Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami - Starting May 16th 2020

[Anna 'Bookbuyer']

Kafka on the Shore, a tour de force of metaphysical reality, is powered by two remarkable characters: a teenage boy, Kafka Tamura, who runs away from home either to escape a gruesome oedipal prophecy or to search for his long-missing mother and sister; and an aging simpleton called Nakata, who never recovered from a wartime affliction and now is drawn toward Kafka for reasons that, like the most basic activities of daily life, he cannot fathom. Their odyssey, as mysterious to them as it is to us, is enriched throughout by vivid accomplices and mesmerizing events. Cats and people carry on conversations, a ghostlike pimp employs a Hegel-quoting prostitute, a forest harbors soldiers apparently unaged since World War II, and rainstorms of fish (and worse) fall from the sky. There is a brutal murder, with the identity of both victim and perpetrator a riddle—yet this, along with everything else, is eventually answered, just as the entwined destinies of Kafka and Nakata are gradually revealed, with one escaping his fate entirely and the other given a fresh start on his own.

[Nuha]

Hello!
I would like to read this as I've had it on my shelf of so long, but I've it in another language, so I'm not sure if it can count as buddy reading?

[Elena]

It's ok to read in another language and to discuss it in English.

[Elena]

I'm going to start reading soon (in 2-3 days).

[Pragya]

Till Chapter 11 (view spoiler)[ I intrigued to know what happened and how did Kafka had the memory loss and also about the Nakata's memory loss. Could there be any link to this?
I have a soft spot for Nakata. He is a very different character and it's quite refreshing.
(hide spoiler)]

[Shahana]

i wil also be joining by to day or tomorrow..

[Nuha]

great! I think I will start today

[Nuha]

chapter 4
(view spoiler)[
I'm waiting to see how the two stories unfold together.
I like novels that combine different timelines, and I'm intrigued by the story of the unconscious children? do you think this is a UFO investigation?
(hide spoiler)]

[Pragya]

Nuha wrote: "chapter 4

I'm waiting to see how the two stories unfold together.
I like novels that combine different timelines, and I'm intrigued by the story of the unconscious children? do you think this is a..."

(view spoiler)[ I was intrigued too about how all children got unconscious. Ufo is one of my guess. (hide spoiler)]

[Pragya]

Till Chapter 16 (view spoiler)[ I can't believe teacher slapped Nakata so many times and even lied in investigation but I wonder how it may help the professor now.
For a while, I had doubts about Oshima's intentions.
Johnnie is so disgusting!!! Look what he make Nakata do. What will happen to him now??
(hide spoiler)]

[Pragya]

Till Chapter 24 (view spoiler)[ So much weird stuff is happening in the story. Finally a link between Nakata and Kafka. I intrigued to know what will happen once they meet. (hide spoiler)]

[Nuha]

Pragya wrote: "Till Chapter 11 I intrigued to know what happened and how did Kafka had the memory loss and also about the Nakata's memory loss. Could there be any link to this?
I have a soft spot for Nakata. He ..."
(view spoiler)[
me too! I'm rooting for Kafka, he seems like a nice boy who is just trying to find his place in the world, I like his sensitivity.
another thing, Who is this "Crow"? is it an imaginary character made by Kafka? is it another personality inside him?
(hide spoiler)]

[Pragya]

Nuha wrote: "Pragya wrote: "Till Chapter 11 I intrigued to know what happened and how did Kafka had the memory loss and also about the Nakata's memory loss. Could there be any link to this?
I have a soft spot f..."

(view spoiler)[ I think it's him imagination/hallucinations or it could he his subconscious mind too. (hide spoiler)]

[Pragya]

Till Chapter 36 (view spoiler)[ I am enjoying Nakata's plot line more than Kakfa's now.
It seems Nakata will be driving to where Kakfa is. (hide spoiler)]

[Elena]

Chapter 16
Oh how I missed Murakami's stories! This excellent combination of ordinary, mysterious, calm and a pitch of craziness!
(view spoiler)[
My imagination thrives! I had several mad ideas about what's going on. Do you remember the moment when Kafka lost his memory? And the awful scene with cats and Nakata-san killing this disgusting man?
At that moment something clicked in my mind and here is the thought: what if Kafka and Nakata are not different people, but one person? So when the strange thing happened to Nakata in the woods, it led to some sort of collision. Now he has two personalities and has no clue about it. Just bam! Loses his memory and discovers himself in a particularly strange situations. And maybe even travels in time. I have this feeling like Nakata and Kafka are from different generations.
(hide spoiler)]

[Pragya]

Finished (view spoiler)[ I was a little upset with Nakata's death and kept thinking he will come back. I had a different sort of ending for him in my head but after finishing the book and thinking about everything it kind of fits.
I can't believe that Kakfa and Nakata never meet. (hide spoiler)]

[Pragya]

Elena wrote: "Chapter 16
Oh how I missed Murakami's stories! This excellent combination of ordinary, mysterious, calm and a pitch of craziness!

My imagination thrives! I had several mad ideas about what's going..."

(view spoiler)[ I too had this theory for a while myself but as the story continues I ended up with quite a few theories. (hide spoiler)]

[Nuha]

Chapter 19!
Elena wrote: "Chapter 16
Oh how I missed Murakami's stories! This excellent combination of ordinary, mysterious, calm and a pitch of craziness!

My imagination thrives! I had several mad ideas about what's going..."

I'm loving this crazy novel more and more by every page XD
(view spoiler)[ I agree Kafka and Nakata are from different generations and maybe they are connected somehow but I don't think they are the same person.
Also that chapter about killing cats, it was like a graphic horror movie, it was so hard for me to read (hide spoiler)]

chapter 19 spoiler
(view spoiler)[
that part about the fish rain was so strange, I mean why did it happen? what does that mean? and where nakata is going?
I felt sad for nakata that he couldn't speak to cats anymore, but I'm sure there's more to the story.
Also oshima, I love her character !
(hide spoiler)]

[Nuha]

Chapter 24... I take back my previous conclusion, (view spoiler)[ looks like Nakata and Kafka both live in the same period.. (hide spoiler)]

Pragya wrote: "Till Chapter 24 [spoilers removed]"

I have the same feelings, so many weird stuff and I can't make more theories right now.

[Pragya]

Nuha wrote: "Chapter 24... I take back my previous conclusion, [spoilers removed]

Pragya wrote: "Till Chapter 24 [spoilers removed]"

I have the same feelings, so many weird stuff and I can't make more theorie..."

Neither was I able to make any theories and the ones I made weren't right.

[Elena]

Chapter 26
I'm enjoying reading even more (if it's possible).
(view spoiler)[
Finally I feel where the stories could meet. But still so many questions. Like is this woman Kafka's mother or not? And where is his sister? What is going on with the ghost? Looks like it's a different reality. Or like past and future somehow connected.
I still think Nakata and Kafka are the same person. And really want to read more to the moment when they finally meet.
Also I want to know what is that stone Nakata and his new friend are looking for.
(hide spoiler)]

[Nuha]

Chapter 32
things are getting very weird.

(view spoiler)[
so Nakata has found the stone, which I think he will use to connect with his other half,
Now the question is, who is Kafka ? is he metaphorically more than one person, or is he really more than one person? there are so many possibilities, he could be Nakata's other half, but what explains the big age difference?
he could be a reincarnation to Saiki's dead lover, I think she thinks of him this way.
Do you think she could be really his mother? I think the prophecy is going to be fulfilled. and that it is just so wrong.
(hide spoiler)]

[izzy]

Chapter 1-12
(view spoiler)[ no idea how this book will go so I am open-minded. This is told in three ways (I would have said perspectives but the third one doesn't sound like a specific perspective.
Kafta has planned to run away on his 15th birthday. Well he has and things aren't so good after he woke up with a bloodied t-shirt

Nakata talks to animals. I just stop there

And there is an investigation (records) going on what happened to some kids at a remote village who lost consciousness and regained it after a few hours expect a boy named Nakata who regained his after a nurse drew is blood which was days later. all the affected students had a memory lapse and never remembered what happened
I'm guessing that the Nakata that talks to animals is the same boy who didn't regain consciousness on time (hide spoiler)]

[izzy]

Well, I thought this will be something like a science fiction or YA but it is more mystical. Anyway I like Nakata.
Chapter 13-24
(view spoiler)[ everyone is weird in this book. Nakata is old but his mind is so pure and he thinks like a child.
Kafka is having a crush on saeiki and Oshima who is a woman but is referred to as 'he' in the book. What if Saeiki and Oshima are his long lost mother and sister.
How can Nakata kill in Tokyo and Kafka cloth is stained in blood in another place entirely (hide spoiler)]

[izzy]

What in heaven is going on?
Chapter 25-36
(view spoiler)[ how can a fifteen year old be sleeping with a fifty plus old woman. Hosino is a good friend though. He is fulfilling the prophecy or cause per se (hide spoiler)]

[izzy]

Nuha wrote: " Chapter 32
things are getting very weird.


so Nakata has found the stone, which I think he will use to connect with his other half,
Now the question is, who is Kafka ? is he metaphorically more..."

Same here
Though I think (view spoiler)[it is too much of a coincidence that Miss Saikel is almost the same age as his father and the lightning stuffplus Oshima being the age of his long lost sister. Why is Oshima addressed as a 'he' why his license shows Female? (hide spoiler)]

[izzy]

Up to the final chapter
(view spoiler)[ I don't get the idea of this book. Nakata was too extraordinary for this world anyway. Miss Saikel died when her heart was broken when she was twenty, she was just waiting for physical death. At least Kafka found some things before he went back to Tokyo. Still I don't get the whole idea (hide spoiler)]

[Nuha]

izzy wrote: "Nuha wrote: " Chapter 32
things are getting very weird.

Same here
Though I think [it is too much of a coincidence that =(hide spoiler)]."

(view spoiler)[ I don't think Oshima is his sister though, she already said she has a family? I think because she sees herself as a man, she is addressed as a He. she said it herself the first time she came out to Kafka. (hide spoiler)]

izzy wrote: "What in heaven is going on?
Chapter 25-36
[spoilers removed]"
(view spoiler)[
I ask myself the same question, it's disturbing especially when you think Kafka thinks she's his mother.
I love Hoshino, I feel like I relate to him more than any other character as a reader.
(hide spoiler)]

[Elena]

Finished
I love this book! Enjoyed reading so much!
(view spoiler)[
So first of all about those controversial moments (15 yo sleeping with 50+ yo, she being he etc.), those weird parts and also oh-so-cruel parts are common in Asian art. If you're not used to Asian art culture, it might be disturbing, I get it.
As for me, I've been studying Asian culture as a hobby for several years, that's why I don't feel strange about those parts.
There is the moment of not telling everything and letting the reader's imagination work, which is also common for Asian culture.
FYI many Asian philosophers were talking, teaching and writing in the same manner.
And now to the book itself :) It's written in the best Murakami's traditions. Mysterious, crazy, unpredictable.
I agree that somewhere from the middle of the book the story of Nakata became more interesting than Kafka's. I felt sad when he died, but it was the correct development of the plot. He fulfilled his destiny and finally could go. And Saiki-san wasn't actually living, just waiting for death to come. So it also was the right storyline development.
(hide spoiler)]

[Nuha]

Finished! I enjoyed buddy reading with all of you
(view spoiler)[
This book was the most enjoyable work I've read for Haruki Morakami. His writing style was always weird to me, but seriously this book was so enjoyable I think I fell in love with magical-realism.
the ending was perfect for me, Kafka would go on living, there's so much else to life he should discover. Nakata's death was certainly a surprise. but the mission was carried on by Hoshino, So in a way, everything eventually fell into place. I guess Hoshino's part/destiny was not only to help nakata, but to find himself in the process.
I don't think I understood all the fantasy parts, like if Nakata is actually Kafka, or how could Kafka be related to Saiki in more than one way. but I think this is the beauty of it.
I agree with Elena^
( There is the moment of not telling everything and letting the reader's imagination work, which is also common for Asian culture.)
(hide spoiler)]

[Elena]

I'm happy you've enjoyed it too! It was great to read all of your thoughts.