SOUTH OF THE BORDER, WEST OF THE SUN by Haruki Murakami ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

(Original review written February 17, 2019)

It’s hard to put into words exactly how reading this book felt or how I’m feeling right now after just finishing it. It feels profound and simultaneously like a stroll through the park.

This is the first Murakami I’ve read, and I can already tell his style is distinct because I’ve never read anything like it before. The early parts were so reminiscent and relatable, and captured the feeling of being a teen so vividly. Then the rest of the book describes the intricacies of emotion like they have always been explained that way and you are just now realizing it.

I’m sure Murakami has his familiar formulas like other authors do, but this was just so different. Melancholy has been said before and is probably the closest, though there is joy from just having had the experience.

Not much to say about the plot details themselves. There are questions unanswered, but they don’t feel important underneath the pull of everything else. That’s all I can really say right now.

I feel like sitting and thinking and staring out a rainy window.