Read Murakami in This Order

[Jessica]

Hi, all! It's been a while since I checked in with this group.

I wrote a blog post a while back for Murakami fans and Murakami virgins to help them choose what novel to read next and another post recommending where to start. It's just one gal's opinion, but if you're a fan of his, check it out and weigh in. I'd love to hear what novel got you hooked and the order you read him in.

Here is the link: http://bookoblivion.com/the-best-way-...

[Dennis]

Love your post, which should start sharing our enthusiasms, and I hope with some expanation of why the particular work worked so well for whomever posts a ranking. But also, let me say that what got me hooked on Murakami was one of his short stories I encountered in a Bedford or X I. Kennedy fiction or literature anthology thirty years ago that I have lost track of and hope somebody else knows about to tell me where to find it again. It is "Brief Encounter," or "A Brief Encounter," and it involves a happenstance encounter in a theater to see the movie by that title, afterwhich a happenstance rainstorm leads to a sharing of one umbrella from which the plot thickens, so to speak. I think it hooked me because the story and characters seemed close to how significant relationships happen in modern life and the outcome, too (not offering a spoiler) seems both moving and insightful. Which novels, I wonder, expand or extend the themes in this short story? Those novels, if there are any, would be where I would revive my interest in Murakami's fiction, thank you.