Hiba
A short story with an aura of mysticism…
Birthday Girl by Murakami is the first book I picked up by this author. I’ve seen mixed opinions on Murakami’s works and I thought I’d start the journey to Murakami’s magical realistic world with a short read. Here’s the blurb:
One rainy Tokyo night, a waitress’s uneventful 20th birthday takes a strange and fateful turn when she is asked to deliver dinner to the restaurant’s reclusive owner…
Just as I expected, this book was a new experience. Most short stories give more importance to the plots and I wrongly thought thas this one was the same. Birthday Girl has a philosophical touch, the feel of which lingers with us long after we finish reading it. Everyone who has read Murakami knows that it’s not the ending that matters; rather the journey, the thoughts we have, the style, etc.
Never have I read a piece of writing so strange yet so peculiarly satisfying. In a very narrow perspective, this story may seem a very disappointing read- with no closure and poor character formation. I believe this may be the characteristic of Murakami’s works; they disappoint you at first but you need to think and feel with all your heart to grasp the true meaning! Yet, you may feel something missing, leaving you guessing, rereading the story, and pondering over the words, leaving you with more questions than answers-the briskness, the enigma, the uncertainty… If a book does this to you, then the writer is extraordinary!
And so I have been introduced to the magical realism of Murakami. I think it isn’t the kind that we can read all day every day; but surely, these kinds of works will occasionally find their way into my TBR :)
The Body in the Dumpster- Review