celeste26
May 29, 2021celeste26 rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Loved this book- it's great for a reader who wants to sink into a book and really invest some time.
Dec 27, 2020SamiraHarbieh rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Can only find one word to describe this book-- otherworldly. The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle is absolutely incredible and you can feel the soul of the author in it just like how you can with art. It's been over a year since I read this, but I…
Sep 17, 2020Hillsboro_RobP rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
A bizarre meandering through the life of a lonely Japanese man, who coincidentally keeps bumping in to characters with quite a bit more agency than himself. It's unusual, and beautiful in strange ways, for the reader that likes a surreal…
Jul 06, 2020PimaLib_ChristineR rated this title 2.5 out of 5 stars
This was not my cup of tea. I had previously read Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage and wanted to try more, but this wasn't it. What The Wind-Up Bird has in common with that novel is a dreamlike quality, a detachment…
Jun 10, 2020
I would love to read this book but the copy I have from the Christchurch library has such small print that I cannot. A pity as I love his work and have not found this problem with his other books. It has a black and red cover, not…
Apr 16, 2020
I have read a number of Murakami's novels and I loved every one of them. This one is more complex. I admit, I did not understand it. I am not talking about understanding the magic realism parts of the novel. In all his other works, I…
Oct 16, 2019
Deadpan humor, magical realism, and a main character who is chronically unsure of himself and everything around him except for one thing - I'm glad I chose this as my first Haruki Murakami novel to read. Toru Okada is living a rather…
Sep 26, 2019Joeybiomaster rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
I never know how to describe the plot of Murakami's books and it's interesting to see the plot description at the back of his books. It's like the publisher said "yup, we don't know how to describe this book either. Let's just take some…
Sep 16, 2019jmmReads rated this title 2.5 out of 5 stars
Interesting writing style, though, reading a translation, it's hard to tell how much of that is the original author's doing and how much is the translator's. The cover has words like 'dreamlike', but to borrow a concept from C.S Lewis…
Jul 30, 2019amymcnamara1993 rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Simple, yet beautiful writing. Felt long towards the end without a huge plot payoff.
May 04, 2019anhovq rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Haruki Murakami is the master of static characters with unresolved internal conflicts. Perhaps, the realistic depiction of how problems are chronic is why I’m so fond of his work. The character’s journey doesn’t feel rushed nor awkwardly…
Apr 11, 2019jcwareham rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Murakami reliably enchants me on every page of every book. This was my first read of his. I love the warmth and deeply personal details of the thoughts and actions and moods of his characters, perhaps especially the young ones working out…
Sep 28, 2018LPL_EliH rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
I can see how it would turn a lot of people away; extended narrations of sandwich making and perplexing, far wandering side stories make The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle tough to stomach. For me, it was a wonderfully spellbinding mystery, thick…
May 22, 2018kcenter rated this title 0.5 out of 5 stars
Although there were interesting anecdotes that held my attention, I started skimming over pages and pages of trivial, mind-numbing details, reading just the first sentence of each paragraph until something caught my attention again.…
May 18, 2018scribby rated this title 2 out of 5 stars
I was very disappointed by this. Like a lot of Murakami’s work, it’s weird and surrealistic; but it’s also a bit lurid and trashy, full of overwrought similes (“While I was ogling the garden, the pigeon on the aerial… looked like a clerk…
Apr 12, 2017tjdickey rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
In the words of one of his characters, Murakami here is "engaged in a serious search for the meaning of his own existence." The dreamlike imagery and inconsistent grounding in basic reality is very mysterious, challenging, and even a bit…
Feb 06, 2017elizali rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Believe the hype! This was the first Murakami book I have read, and I am converted as a fan. One of the best books I have read in the last year - Murakami is clearly talented and prolific for good reason. So glad I finally ponied up for…
Sep 08, 2016
Haruki Murakami is one of, if not the most highly regarded novelist in Japan for a reason: his grasp on magical reality is unparalleled. The story of The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle follows a man named Toru Okada who searches for his wife’s…
Jun 03, 2016PimaLib_JudyM rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
There was a lot of head scratching in my book group about this particular book. It was dreamlike, and I was never really certain what was real. That was actually not a bad thing as I found myself pondering the meaning and symbolism for…
Apr 26, 2016Filthy_Doves rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Third favorite Murakami book, really enjoyed it all the way through.