Twenty two year old, Sumire is in love for the first time with a woman seventeen years her senior. But, whereas Miu is a glamorous and successful older woman with a taste for classical music and fine wine, Sumire is an aspiring writer who dresses in an oversized second hand coat and heavy boots like a character in a Jack Kerouac novel. Surprised that she might, after all, be a lesbian, Sumire spends hours on the phone talking to her best friend, K about the big questions in life: what is sexual desire and should she ever tell Miu how she feels about her? K, a primary school teacher, is used to answering questions, but what he most wants to say to Sumire is "I love you." He consoles himself by having an affair with the mother of one of his pupils. But, when a desperate Miu calls him out of the blue from a sunny Greek island and asks for his help, he soon discovers that all is not as it seems and something very strange has happened to Sumire.

An enjoyable read. Less fantastical and much easier to read than some of Murakami’s other novels (especially The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle and Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World).

Essentially a story about loneliness. Sumire loves Miu, who doesn’t return her affections. K loves Sumire who doesn’t like him in the same way. Miu is emotionally unable to love.

I liked the imagery Murakami introduces of Laika the dog in the Sputnik satellite. Poor Laika, alone in in the vastness of space hurtling towards nowhere.


International Bookray:
Cat207 (Aus, int)
shelj7k (Ire, int)
Tsjara (Ned, Eur pref / Int)
sedna5213 (Germany, Int)
okyrhoe (Greece, Int)
Ollie1976 (USA, USA pref / Int)
New ray? RABCK? Wild release?

Arrived in today's mail. Thank you fushmush.

I loved the Greek Island part of this book. Memories of my holiday came flooding back. I can't believe it's over two years since I was there.

A beautiful, typical Murakami. I'm waiting for an address from shelj7k.

Got an address for shelj7k - sending off in tomorrow's mail.

Thank you so much cat207, the book has arrived here in Dublin! Unfortunately the envelope was open and the book is looking slightly bent and bruised. I will be gentle with it when I begin to read it, hopefully in the next day or so as I am almost finished my current read.

I finished Sputnik Sweetheart a few days ago, so my apologies for not journaling until now.

As ever, a Murakmai story is a very enjoyable experience, although I was less captivated with this one than others I have read. I unfortunately didn't become attached to the characters of K, Miu and Sumire. They were rather cold and insular making it difficult to empathise with them. Murakami's writing though, is faultlessly beautiful. I agree with fushmuch who pointed out that this is less fantastical and thereby easier to read than some of his other books.

Thank you for the experience.

I am just going to confirm that the address I have for Tsjara is correct and I will mail the book out, hopefully tomorrow.

ETA: Mailed 29 July 2010

Arrived here safely :) Thanks for sending shelj7k and fushmush for sharing the book! I have already started reading this last night, and I'm enjoying it so far ^-^

This was an easy and quick read. I finished this a couple of days ago and really enjoyed it. It started quite normal, but got stranger towards the end. And the open ending left me a bit confused, with more questions than answers...

Now on its way to Germany :)
Happy reading!

Received the book today :). Thanks Tsjara for sending it (and those fantastric stamps!) and fushmush for sharing! Looking forward to read it.

Quite easy to read and yes, strange ending :).

Book is travelling to Greece! Enjoy!

Arrived in Athens. Thanks fushmush for including me in the ring and sedna5213 for posting the book to me!

This will be the fourth Murakami novel I will have read, and I am looking forward to doing so.

Of 4 the Murakami novels I've read so far, this is a rather "lite" piece.
I wish this particular narrative had more substance. It read like a rough draft, lacking the character insight, the dialogue or the plot twists of the other Murakami works I'm familiar with. And yet, although the story is a minimal & a relatively uneventful one, and the motifs* are familiarly repetitive from the other books, I appreciated the subtle tone on the narrative. For me it was the most "cinematic", visually emotive, of the novels. Although I don't know much about the characters or what happened/will happen to them, I "felt" K's situation more intimately than the other protagonists in A Wild Sheep Chase, Dance Dance Dance, & The Wind Up Bird Chronicle.

* motifs
Someone goes missing, and the protagonist must try to find her (usually it's a she).
There is a this side and another side, and some of the characters can go there.
The protagonist befriends innocence (usually a teenage girl, but in this case it's a young boy) and that's where the story ends.

One comment about the translation. There were some words or phrases that I thought were too "British" rather than Japanese.

On its way by post to Ollie1976. Enjoy!

Received today...thanks