Kafka on the Shore

You sit at the edge of the world,
I am in a crater that's no more.
Words without letters
Standing in the shadow of the door.

The moon shines down on a sleeping lizard,
Little fish rain down from the sky.
Outside the window there are soldiers,
steeling themselves to die.

Kafka sits in a chair by the shore,
Thinking of the pendulum that moves the world, it seems.
When your heart is closed,
The shadow of the unmoving Sphinx,
Becomes a knife that pierces your dreams.

The drowning girl's fingers
Search for the entrance stone, and more.
Lifting the hem of her azure dress,
She gazes--
at Kafka on the Shore.

I'm sitting here wondering to how to even begin writing a review for this intriguing novel. This is my first time reading a translated book, but I feel that it must not have hindered my experience any because I'm still left wondering how I'm supposed to react to the book. Which I'm sure is exactly what Mr. Murakami intended.

The book mostly follows two remarkable characters --the "strongest 15-year-old in the world" who calls himself Kafka. He's a runaway, a bookworm, and enjoys libraries. It also follows a mentally challenged old man who "isn't so bright" named Nakata who survived a war incident. He can talk to cats. This seems ridiculous and simple, but it's not.

I feel if I said anymore I'd give too much away, or maybe I wouldn't give away anything at all. What Kafka on the Shore really is... is an adventure beyond what's really there. It's a book where you don't know if your character's supposed to be awake or dreaming, if they're completely psychotic, if they're just messed up, confused; anything like that. It's more that you feel you can pierce your dreams and your spirit may just end up leaving your body to fulfill pieces of an unwanted curse, or a sudden desire. It's funny how a bit of Japanese folklore sewn into a strange novel can make you say aloud many times, "What the hell..." But this one does.

Now, I don't know what else to say about this book since its plot is so convoluted, but I know for sure this novel isn't for everyone. Murakami doesn't shy away from sex. In fact, I feel like a lot of this novel is mostly sexually driven, so if that's not your thing, I wouldn't go pick up the novel. Other from that, this book is a great one to read if you want a good mind fuck. Well, written, keeps you in suspense, great characters, and a neat experience.

-CiCi Nordstrom
/ [▲.]

   More book reviews