Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World by Haruki Murakami - Book Discussion

Hi! Cheers for watching. This is the long awaited second video in my series on Japanese literature, this time featuring a classic genre-bending Murakami novel and footage from Moerenuma Park, Sapporo, Hokkaido in 2018. Let me know what you think of the vid and most importantly the book!
Articles Referenced:
Hantke, S, 'Postmodernism and Genre Fiction as Deferred
Action: Haruki Murakami and the Noir Tradition'
Shin, H, 'Unlocking the Mindware: The Responsibility of Building a Solipsistic Universe
in Murakami Haruki’s Hard- Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World'
Weinberger, C, 'Imaginary Worlds and Real Ethics:
Alterity and Transpositioning
in Murakami Haruki’s Fractal Realism'
#Murakami #Booktube #Eddiecational

[@beatspunkie]

I want to add to this but the book has a lot to unpack. Some of the conversations with his shadow was so heartbreakingly sad.the grown up nature but whimsical world building was such an interesting juxtaposition. Not to mention the whole sequence when they climb the tunnels to find the professor was cinematically written.

[@hanishrahane2519]

Lovely review. Just finished reading this one. One of my favourite sub plots was that only the narrator survived the shuffling. This brings me back to the point in the story where the professor explained the inherent problems or trouble spots when it came to creating the end of the world scenario. One was to account for spontaneity, or how sometimes human behavior can be quite different from the conscious pattern of thinking and second was the element of constant change is the consciousness itself. It was very interesting to create a character living a completely mechanical life for whom both these problems were going to be minimalistic. That is also why the narrator's end of the world scenario was the most vivid. He was the perfect candidate.

[@margute22]

happy one year of videos!!!! a lovely end of year treat ❄️

[@emmaa1653]

just finished this novel for the first time a few days ago. very fun to see others reviewing it around the same time too! and I agree with you; while I can't say this is my absolute favorite murakami novel, I do think it'll end up being my most read. I was pleasantly surprised to see how much it differs from his other novels. and there are a couple of passages so good I just can't seem to get them out of my head. great review :^)

[@eddiecational]

Thanks so much :')

[@buildwithjami]

video chapters in the future would be great in the future :)

[@forevermorealive]

This is the best review of this book on youtube. (pls friend on goodreads!)

[@JoeHeine]

Tried reading this years ago. Just seemed like an exercise in frustration.