AUTHOR OF THE MONTH || Haruki Murakami

Author of the month will be updated every month (depending which date I want to upload it in).

                This month, the weather has been very odd. It would be as hot as summer and I would stay cooped up in my room, embracing all the air-conditioned air. Or it would be cold and rainy. Those are the days I stay in bed, entranced with a book. Then, there are days when the air would be chilly, yet the sun was up as it warms its surroundings. I call this weather “Murakami Weather”.

                I chose Haruki Murakami as my author for the month because I have been very into his work late last year. I first discovered him through a poem I read that said “Tell him how much you love Murakami”. I can imagine why any avid reader would love his work. Murakami brings both reality and fictional instances in his novels. He will always leave you wondering “Did that really happen? Was it just the main character’s twisted mind?” His style is very simple, refined. He doesn’t add nonsense scenes which makes the plot very straight-forward. Sadly, that’s where all straight-forwardness ends. His stories are enveloped in a huge folder called Mind-blowing Mystery because every single word he writes benefits to that folder. It’s as if ever word in his books have a certain double meaning. That is how metaphorical he is.

                Murakami is very easy to read. I honestly believe high school students could read his books because they’re so short. Although, they’d most likely avoid the main theme and conflict; they would focus on the love stories instead. One of Murakami’s style is to continuously make his main characters conflicted with themselves. Their traits usually start out plain, simple, and unimportant even. Once they meet a certain woman, they start to feel. Once they start to feel, they act towards their emotions. And as they act towards their emotions, they make mistakes. The women in Murakami’s stories are insignificant in a sense that they are static and never develop. He writes them as if they were just a part of the setting and that there is a distinct wall between his main character and his overall plot. I believe Murakami continuously makes women as “objects” in his stories because he knows it’s wrong. Through his main character, he teaches us all the flaws and mistakes men have. All their downfalls and the reasons toward their rash actions. Although some actions are unjustifiable, I believe that’s what makes his story raw and real. Sometimes we do immoral things that we would want to cover up. Murakami does the opposite.

                When you read Murakami’s work, you will feel serene because of his Zen figurative language and sentence structures.

                “Letters are just pieces of paper," I said. "Burn them, and what stays in your heart will stay; keep them, and what vanishes will vanish.” 
― Haruki Murakami, Norwegian Wood

                In the end of his novels, I bet that you’ll feel a pang of depression. Nothing major usually happens, yet you will feel depressed. It’s one of the pros and cons of reading his work. He moves your emotions with just his words. It’s a warm day with chilly air.A warm beginning with a chilly end. Murakami weather.

                So far, I have read three of his books, and I do plan to read more. Murakami frustrates me that I want to pull my hair out of my head once I finish is novels. They’re very simple and sophisticated at the same time. I can’t help but ponder over his symbolisms. I suggest that if you are already a mature and avid reader, read Murakami. He will change your perspective and leave you wondering more about the little “what-ifs” in life. If you’d like to read short stories by him, I will link some below. I will also link a list of books to get you started with this author. His most mainstream novel for young adults is called Norwegian Wood.

A word of advice: always have a piece of paper with you when reading his books. Murakami gives wonderful music throughout his novels. They're mostly jazz and oldies rock, but who doesn't love old music?

LINK

This link has all of his short stories that he writes for The New Yorker.

This link shows an official list of all his published work.

Please do try his work. He's starting to become one of my favorite modern-day authors. I'm almost sure a vast majority of reader will love his stories.

Happy reading!