First introductions always kind of suck for me, and this blog post is no exception. I want to make a good first impression, but if I try too hard I might end up telling you my whole life story. (No thanks!) Hi, I’m Nathalie and in this column I’ll write book recommendations. I have decided my goal for this school year is to read at least eight books. For some, this may sound challenging, but don’t worry, you won’t be waiting for me to finish my reading. I have books I’ve already read tucked in the back of my sleeve.
The book I’m recommending to you today is Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami. This books involves another world with a strange relationship to ours, old war stories, talking cats, and a runaway fifteen year old escaping a prophecy. What I really like about this story is the magical realism. The way Murakami fits extraordinary and unusual situations into everyday occurrences so that they make complete sense in real life. For instance, waking up in the middle of the night to find a woman you work with in your bedroom, except that it’s not her in the present day, it’s her fifteen year old self. She sits at the desk across from the bed, staring at a painting of the ocean on the wall.
The book alternates from chapter to chapter between the stories of two characters. You start the story with Kafka Tamura, who is running away from home. In the alternating chapter you’ll meet Nakata, who never recovered from wartime afflictions. The story builds like staircase and leaves the reader with a satisfying feeling when small pieces of the story start to fit together. Also, this book is a nice break from our excessively normal world.
Words and Images by Nathalie Brunelle
