Kafka on the Shore

Another Murakami.  The most popular, as far as I'm concerned, but to me, the least satisfactory.  The entire novel felt disconnected, like I was set on a treadmill at walking pace, without any goal in sight. At least in his previous novels there was some sort of goal to be worked after.  As expected, the story quietly ended with no resolution or really any attempt at sense.

I'm not sure if this reaction is due to the fact that I've read so many of his books now and am tired of his style, or that Kafka really was a lackluster work.  Sure, some of the characters were interesting and likable, but it was hard to care about anything happening at all.  It feels more like I was introduced to them for a brief period, and now will forget them all without effort.  And "The Boy Named Crow" was really just annoying, and made no sense to me.  If you're going to personify the conscience, do it with purpose.  I'd like to know what Murakami's intent in writing all of these stories are.  Maybe he's like Miss Saeki in this story, writing for no one and no reason.

Per usual, the world of Murakami in Kafka was muted and quiet.  Lack of feeling, but uneasy, like a surrealist painting.  This feeling bleeds into real life when I read his writing, so now that it's spring, maybe I'm glad that I'm through with his books.  At least for a while.