Kafka on the Shore (2002)

Author: Haruki Murakami

Usually, this place is reserved for expressing one's opinion on the particular book, but I would like to devote this review to Murakami himself, the magnificent writer that he truly is.

Some experts say Marukami ir a genius, but I believe he is a virtuoso, a literary wizard because no other writer ever has written a single story that speaks to me as much as all the Murakami's books I've read do. So far, I've become acquainted to (just) 4 of his novels, and each of them has influenced me in some way. It seems like each of these 4 books has been written to me personally. As if the author was familiar with my problems, struggles, goals, and knew I would read those stories some day when he wrote them. Not only are these novels engaging and a great amusement, but I've also learnt from them a lot about myself, the reasons behind other people's behaviour in different situations, and about the world as such.

Murakami makes you feel emotionally attached to the characters (often quite extraordinary) and somehow forces you to think, think, and think again (but not in an exhausting, tedious way) what would you do if you were in their shoes. Honestly, I think I've changed my attitude towards so many things jbecause that's what the author's characters did. And I'm not that easy-to-influence, but then again, Murakami is a magician, and I've said that before, so no wonders there.

If we talk about "Kafka on the Shore" in particular, this book is undeniably the most challenging, mind-boggling novel I've ever read. It balances somewhere between reality and fiction, and at times you can't even tell which is which as possible meets impossible. Are cats really capable of speaking like humans or are they just some sort of a symbol? And if so, what do they represent? Is it possible to be in two places at the same time, to be both dead and alive? And if you go deep, like very deep into the forest, can you find a place where time doesn't exhist, memories don't matter, and all you need to think about is the present?

This book indeed leaves you with more questions than any test could, and there is no one obvious answer to any of them. It's a kind of a detective story with unpredicatable twists and turns, murders, and investigations, but in comparison to the traditional examples of this liteary genre, with every chapter "Kafka on the Shore" gets more and more complicated, raises more and more questions, and in the end, you don't really understand what has happened. It's clear that it is a story about a teenage boy Kafka Tamura who runs away from home to find a better life. But the unbelievable things that he did and the interesting people he met - was it just a night's dream or did it actually occur? I haven't found the answers to these questions, but perhaps you will. And if you do, please tell me. I wanna know.