Once again proving that Alex and I are the inverse of each other most of the time.

When do we get to stop talking in spoiler tags?

I was browsing the reader reviews of the book at Amazone to try and help me put my thoughts in order and came across this review that might be of interest. A quick search didn't turn up any other mentions of this so I don't know if it is accurate but thought the people more familiar with Murakami may have heard about it.

Link, don't know if it will work.

Didn't search hard enough. Here is an email exchange between Jay Rubin and some other people (the whole thing is interesting but I linked to relevant email).

Knopf did require a cut of about 25,000 words for the hardcover edition which has been carried over into the later editions. Murakami suggested a certain number of small changes but overall it was done by Rubin. Interestingly, for the Japanese paperback version Murakami included the small excisions he recommended to Rubin (but not the big ones made by Rubin) so in Japan the hardcover and paperback versions are a bit different.

To further amend my remarks above the WWII stuff, which is mostly in the final act is incredible and within the final 15 pages there is a page and a half that is the best writing I've read in a very long time. As a technical matter of writing the last act of the book is just as good -- and at times better -- than the first part but by then I no longer much cared about the larger story being told.

I thought we covered that early on with the wikipedia entry here. But that may have been confined to a discussionI had in another Murakami board. Those who know assure me the changes are not that dramatic and were all done with the approval and oversite of Murakami. (also the cuts are supposedly not as drastic as the publisher requested). Still it sucks and I'd rather have the complete work for my reading - but until I learn Japanese it'll have to do.

Nevah!

Welcome to Spoiler Tag Hell. A cat will be along shortly to show you to your room.

I'm assuming at the spoiler tags will be dropped at the end of this week, which will make a full 4 weeks.

I feel at a bit of a disadvantage in that this is the first Murukami book I've read, but I am impressed enough to be okay with that. Better than okay. Sometimes, it seems like everything has already been said, done, exploited to death and there is nothing new in lit. I'm very happy to have (hopefully) discovered a 'new' author who makes me want to really read again, like I used to when I was in high school and college. I definitely plan on reading more of his works.

Great observation!

I finished Book 2 last night and have been looking back for a conversation netween Toru and May (or maybe it was Creta) about hate. She(?) says something about hate being something that is not separated from you, it is connected to you and that, when you lash out in hatred at someone, you are lashing out at yourself. However, I can't find this passage anywhere.

What brought it up to me was the dream of the man with the guitar case.