Haruki Murakami "Dance Dance Dance"

Haruki Murakami is one of the most popular and controversial of today's Japanese authors. His genre-defying, humorous and surreal works is Dance, Dance, Dance written in 1988.
In Japanese fiction, plot development and action have often been of secondary interest to emotional issues and exploration of the characterʼs inner lives..
Time is a powerful character in this novel, from my westernerʼs view point the main characterʼs ability to just wait for how life will reveal his next steps is one of obscene time wealth.
Two mysteries arise, how to survive the un-survivable and the murder of a call-girl and ex-girl friend.
Shadow people come and go, Yuki the 13 year old companion, Kiki the lost girl friend continues to appear and then easily disappear calling our hero through his dreams. Sheep Man helping our protagonist to draw all the divergent lines of his life into an ordered whole.

Our main character, moves about life with no real direction, no passion, no life, just waiting to be healed and his mysteries resolved. The Dolphin Hotel, site of a tryst with Kiki who then disappears leaving the memory of the Hotelʼs attraction as the starting place for his search for closure or healing.
Sheepman, super ego, drawing all the divergent lines of our heros life into an ordered whole. His guide to wholeness, healing and resolution of themysteries.
Yuki, the13 year old girl, a damaged repository of possibility our hero begins to coax .into life, thereby healing himself and experiences the ultimate discovery of a human connection
The themes of loss and abandonment play through the book, loss of his spouse and then girlfriend Kiki heighten these issues.

The book was a pleasurable read ... the story is nothing fancy but the style and delivery was fresh...It's a whimsical theatre of philosophy delivered with just a touch of humor..
"Shovelling snow" takes on a whole new meaning.

David