The Elephant Vanishes
The first story "The Wind-up bird and Tuesday's women" disturbed me. Could it be that bad? Did I choose wrongly? Will I have to buy myself another book to pass the trip? Oh well, I might as well read some more. "The second bakery attack" left me vaguely amused. Come on, how many times have you read about a couple, suffering midnight hunger pangs, holding up a McDonalds? However, something about that volcano reference caught my attention. "The Kangroo Communique" brought back the feeling of despair, which "On seeing the 100% perfect girl" promptly dispelled. Oh yes, this book was indeed a "determined assault on the normal"!
The stories got cleverer, 'weirder' and sometimes, more comprehensible. Or rather, I quit reading them with a purpose in mind. I let each one of them tell me a strange story, without questioning the premises of the story. I found myself putting the book down frequently, thinking, trying to catch the essence of the story that seemed to drift somewhere within the fringes of comprehension. Sometimes I did ( "The Little Green Monster", "The Silence"), sometimes I did not ("TV People") but maybe that was besides the point?
All in all, a great collection that might just mesmerize you!
If you liked this book, you may also like other books by Haruki Murakami, like "The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle : A Novel (Vintage International)", "Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World: A Novel (Vintage International)" and "A Wild Sheep Chase : A Novel (Vintage International)".
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