Kafka on the Shore
By Jeremiah Calagui

Books are like films that projects in our mind. Each little tiny printed word creates a vivid image that you can amazingly see. You just keep reading and reading to continue that scene in your head like you’re addicted to it. You can never have the nerve to put it down, you just keep on reading. Kafka On The Shore by Haruki Murakami is a sensational book that you won’t put down. Haruki Murakami takes you to a world where it’s dream-like, fish falling from the sky, and talking cats.


Kafka on the shore takes place in central Takamatsu Japan. There are two odd characters Kafka Tamura, and Satoru Nakata that would soon collide throughout the novel. In Kafka’s story, He runs away from home to escape an Oedipal curse his father puts on him and to begin his own life. He begins on a journey to find his Mother and Sister that left him when he hasn’t caught conscious yet. Kafka remembers that he needs to be the toughest 15 yr. old boy in the whole world. The real world is going to throw everything at him, he needs to react where time and survival is at his doorstep. In Nakata’s story, the case of one lost cat puts him on a journey that would bring him far then he would go. This journey brings him far away from home, and ending on a road he never encountered his whole life.


In Kafka On The Shore, it has a weird sense of style. Magical realism, popular culture, suspense, and an Oedipal Prophecy all mix into a melting pot that makes Kafka On The Shore. Magical realism is what kept me reading this book. Haruki Murakami makes fish fall from the sky that will keep you wondering how that was even possible. Cats that would have a conversation with you like its normal. When you keep reading, it seems like you really are in there shoes. Haruki Murakami gives you a very detailed description of what each character do and does, it’s amazing. Magical realism is one of Murakimi’s favorite writing styles.


Kafka On The Shore mesmerized me through the whole book. It was challenging for me to put the book down and head to sleep. Haruki Murakami is one of the greatest storytellers out there in the world. The way he puts two characters that would soon collide into one big conflict is amazing. Also his vivid description and details he adds to the passage to project a scene in your head it was like watching a movie that I wish would never end. After finishing the book your whole mindset will change. The way you see the world will be different all together. You your self will think different of yourself. I would definitely recommend this book to everyone who loves twists, surprises, imagery, and dream like adventures.