The Wind-up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami

This is a bizarre, entertaining, and surprisingly brutal book centering around one man named Toru Okada and the search for his lost cat.  At times if can be confusing and at some points Murakami goes on asides that make you almost forget the main story going on.  But these stories within the story are always entertaining and help Murakami guide us subtly into the strange dream world he creates.

There are a number of themes relating back to World War 2 and it was interesting to read a Japanese perspective on the occupation of China, and the war itself.  Much of the brutality in the book comes from these scenes of war, and one in particular, where a man is skinned alive.  I actually looked away from the book in horror.  He make me look away from the words like I was standing there watching the actual thing taking place.  Is that a super-power?

I’ve only touched on a couple of things here and really have not scratched the surface of what this book actually is as a whole.  Seems like I will be connecting the dots for a few days to come and probably won’t find all the closure I want.  But that’s all worth it, it is a wonderful book.