A review by mahikaaa_s
South of the Border, West of the Sun by Haruki Murakami

emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

This was my first proper novel by Haruki Murakami (excluding The Strange Library). I listened to it as an audiobook and it was well narrated. I liked the fact that it reads easy, even though the themes it explores are not particularly easy at all. The book talks about how our past relationships often end up finding their way back into the present and what the dangers of revisiting those can implicate on your current life and relationships. Cheating on partners, specifically men cheating on women seems to be trivialized and justified through this story and that is something very disturbing. I know Murakami is a highly celebrated author yet I'm not sure if I will pick up another of his novels very soon, because based on this one, I did find the tone to be a bit depressing and tragic. 
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