Channeling Haruki Murakami

"Encounters set in the witching hours of Tokyo between midnight and dawn" says the tagline of After Dark the first Murakami book I read. I have had periods in my life where I became overly introverted. I disliked being around people. It's too much for my senses so I sleep when everyone else is awake. I also acquired the habit of hanging out at 7/11 at 2AM in the morning a.k.a my vampire days. (* ^-^)  I knew it was a bad habit but I loved the feeling of walking on a deserted street pretending I was on a scene from Vanilla Sky. From time to time I still miss it but definitely not the physical and emotional side-effects. (^-^;")ゞ It's amazing how many books talk about this feeling, mostly books about insomniacs and their adventures. After Dark is one of his easy read books, recommended for a newbie Murakami reader.



His books talk about connections, solitude, and the kind of loneliness you get from trying to understand life and other people. Naturally, I'm hooked! Haha.



As a logophile (lover of words), I love how he strings them together like sweet music to my ears.



I admit his stories can be repetitive — lots of cats, classical & jazz music and getting lost in weird turns. Not to mention confusing, I often have to re-read or read other people's reviews to gain a complete picture of what the book is about. In the end, it doesn't matter if I don't reach any conclusion. I love going back to his stories to discover something I had not realized before.



They're wonderful to look at as well! My collection goes back and forth between Chip Kidd's US hardcover designs and John Gall's US paperback. Frankly I prefer hardcover books because the paper is less likely to turn yellow and not as fragile, but for art and Murakami I'm willing to spend more selling & re-buying the books as they age. *lol* I know crazy huh?!

I'm slowly wading through his works from the easy read ones to the more bizarre. I also recommend Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman , collection of 24 short stories, for a glimpse into Murakami's world.

Lastly, Happy birthday Murakami!!! ♪( ^-^)/★,｡･:･ﾟ (January 12)