Hard-boiled Wonderland and the End of the World
Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group · Paperback · March 2, 1993
From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of 1Q84 and The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle comes a relentlessly inventive novel that dives deep into the very nature of consciousness. “Fantastical, mysterious, and funny . . . a fantasy world that might have been penned by Franz Kafka.”—The Philadelphia Inquirer Across two parallel narratives, Murakami draws readers into a mind-bending universe in which Lauren Bacall, Bob Dylan, a split-brained data processor, a deranged scientist, his shockingly undemure granddaughter, and various thugs, librarians, and subterranean monsters collide to dazzling effect.
We earn from qualifying purchases.
- Who it’s for
- Two parallel narratives make a playful, strange route into questions about consciousness and the mind.
- Themes
- The nature and uses of the mind
- Pacing
- Fast
Nearest books
Matched by what the books are about, then ordered by what their readers also loved. Most of these share its genres: Magical Realism and Japanese Fiction.
Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of PilgrimageHaruki Murakami59% match
Kafka on the ShoreHaruki Murakami76% match
UbikPhilip K. Dick60% match
The Wind-up Bird ChronicleHaruki Murakami, Jay Rubin67% match
The City and Its Uncertain WallsHaruki Murakami, Philip Gabriel70% match
The Hollow ManDan Simmons54% match
ExhalationTed Chiang52% match
For younger readers: Mage and the Endless Unknown, Strange Japanese Yokai, Tokyo Night Parade
Start with three books, and this one can be the first.
Members get a new edition every morning: a route out from their books to essays, research and talks, with the reason for each.
Start with this bookAbout this book
From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of 1Q84 and The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle comes a relentlessly inventive novel that dives deep into the very nature of consciousness.
Continue reading
“Fantastical, mysterious, and funny . . . a fantasy world that might have been penned by Franz Kafka.”—The Philadelphia Inquirer Across two parallel narratives, Murakami draws readers into a mind-bending universe in which Lauren Bacall, Bob Dylan, a split-brained data processor, a deranged scientist, his shockingly undemure granddaughter, and various thugs, librarians, and subterranean monsters collide to dazzling effect. What emerges is a hyperkinetic novel that is at once hilariously funny and a deeply serious meditation on the nature and uses of the mind.
Mind Games, With Wit
Two parallel narratives make a playful, strange route into questions about consciousness and the mind.
Come here for
- A mind-bending collision of fantasy, mystery, and humor
- Big questions about the mind without losing the fun
Expect
- Two parallel narratives and a hyperkinetic pace
- A mix of the fantastical, the funny, and the serious
Where it sits
| Magical Realism | 46% |
|---|---|
| Japanese Fiction | 37% |
| Cyberpunk | 36% |
Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.
Publisher categories
- Contemporary Fantasy
- Literary Fiction
- Magical Realism
- Authors
- Haruki Murakami
- Publisher
- Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
- Published
- March 2, 1993
- Format
- Paperback
- Theme
- The nature and uses of the mind
- Reading lane
- Contemporary Fantasy