Murakami Haruki: The Wind up Bird Chronicle

Murakami Haruki has always been a prolific writer. His stories are filled with fiction and surrealism. The wind up bird Chronicle is a very profound story which makes the reader experience feelings like jealousy, anger and frustration.

The Times

"Mesmerising, surreal, this really is the work of a true original"

Synopsis

The story is about Toru Okada. He is an unemployed husband. While he is relaxing and doing house chores his wife Kumiko goes to work. Toru receives unemployment money and together with his wife they manage to pay their bills. One day Kumiko's cat disappears and she asks Toru to look for it. Toru spends the coming days looking for the cat in the neighborhood and other places. He only encounters strange persons and abandoned homes. He meets a high school girl that tells him stories. At night, he receives strange calls from a women with an erotic voice. Days later, Kumiko contacts with a medium called Malta Kano. She sets up a meeting between Malta Kano and her Husband. Everything Malta Kano says it that everything will change for Toru and that the cat will not come back.

As the story progresses, Toru's wife, Kumiko, disappears and affairs rise in Toru's life. Toru's mind is filled thoughts about his wife and a supposed affair. Kumiko's disappearance is unclear and might have several reasons. From there, Toru embarks into a story full of surrealism and characters filled with stories. His everyday activities of cooking, reading and listening to Jazz are interrupted and his journey starts from there.

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Final Word

The wind up bird Chronicle is easy to read. It is perfect to disconnect from reality for some time. It contains slight pieces of erotism which is normal in Murakami Haruki's novels. Overall, a very enjoyable storyline with very realistic characters.