Truthfully, I might not even be making sense, but I’ve learned with this novel (my first-ever Murakami read) that that’s the effect Murakami’s work has on me-I don’t have to grab onto everything because it makes my mind wander, question, and try to look at myself through a different scope. Our subconscious has the power to create a world of its own, and to some degree, we are just as much part of that world as it is part of ours. Not only is much of his writing beautiful in its use of language and crafting of these characters but much of the novel itself contains lines and concepts that truly open one’s eyes to what makes us who we are: that which we have access to shapes us, and we still only have a portion of the bigger picture. I thought I’d end on one of my favorite quotes because even if I couldn’t make complete sense of this novel to my satisfaction, Murakami writes some remarkable lines in this work that I can appreciate. A mere tip of the icing.” Haruki Murakami, The Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World Ch. All we know-or think we know-is but a fraction of the whole cake. At the same time, human beings have almost no grasp of their own cognitive systems.

And what is identity? The cognitive system arisin’ from the aggregate memories of that individual’s past experiences. “No two human beings are alike it’s a question of identity. One thing seems certain though: Murakami is challenging our understanding of our own identity and existence. Both narrators experience their minds being taken from them, but as the novel progresses, readers can sense the doubles Murakami has placed in the text to shed light on the human consciousness… The Dreamreader and the Town seem to be representations of the Calcutec’s subconscious. Both worlds carry an eerie feeling to them, but the Dreamreader’s world feels more dream-like and bizarre with mindless people walking around the walled town. Readers are first introduced to the Calcutec who works for the System in Tokyo recruited to work for a scientist, but shortly after, we gain access to the Dreamreader who arrives to a town where he must be separated from his shadow. In this novel, readers go on the adventure of realizing the chapters alternate between two different worlds and narrators-but are they completely separate? I’ll need a few more reads to tell you for sure (and maybe not even then), but I’m not certain they are. I think it matches well with the imagination required for the journey through alternating perspectives and settings, and we see components of Murakami’s novel clearly represented: the brain, the skull, the two separate but connected figures… All of this resonates deeply with my current understanding of The Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World.

In the running theme of including artwork associated with the novels I’ve read, I thought I’d feature this piece by Laura Spencer Illustrates because of how fantastical it is.

A hard boiled wonderland