Growing up in the suburbs in post-war Japan, it seemed to Hajime that everyone but him had brothers and sisters. His sole companion was Shimamoto, also an only child. Together they spent long afternoons listening to her father's record collection. But when his family moved away, the two lost touch. Now Hajime is in his thirties. After a decade of drifting he has found happiness with his loving wife and two daughters, and success running a jazz bar. Then Shimamoto reappears. She is beautiful, intense, enveloped in mystery. Hajime is catapulted into the past, putting at risk all he has in the present.
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South of the Border, West of the Sun
Growing up in the suburbs in post-war Japan, it seemed to Hajime that everyone but him had brothers and sisters. His sole companion was Shimamoto, also an only child. Together they spent long afternoons listening to her father's record collection. But when his family moved away, the two lost touch. Now Hajime is in his thirties. After a decade of drifting he has found happiness with his loving wife and two daughters, and success running a jazz bar. Then Shimamoto reappears. She is beautiful, intense, enveloped in mystery. Hajime is catapulted into the past, putting at risk all he has in the present.
Popular Reviews(1)
Reviewed by Denise NThis feels similar to Norwegian Wood in Nostalgia and love. I did like this better though than Norwegian Wood. The book is all about Nostalgia and how we tend to look back at certain moments of our lives and always have that "what if..." question. The book keeps reminding us that the "what if"s don't matter. We can't always go back and wonder because what's happened is past and all you can work out for is your future. The book can be a depressing read with all the situations that are posed in the book. This talks of childhood love that never came to be, someone falling madly in love again while having a family, broken hopes and dreams, finding your self. The book tackles so much things involved in someone'es life that feels realistic because life isn't just about one story or one issue that you currently face. Your life is a factor of many things around you that also affect other people. Murakami's female characters tend to be unreal and feel really fictional. The only woman that I have so far felt to be real is Yukiko in this book. This woman conveys real emotions and thoughts that a woman of her standing would most likely have. The characters in this book seem more relatable as compared to other Murakami works for me. This brought me back to the Haruki Murakami world that I was longing for. It brings a sense of bewilderment and feeling so confused if what just happened was real or not. What happened to that ending? Why did the envelope really disappear? Whose hand was that at the end? Did Shimamoto commit suicide? I kind of feel like I do have the answers myself but I won't really delve into it.