Hi there,
I just read the first three books of Murakami – the trilogy of the rat – and just finished the wild sheep chase. However, those books and especially the last one just left me clueless.
Im a big fan of McCarthy, Ian McEwan, Steinbeck, Houellebecq, Coetzee etc, and I consider myself capable of handling also difficult books, but for some reason I cant warm up to Murakami.
Could someone explain to me why especially the wild sheep chase is considered by many people as his best book, his masterpiece? I mean, I didnt understand one single thing in this book. What is the sheep standing for? Why the magical ears of his girlfriend? What does the ending with his friend “the rat” mean? What sense makes all this? Is there really a deeper meaning behind this all? I really dont get it 😀
I want to like Murakami, I really do, but I feel like there is a locked up door to his realm and I dont have the key yet.
by DonnieSunset
1 Comment
I think there’s a level of acceptance you have to live with when it comes to Murakami. You don’t necessarily need to understand everything you’re reading, just be like the protagonist, meet the strange characters, accept their strangeness and move on.