"Kafka on the Shore" by Haruki Murakami

Title: "Kafka on the Shore"
Author: Haruki Murakami
Pages: 489
Genre: Contemporary Literary, Surrealism
Standalone/Series: Standalone
Publisher: Vintage

Why Pick it Up: An entry for the Japanese Reading Challenge 3 and have seen it recommended at least 100 times, so there was no way I was going to miss reading this book.

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If “After Dark” was simply an appetizer of what Murakami has to offer, then “Kafka on the Shore” is a five course meal. If the first was a picture spied from a keyhole, then the second is a majestic view from a plane. If the first is the gentle lick of the shore waves, then the second is the full blown force of a tsunami. Analogies and comparisons aside you get the drift that “Kafka on the Shore” is one powerhouse of a novel and the best definition for it can be one of the books that you have to read several times in your life to understand better and even then you couldn’t possibly piece everything together to unravel its true meaning.

“Kafka on the Shore” starts innocently enough tracking the lives of Kafka Tamura, who has to be the toughest 15 year old kid in order to make it through life as a runaway from home, and Mister Nakata, an old man isolated from society because of his inability to learn and grasp concepts. Even at its beginning the novel kisses reality goodbye and submerged the reader into surrealism, when Mr. Nakata has his first conversation with a cat, a talent he had since he was a little child. From then everything and anything seems possible and logical as the paths both protagonists tread one entwine, morph and blossom into a scenic illusion that seems only possible in the dream world.

Murakami is a genius at passing the surrealistic as the general rule in the world and this has to do much with the craftsmanship he has over characterization, achieved both by superb author narration, introspective character POV and erudite dialogue. The end result is a cast, which is rich, unusual and captivating.

Mr. Nakata is the simple man with poor mental faculties, but chosen by fate to fulfill something that must be done. His soul is exposed as that of simplicity in life, not constricted by manmade civilization and yet it is enveloped in such mystery and it is even hinted that he is capable of miracles such as making fish and slugs rain from the skies. He is on a journey, but the he doesn’t search for the road for the road finds him. Kafka as the other prime character is equally exotic in his inner world. He’s a hermit of his own device and is running away from the family curse put on by his father, which in the end he fulfills as a way to be over with it and set himself free.

Of course there is Miss Saeki, the quiet librarian, who has already died inside, but could have been so much more as her past reveals. I also grew to love Oshima, the gay man trapped in the body of woman, who is erudite and almost a human equivalent of the kitsune in his cunning and sharp mind.

But it’s not just characters that stole my breath away, but the way Murakami has referenced to other famous works and incorporated and reincarnated ageless tropes. Impossible love? Yes and how more impossible can it be when the woman you love is the spirit of a memory that has passed decades ago. Soul searching and becoming one with nature? Yes this trope has never been so literal, beautiful and surrealistic before. There is so much more. Mr. Nakata’s journey reminds me so much of Don Quixote, although it’s not exactly the same and Kafka’s curse is the myth of Oedipus, represented in the most impossible way imaginable.

“Kafka on the Shore” is a novel that deserves many re-reads for another reason as well. It’s a culture bomb. Murakami is an erudite man with a broad personal culture, which seems to have the whole swallowed inside, because there have been so many musicians, artists, writers and other historical figures mentioned that even a high brow aristocrat would need some research to learn about and then understand how these names subtly influence the story and add hues that might only come in light of both research and rereading.

"After Dark" by Haruki Murakami

This is an entry for the Japanese Reading Challenge. Haruki Murakami’s taken over the world or so it seems, because whenever I turn my head away from speculative fiction I hear only the best possible things about his works from both fellow book addicts and critical venues. He’s been highly recommended and his work’s been translated in god knows how many languages, I decided to test the waters and the first dip with the tip of my fingers was “After Dark”.

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To be quite honest I found it hard to switch gears and read something so tranquil, muted in voice and in prose, after being submerged in speculative fiction for so long, where adventures spread with dangers, caped in great analogies, metaphors and comparisons. To read paragraph after paragraph about what sort of objects a room is fashioned with in a matter-of-fact manner was something that slowed my reading speed.

I’m a Coelho reader and I’ve gotten used to sparse prose that instead is rich in meaning, so it took little to adjust. If I dare say I think that Murakami is the Japanese answer to Coelho, the same way manga is the Japanese answer to comic books. Both authors have Spartan writing styles, but with every story told your soul gains a new nuance, which is very rare indeed.

“After Dark” follows several protagonists: how they spend their nights, why they’re awake, which illuminates their inner worlds and projects them to the readers without anything to hinder this. Mari Asai is a quiet girl, who wanders from establishment to establishment and reads her heavy book, not wanting to return home. Takahashi is a law student and trombone player, who is spending his last night playing in order to ground himself to reality. Kaoru is a former female pro-wrestler now a love hotel owner with kind heart and a strong sense for justice. Eri Asai, Mari’s sister, is sleeping, but is being watched by someone not quite from this world.

Ordinary, but diverse stories spin, complicate and reveal what can only the night hold as a stage for life’s machinations.

“After Dark” is quite the short novel, but that doesn’t stop it from being quite meaningful. It’s a novel about isolation, about people that are alone in one way or another and through their interaction I saw how the world is in fact such a small place, where everyone is connected to everybody else through different people. Complete strangers cross paths, but as readers we’re well informed that these people share cause-effect relations that shape their night. In this sense society is a breathing organism shaped by the interactions of people and the ripple the individual actions cause. You are alone, abandoned or a runaway from contact, from your life, and yet one decision made by you shifts the whole night for quite a few people.

What made this even more a pleasurable read was the flirtation with surrealism, the liquid transition from one narrative character to another, including the introduction of new narrators and the obvious voyeuristic touches. I have never been ordered by the author to become a presence and spy from above and different angles what happens in a novel. It was new and so pleasurable to be included directly into the story as a silent protagonist, who is nothing more than a voyeur. At first glance there is nothing that interesting happening. You’re just watching people live their lives, but just as eavesdropping swallows us in, being a silent shadow amidst someone else’s life and observing the intimacy that the darkest night can inspire is addicting.

“After Dark” certainly has made me become a Murakami reader and I mean what is there not to love. There are likeable characters, which peak your curiosity, meaningful prose and such a wonderful use for popular culture and music as a certain font, setting a mental soundtrack to further heighten the experience and also proving how erudite and how rich Murakami’s inner culture is.

Highly recommended.

"Bleach": A Window to Japan's culture

[Note:] I am sorry the images are so small. It is either that or monstrocities that jump over the post, which is not pretty. Also this contains spoilers as to later developments, so those that are already reading the series, best be careful for I will reveal some of the world building details and images that appear later on. However the spoilers are inclusive and if you haven't picked up the series and would want to the concepts will be vague enough to not spoil the fun.
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While the “Japanese Reading Challenge” yet has to reach the finish line and I am yet to pick the books I have included in my reading list I decided to take a stab on Japanese culture with a critical overview slash essay slash review on the second longest running manga series Japan’s produced “Bleach”. What I am about to do here is using "Bleach" as a large enough basis to try and paint a cultural picture of Japan.

But first some statistics to illustrate why a conventional review with blurb and plot nitpicking here wouldn’t be functional. “Bleach” published its first issue back in 2004 and since then it has amassed more than 40 volumes, which translates to 383 issues and when we do the math we arrive at the staggering total number of 8’043 from its first to latest issue. Do I need to say that the series is in no way nearing its end? These pages mean that there several major story arcs that propel the series and numerous minor story arcs, which enrich story and world. I’m quite certain that if one would start to count the number would pass the one hundred mark.

Here I would begin with my exploration in Japanese waters. Even from production you can spot the obvious differences with the West. Japan is built upon productivity, perseverance and consistency. Tite Kubo is both writer and chief artist and has been on this project from issue one, which is something unthinkable to happen in the US for instance, where all major comic book series change several artists and writers, which also reflects on the series’ tone and the arcs. With “Bleach” everything is intricately spun together, each detail put with care and with meaning and the consistency with world, characters and background is faultless. To me this is a highly evolved plotting that surpasses most of what I have read in novels.

“Bleach” begins small scale in order to introduce the reader to the setting and what we have is a Good vs. Evil world inhabited by Hollows and Shinigami. The equation is quite simple. The Shinigami [typically spirits in Japan mythology which are death personified] are the spiritual enforcers, which give human souls spiritual burial and send them off to Soul Society, but also have the task to locate and exterminate all Hollows. Being the primary threat in the series the Hollows are corrupted spirits bound to Earth, suffering from hunger for human souls.

Images below portray how the typical Hollow looks like. Although they vary in size and form the most common elements in the Hollow appearance are the mask that conceals the spirit’s identity, the skeletal exoskeleton and no human resemblance.

The Shinigami can be recognized for the samurai uniform and the sword [Zanpakuto] they carry, which is the manifestation of their souls and thus has unique capabilities. I also need to point out that each sword has a name and knowing the sword’s name is the key to access the rather awesome super powers stored within.

Enter Ichigo, a loud mouthed teenager with a Melinda Gordon thing going on for him, who is forced into a battle for his family’s safety with a Hollow and becomes a Shinigami, when the one assigned to kill the Hollow [the obnoxious and equally loudmouthed Rukia] fails and has to bestow Ichigo her Shinigami powers.

A bit long winded, but understandable in the manga. From this moment on Ichigo has learn the ins and outs that come with bearing a big magical sword and the lessons occur through a mixture of drama and slapstick, both over the top grave and hilarious. Which leads me to the second point about Japanese culture. Emotions and personality traits are never subtle and are intense, over the top and punch through the reader. Something mildly sad is taken with the emotional response one would show when someone has died and actual death is met with some kind of detonation inside the character’s heart. An extrovert is a hyperactive bouncing ball that spurts verbal diarrhea at high decibels. A promise is an actual almost physical bond, which must be kept at the cost of everything. The list goes on and on.

However if one wants to learn about Japan mentality and emotional culture, it would be best to focus on the Shinigami, which as stereotypical good guys embody every virtue that can be found in Japanese society. Honor, loyalty and friendship are the persistent elements here and are proven to be sacred through each battle, conversation and flashback. Hierarchy is met with respect and is not oppressive, shown through character dynamics and the general devotion the lieutenants express towards their captains without following orders blindly, but being partners to the captains. It may be a bit farfetched, but “Bleach” preaches the virtues of obedience in the perfect hierarchical society, also not unlike the social reality in the country. Not only this, but is also not random that the Shinigami are modeled after the samurai, who are famous for their bushido codex, which binds the individual to live and show frugality, chivalry, mercy. In that sense the good guys in this story are the concentrated essence of the virtues the Japanese believe in.

Pictured: Shinigami attacking the traitor Aizen

Ichigo is not quite a Shinigami, but as the plot thickens he’s grown to be accepted and shown respect, which is yet another model, which reflects Japan’s mentality and reality. In Japan the focus heavily falls on education, since Japan is highly modernized and it can offer much to those with the intellect for it, hence why so many geniuses seem to spring there and why a fixation with high school stories in manga and anime exists. The youth is treated to rigorous mental preparation to enter the best schools, universities and later on land the best positions. And this is not achieved by playing video games, but by hard work. This is what Ichigo as a character represents. With perseverance, hard work and focus one can achieve anything in the world. If you can steel your will, believe that a task is in your power to perform and do it because you have to, then no obstacle in life can stay in your way for too long. Of course withstanding the high tides has to be done with honor, fair play and respect towards who is your enemy.

Pictured: Ichigo with his sword in Bankai mode.

As the story steams on and the world complicates the reader is introduced to another face that is Japan and this is the dark side so to say. Enter the Arrancar, which are a Hollow breed with Shinigami powers and become the main antagonists in the series. Unlike the original Hollows what we have here are humanoid beings with enough intellect to reason and are not led by a blind hunger for souls. The Arrancar are not animalistic in that sense. They have a sense of self and know what they are doing, which makes them cruel murderous bastards, each of the deadliest top ten incorporating a certain negative trait that can be found in humanity. There is no loyalty between them. They like to quarrel and when one falls it is welcomed as wonderful show and is usually staged by fellow Arrancar. Their function beyond the story is to act as a contrast and underline and emphasize on how abiding the moral code and holding sacred the virtues the Shinigami embody. Plus the fact that Shinigami always have the upper hand and do prevail most of the time show that Good is always going to win over Evil.

Pictured: Arrancar

I think I did a good job at deciphering the moral blueprints, but let’s move on to imagination and intellect. First, Japanese people are all for symmetry, which is shown through the thesis and antithesis principle in the world building department. The Shinigami and the Hollows are on polar ends. Both fight, but the latter do it because it is in their instinct to do so, while the former do it because of necessity to preserve peace. It’s the usual order vs. chaos. Civilization versus savagery. On an idea level we have Arrancar and Vizard. As I have stated the Arrancar are Hollows, which managed to develop Shinigami characteristics. The Vizard have once been Shinigami, who have cultivated Hollow masks and so augment their original powers. It is this genius juxtaposition, which has me entirely enthralled within the series and once again proves that the Japanese know no boundaries, when it comes to creativity.

Pictured: The Vizard

Last point I would like to illustrate here would be the massive scale, on which “Bleach” is functioning. This is a whole theme for Japan, which for a land so small is actually a country fascinated with HUGE [yes, I do believe they are overcompensating for something]. It has humongous buildings, big robots and their culture has spawned Godzilla and the mechas, so it’s no wonder that “Bleach” has 384 chapters, that the cast features more than 50 characters, that the swords’ capabilities can outrank a nuclear bomb in devastation and battles are bigger and flashier and more apocalyptic with each chapter. This story is swallowing steroids and engorging itself into Biblical proportions, which is why I love it. It climbs a mountain top, blows my mind completely and then I wait in anticipation how it will top that and for the run I have had here I know that it is capable of being bigger.

Pictured: Bad Ass Bankai [the final level of power a sword can manifest]

This concludes my exploration of “Bleach” as a dense guide book to Japan as culture and country. Thank you for bearing with me.

"Realm of the Dead" by Uchida Hyakken [Reviewed by Meredith Smith]

Title: The Realm of The Dead
Author: Uchida Hyakken
Published: 2006
Number of pages: 229
Genre: Japanese short stories

With a series of disconnected dreams and images that fade into one another without logic, these stories describe the worlds of both the living and the dead.

Realm of the Dead is set in a dark and mysterious world where logic and reality are subject to constant change and where ideas about identity and self are continually questioned. In one short story, the narrator watches footage from the Russo-Japanese War, but then moving across the screen, finds himself fighting in the war. In another, the narrator goes to a freak show with a woman, only to find the woman herself has become a freak.

Considered one of the foremost innovators of Japanese modernism, Hyakken incorporates a distinctly non-Western set of myths and folklore to create dreamscapes that open doors into another world.

I found this book in July, wandering through the Collector's Room at a book sale for the American Association of University Women. It was a first edition, which of itself is worthy of picking up. But, more importantly than that, I knew it would fit two significant categories in which I read come Autumn. One of the categories is for my very own Japanese Literature Challenge, the other is for Carl's RIP Challenge. And so, I put it in my basket to bring home.

Here is a synopsis for one of the stories in the collection called "The Pier":

We find a man who has become friendly with another man at the spa. His wife was friendly with the man, too, until her husband became nervous and decided they should leave the spa.

His wife easily walked the plank that would take them to the ship they needed in order to cross the lake. But, when he took one step on the plank, he was overcome with a terrible panic and found himself unable to cross. When he looked up, he saw his wife's face in the porthole. It was quickly replaced by the face of the man from the spa. It doesn't occur to him until later that's odd he would look for her in the porthole, instead of on deck.

Like a dream you are having, when you must cross somewhere, or find someone, but inexplicably are prevented from doing so at every turn, this man begins to follow the ship by running along the shore. His very panic induced the same panic in me, as though I, too, must find her in time.

Eventually, he comes to a dark train station where he walks among the crowd looking for his wife. Strangely, the crowd lifts a leg, and stamps their foot down in unison. They continue to do this bizarre dance, with his wife joining in...

The dance did not speed up or slow down, and the legs of the dancers kept crashing down in the same way. I couldn't move forward. I eventually got tired. Along with the desire to rush over to my wife came feelings of disinterest. I looked vacantly over in her direction and saw that the man was looking back with his impossible beautiful face. I came to and retreated. So that's what people meant when they talked about adultery.

Such a poignant reality was conveyed in such a nightmare of surrealism. I love the chilling nightmare quality, I love the simplicity, I love the connection to our lives that they eerie stories represent. You, too, might like this perfect autumnal read.

Excerpt:

"The dance did not speed up or slow down, and the legs of the dancers kept crashing down in the same way. I couldn't move forward. I eventually got tired. Along with the desire to rush over to my wife came feelings of disinterest. I looked vacantly over in her direction and saw that the man was looking back with his impossible beautiful face. I came to and retreated. So that's what people meant when they talked about adultery."

Afterword: Because Monday surprised me delightfully with several people, who I have not seen in ages, I was unable to post this guest review from my amazing friend and astonishingly well read and cultured blogger Meredith Smith otherwise known as Bellezza from her blog "Dolce Bellezza". This is her read for both the Japanese Reading Challenge she hosts and Carls' RIP IV Challenge.

"Highschool of the Dead"

What better way to start Zombie Week than with a Japanese spin on the survival horror genre with zombies and the undead. Incidentally “Highschool of the Dead” is one of my random manga picks for the Japanese Reading Challenge and can easily fit in Carl’s R.I.P challenge, but let’s not push my luck and stick with this title being a shared submission for just two events.

The great thing about Japanese horror artists and writers is that they are demented, brutal and they seem to be caught in a race to out-scare, out-gross and out-disturb one another, which gives plenty of creative material to take zombies and kick the scare factor to overload. I wish to point out that despite this manga series features a main cast predominantly in its teens, this is seinen manga, aimed for a male audience between 18 and 30 usually. This alone promises no censorship and the output of gore is industrious. The series so far have 23 chapters out with three extras, but sadly has been in hiatus since June 2009, which doesn’t fair well in Japan’s ever competitive and fast paced publishing world.

So, why is this, a perfect choice for the zombie fan? For one, if you are like me, then you most certainly have read and experienced the zombie the way Westerners have so far. The change of scenery, culture and human behavior is refreshing, while at the same it gives the reader the opportunity to enjoy survival horror in a different manner. Japanese tradition in entertainment is marked by over-the-top performances. Westerners enjoy subtleties and gradual building, whereas from my experience with manga, the Easterners magnify every element surrounding a story.

In “Highschool of the Dead” every trip is an ambush of undead, every argument becomes a scandal that reopens old still aching wounds and action sequences toy with what’s believable and what is fairly impossible. The cast is an example of what I am illustrating here. Almost all characters are high school sophomores or seniors, who all have fighting capabilities like the sadistic Saeko, who is excellent at close combat, or Kohta, a frighteningly good and nutty sharpshooter. Although it’s believable that teens in Japan do have useful skills, since there is not a single teen in Japan not enrolled in a sports or arts and crafts or science club, how long can a group of teens last in a metropolis filled with the undead? Not to mention their luck in raiding the house of a sniper in Japan’s Special Assault Team. It’s plausible, but unbelievable at the same time.

I recently started Chapter 14 ‘Dead Storm Rising’ and can testify that as far as plotting goes Japanese manga writers know how to start small and then expand to let the reader see the bigger picture. As it does, the reader sees other survivors, the generational gap and attitude between teens and adults as well as seedy agendas forming. This a dark survival story with a lot of scares, moments of disgust by living and undead alike as well as the typical for horror genre sexual tension. It’s the kind of inner human exploration the horror genres executes in a manner that only can originate from Japan.

A zombie must-read.