With Murakami, you can always count on recurring themes and elements. You'd think that'd take away from the reading experience but the surprising thing is that it doesn't. Before long, you start welcoming how the words ooze melancholy, you start to be drawn into the dream-like state the story takes place in and once you are done, experience the need to shake off a thin haze that had built around you before you can get back to life as it was. Post-read, every book leaves a lingering after-taste that keeps you coming back for more.

And yet, I was fairly disappointed with this book. It simply failed to stand out. The plot was simple, the writing wasn't out of the ordinary and it just wasn't memorable enough. With no read 'meat' to the story and the absence of the 'it' factor (which Norwegian Wood was laced with), the ambiguity which allows a readers imagination to soar and fill in the blanks became a hindrance. Overall, if you are a huge Murakami fan, go ahead and read it. If not, I'd suggest skipping it since it's not one of his finer works. ( )

Hajime tells the story of his relationships from age twelve through thirty-seven. When he was twelve, he developed a close friendship with Shimamoto, and even when they moved away from each other, she stayed in his mind and heart. At age seventeen, his first intense relationship is with Izumi, whom he hurts deeply. He meets his future wife, Yukiko, at age thirty. Her father helps him go into business as the manager of two jazz bars. Hajime and Yukiko seem to have a wonderful life together, but their relationship is strained when Shimamoto comes back into the picture.

The primary focus of this book is how a relationship can succeed or fail based on choices, how people can get hurt even when intentions are good, and the harmful consequences of obsession. It also questions the nature of reality, even to the point where I wondered if some of what appears to have really happened may have been Hajime’s imagination. Of course, the more I read Murakami’s works, the more I appreciate that figuring out what is real (and not) is part of the charm. ( )

Hajime, el narrador, nació «la primera semana del primer mes del primer año de la segunda mitad del siglo XX», una fecha singular, como su nombre: «Principio» en japonés. Sin embargo, le marcó mucho más ser hijo único, porque en las demás familias, si no eran dos hermanos, eran tres; si no eran tres, eran dos. De ahí que su mejor amiga de la infancia fuera otra hija única, Shimamoto, con la que compartió secretos y aficiones hasta que, tras la escuela primaria, perdieron el contacto. Muchos años después, Hajime, que vive una existencia relativamente feliz ─se ha casado, es padre de dos niñas y dueño de un club de jazz─, se reencuentra con Shimamoto. La atracción renace. Y Hajime, obsesionado, parece dispuesto a dejarlo todo por ella... Con inquietante sutileza, Murakami destila en esta trama clásica ─un amor perdido y recobrado, la consumación de una promesa de plenitud─ la indefinible sensación de desajuste con el mundo que acucia al hombre contemporáneo.

There's a special sort of secret shame reserved for a twenty-something year-old who has never read Murakami. After years of hearing about how amazing his writing was, I decided to take the plunge with "South of the Border, West of the Sun". I was not disappointed.

I was pleasantly surprised with the frankness of the language, the understated way he paints everyday life and the realism of the characters. The novel kept me engaged up until the very end and once there, left me feeling like something unknown was missing from my own life. I'm not sure if this feeling was pleasant or not, hence the four stars. Looking forward to checking out his other works. ( )

Dù xét trên danh nghĩa là một sự tiếp nối của Cuộc săn cừu hoang hay là một tác phẩm độc lập thì Nhảy nhảy nhảy vẫn là một cuốn sách thành công. Dễ chịu và khá nhẹ nhàng. Có gì đó giống với Phía Nam biên giới, phía Tây mặt trời. Không khí truyện, âm nhạc, hơi thở của quá khứ giữa dòng chảy thời gian,... Cá nhân mình rất thích tình bạn giữa nhân vật chính với cô bé Yuki. ( )