The Book, Cat, & Cat Book Lovers Almanac

of historical trivia regarding books, cats, and other animals. Actually this blog has evolved so that it is described better as a blog about cats in history and culture. And we take as a theme the advice of Aldous Huxley: If you want to be a writer, get some cats. Don't forget to see the archived articles linked at the bottom of the page.

January 12, 2019

January 12, 1949


Haruki Murakami (January 12, 1949) is a Japanese writer. His Britannica article focuses on the bibliography of this:

'Japanese novelist, short-story writer, and translator whose deeply imaginative ...books became international best sellers.

'Murakami’s first novel, Kaze no uta o kike (1979; Hear the Wind Sing; film 1980), won a prize for best fiction by a new writer. From the start his writing was characterized by images and events that the author himself found difficult to explain but which seemed to come from the inner recesses of his memory. Some argued that this ambiguity, far from being off-putting, was one reason for his popularity with readers, especially young ones, who were bored with the self-confessions that formed the mainstream of contemporary Japanese literature. His perceived lack of a political or intellectual stance irritated “serious” authors (such as Ōe Kenzaburō), who dismissed his early writings as being no more than entertainment.

'Murakami then published in 1973...[the book which appeared in English as] (1980; Pinball) and Hitsuji o meguru bōken (1982; A Wild Sheep Chase), novels that feature the narrator of Hear the Wind Sing and his friend, known as “the Rat.” Those first three novels constituted a loose trilogy. A Wild Sheep Chase became his first major international success... Murakami adopted a more straightforward style for the coming-of-age novel Noruwei no mori (1987; Norwegian Wood; film 2010), which sold millions of copies in Japan and firmly established him as a literary celebrity. He then returned to the bizarre milieu of his earlier trilogy with Dansu Dansu Dansu (1988; Dance Dance Dance).

'Disaffected by the social climate in Japan and by his growing fame, Murakami sojourned in Europe for several years in the late 1980s, and in 1991 he moved to the United States. While teaching at Princeton University (1991–93) and Tufts University (1993–95), Murakami wrote one of his most ambitious novels, Nejimaki-dori kuronikuru (1994–95; The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle). The narrative represents a departure from his usual themes: it is devoted in part to depicting Japanese militarism on the Asian continent as a nightmare.

'In 1995 Murakami returned to Japan, prompted by the Kōbe earthquake and by the sarin gas attack carried out by the AUM Shinrikyo religious sect on a Tokyo subway. The two deadly events subsequently served as inspiration for his work. Andāguraundo (1997; Underground) is a nonfiction account of the subway attack, and Kami no kodomo-tachi wa mina odoru (2000)....is a collection of six short stories that explores the psychological effects of the earthquake on residents of Japan.

'The novel Supūtoniku no koibito (1999; Sputnik Sweetheart) probes the nature of love as it tells the story of the disappearance of Sumire, a young novelist. .... 1Q84 (2009), its title a reference to George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-four (1949), shifts between two characters as they navigate an alternate reality of their own making... Murakami explored art and loneliness in his 14th novel, Kishidanchō goroshi (2017; Killing Commendatore), about a painter in the midst of marital difficulties whose life takes a bizarre turn after he moves into the house of another artist.

'The short-story collections The Elephant Vanishes (1993), Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman (2006), and Men Without Women (2017) translate Murakami’s stories into English. His memoir, Hashiru koto ni tsuite kataru toki ni boku no kataru koto (2007; What I Talk About When I Talk About Running), centres on his love for marathon running. An experienced translator of American literature, Murakami also published editions in Japanese of works by Raymond Carver, Paul Theroux, Truman Capote, Ursula K. Le Guin, and J.D. Salinger.'

The author, Haruki Murakami, and a cat, one reason we like him.

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