I hope finals are going well.
Despite our best efforts, we were not able to decide which book to read over Christmas break. However, we decided that we'd post our suggestions on the blog and decide here. So, here is my suggestion.
After Dark by Haruki Murakami
Wikipedia's summary: Alienation, a recurring motif in the works of Murakami, is the central theme in this novel set in metropolitan Tokyo over the course of one night. Main characters include Mari, a 19-year-old student, who is spending the night reading in a Denny's. There she meets Takahashi, a trombone-playing student who loves Curtis Fuller's "Five Spot After Dark" song on Blues-ette; Takahashi knows Mari's sister Eri and insists that the group of them have hung out before. Meanwhile, Eri is in a deep sleep.
Mari crosses ways with a retired female wrestler, now working as a manager in a love hotel (whom Takahashi knows and referred to Mari), a Chinese prostitute who has been beaten and stripped of everything in this same love hotel, and a sadistic computer expert. The story takes place in a world between reality and dream.
I've read the book before, but it was several summers ago, and I would love to experience it again. If this sounds interesting, let me know!
Let's get those suggestions up!
-Jackie Pare
