markgalassi's review of Haruki Murakami's The Wind-up Bird Chronicle

markgalassi reviewed Haruki Murakami's The Wind-up Bird Chronicle by Matthew Strecher

Matthew Strecher: Haruki Murakami's The Wind-up Bird Chronicle (2002, Continuum International Publishing Group)

Review of "Haruki Murakami's The Wind-up Bird Chronicle" on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

As I read this book it rapidly became one of my handful of favorite novels.

The book is sometimes labeled as an example of "magical realism". Among other things, this label implies that the plot summaries (like the one on the book cover, and the one here on goodreads) will seem weird and not convey how wonderful the book is.

What struck me was the placid storytelling with which the narrator creates very intricate situations and yet remains completely calm. I am not sure what specific devices the write users to achieve this effect (on me, at least), but it worked very well and I was enthralled by the story.