The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami

Over break I read The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, written by Haruki Murakami. It starts with a very normal man named Toru Okada, and his not-so-normal wife, Kumiko. Their cat, Noboru Wataya(named after Kumikos brother), has just disappeared and to Kumiko, this is somewhat upsetting. This single event, the disappearance of the cat, sends Toru Okada off on an exploration of Japanese mysticism and a journey through his own dreams. This novel highlights a personal struggle and the things it takes to bring Toru Okada closer to the meaning of the strange events unfolding all around him.
The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle is written in a very sporadic style. When dealing with Toru Okada, the passive protagonist, it is all told from a first person point of view. This makes parts of it very high-paced and unpredictable. It is a very effective way to tell this particular type of story because it limits what you know to almost nothing. You know what Toru Okada knows and nothing more. The style in which many of the characters socialize also has a very surreal, dreamlike articulation to it. There are many points in the novel where even Toru Okada cannot discern dream from reality.
Haruki Murakami was born in Kyoto, Japan and has lived all over the western world. That is one of the many things that has attributed to his world renown and extensive collection of works. To date, Murakami has written 16 novels and a handful of short stories. Not much is known about Murakami due to the fact that much of his life is yet to be translated from Japanese. His 16 novels have been translated, but most literary critics will argue that, by reading it in any language other than Japanese, you are being screwed. It is a fact that the English translation of The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, done by Jay Rubin, is missing 2 chapters and an endless list of small details. That is one down side to the version I read and it is something to take into account.
As far as a clear recommendation goes, I highly recommend that you read this book. If you like erratic, metaphysical storylines this book will keep you wide awake and intrigued, although, it is not a short read by any means. It runs at about 610 pages and took me about 4 or 5 days of intense reading to complete. It is meant to be read quickly and in large chunks. There are too many small details, and it is far too interesting to be read over the course of a long time. Simply put, you will either finish it quickly, or not finish it at all. So, once again, I recommend that you go pick up a copy of Haruki Murakamis The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle.