Amazing. I‘m at a loss for words… almost. I will say part 4 had me really wanting the book to wrap up but that‘s definitely the intention of the author. Part 5 was absolutely stunning. It made this 5 stars for me. It‘s a commitment but totally worth it it.

I‘ve now read most of Pynchon besides V and Mason & Dixon. I‘d say this is his most accomplished work that I‘ve read so far. There is so much going on. It‘s a western, steam punk, historical fiction, sci-fi, phantasmagorical, with twinges of romance, cosmic horror and war. You can see how Pynchon has grown as a writer since Gravity‘s Rainbow. I‘ll never forget these characters, and there are so many. Highly recommend this brick of a book.

Murakami revisits ideas from Hard Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World in this novel. He creates a new and refreshing story while maintaining a sense of nostalgia of his previous novel. I really enjoyed this book. As with most Murakami I couldn‘t put it down. Highly recommend. 4/5 stars

Seattle‘s music from the 90‘s played a big role in my life. I now live in the city which I dreamed to visit as a kid. Lanegan‘s music has been a near constant in my life. This memoir is brutal, harsh, and honest. This isn‘t a glamorous story of rock and roll, but a story of addiction, pain, and loss. I listened to the audiobook which Lanegan reads himself. Hearing his painful story from his own worn and gravelly voice was an experience I recommend

A fun story about the absurdity of the modern workplace. Kafka would be proud.

I read the description of this book online and knew immediately that I wanted to read it. I found the short story that inspired the novel and read that first. After finishing the short story I went to a local used book store and bought this copy. I went outside and turn to the cover page and noticed I had found a signed copy! Lucky day! I put this copy on my shelf and checked out the ebook from my library. It was quite an enjoyable read.

Holy moly! I‘m speechless.. I absolutely love these gifts! I‘ve been wanting to read this since it came out. I‘ve been waiting patiently for my library to get their copies in for months now. The wait is over! Fantastic book, super scrumptious chocolate (that I couldn‘t resist trying before I took my picture), and a Krampus card!? Thank you so much @bridge12 for the gifts! And thank you @MaleficentBookDragon for organizing! Happy #Jolabokaflod

Got my package today! Super excited for opening day! Thank you @bridge12 #jolabokaflodswap

Got my match for the #jolabokaflodswap. Super stoked to pick out and send you some chocolate and a book @Callemarie Thank you kindly for hosting @MaleficentBookDragon @MaleficentBookDragon

Borscht, homemade kombucha with beet juice and Jitterbug Perfume for lunch today at work. Goodness I love books and beets and books with beets.

Strange, surreal and full of symbolism, The Snail On the Slope, was a fun ride through two narratives that meditate on the meaning and purpose of society and how we perceive its future.

I enjoyed this short book and will most likely finish the trilogy at sime point. I don't think it will be immediately. This story had a very Lovecraftian feel and definitely fits the name of its genre, "new weird". If you don't like vague descriptions and need all your questions answered this is not for you. If you enjoy pondering and wondering after a story and using your imagination to fill in details, give it a shot.

"Comtemplate the marvel that is existence, and rejoice that youare able to do so."

from the story 'Exhalation'

This tome has been fun so far!

Sometime absurd and humorous, sometimes surreal and magical, at times having a touch of horror, the stories in this book made the bus rides to and from work a lot more enjoyable this week. A nice weird collection.

"There are, in other words, many contradictions in the human character- so many, in fact, that it makes no difference whether we conclude that character exists or doesn't exist."

"..destiny is a thing that uses its magical powers to toy with an innocent youth."

I really enjoyed this novel of thought by #Soseki

"...I walk one step deeper into anxiety. Pursued by anxiety from behind, drawn on by anxiety ahead, I have to keep moving, but I can walk and walk and walk, and nothing is going to be solved. I'll go on waking through an anxiety that will stay unsettled as long as I live."

Looking forward to this unusual novel by Soseki.

"As long as the winds blew, the rivers flowed, and the seas stirred, sand would be born grain by grain from the earth, and like a living being it would creep everywhere. The sands never rested. Gently but surely they invaded and destroyed the surface of the earth."

"The beauty of sand, in other words, belonged to death. It was the beauty of death that ran through the magnificence of its ruins and its great power of destruction."

Quick read into the world of Soseki. Ten small stories of dreams that were quite fun to delve into. It would be a nice introduction to his prose.

Earth fails,
All grows old and worn.
Flash is dust- however it's adorned.

This was a pleasant read for the commute today.

Excited to spiral into this.

This has immediately become one my favorites by #Murakami. I can't put it down. I've read over 3/4 of this novel in two bus rides.

This was my first time reading Soseki. I really enjoyed the story and felt that it painted an honest portrayal of the end od the Meiji era in Japan. I look forward to reading more works by one of the founders of modern Japanese literature. This left me with a strong feeling of melancholy at the same time a longing for continued attempts at compassion and understanding.

Starting this today while setting up for a farm party and doing laundry.

All of the little themes of everything I have read by Murakami come together in this book. I absolutely loved it, page after to page. I had trouble putting it down and am sad it is over. #BigInJapan #WanderingJune

"You know, Jun," he said, "a fire can be any shape it wants to be. It's free. So it can look like anything at all depending on what's inside the person looking at it. If you get this deep, quiet kind of feeling when you look at a fire, that's because it's showing you the deep, quiet kind of feeling you have inside yourself. You know what I mean?"

From the short story 'landscape with flatiron'

“Like all science, our work deals with human happiness.”

(picture of my doggo for bonus points)

"Human beings set out to encounter other worlds, other civilizations, without having fully gotten to know their own hidden recesses, their blind alleys, well shafts, dark barricaded doors."

"We don‘t need other worlds. We need mirrors. We don‘t know what to do with other worlds. One world is enough, even there we feel stifled. We desire to find our own idealized image; they‘re supposed to be globes, civilizations more perfect than ours; in other worlds we expect to find the image of our own primitive past."

"However much you may move around, as long as the motion is circular you haven't really gone anywhere; the important is to maintain a tranquil inner core."

"Loneliness wasn't such a bad feeling. It was like the stillness of the pin oak after the little birds had flown off."

This one was a little harder to get through. That said, the last quarter of the book was great. This #Murakami finishes clean rounds off the story so well. I felt fulfilled after the last page.

Got this today at Ferlinghetti's City Lights in San Francisco. Just a few days after Ferlinghetti's 100th birthday. I read this my first semester in college and fell in love. My professor had let me borrow her copy. I now have my own.

Happy Birthday Lawrence! Thank you for all that you've done and continue to do!

Just finished the first story in this collection. Highly imaginative as to be expected. On to the next.. #litsypartyofone

I read a different translation than the one tagged but couldn't find the one by Hamada on here so I'll tag this one.

I really enjoyed these stories by Ueda Akinari. They have a real charm to them. I'd recommend them to any fan of #folktales.

I may not share the same beliefs of the author but I found this book to be charming and insightful. It reads quickly and left pleasant thoughts with me as I read page after page.

Loved this one by #Murakami. It was magical from the beginning. Definitely one of my favorites by him. It's a nice dive into magical realism and meditates heavily on identity. If you've never read Murakami before, this would be a decent place to start.

"Like deep-sea creatures rule the ocean depths, in the forest trees reign supreme."

Really enjoying this one by #Murakami. It's been as weird as I want it to be from the start.

@kellyann28 this is one of the most thoughtful gifts I've ever received. Literally brought tears to my eyes. Thank you so much. Merry Christmas!! Cant wait to dive in and cook some of these recipes. And the new home for my brushes is so awesome! ❤️❤️❤️#christmasbookswap 🎄🎄🎄

#christmasbookswap @kellyann28 I got your package today! I'm glad I know my postman. I gave you my old address and he called me this morning saying it was there and about to get shipped back. Looking forward to Christmas and opening the gifts!

@kellyann28 your package is on its way 📦🎁😊🎄

Tonight's festivities. Dinner and #Murakami. Schubert plays in the background. I love listening to the music mentioned in Murakami's books while I read. Sets the mood. Oh, and in case you didn't know rice taste better in a ball 😜#dinnerandabook

#tbr what I own already. Tbh I have way more tbr than what's on my list and is rather on my shelves. I've a habit of squirreling away books for the future. #usedbookaddiction

"The best books... are those that tell you what you already know."

One of my prized possessions. I got this copy at our local used books and rarities store. This book opened my perspective as a teenager. I've been an #Orwell fan ever since. #1984 #foodforthought

I read #RoadsidePicnic in one sitting during a camping trip in Minnesota this year. It has quickly become one of my favorite #scifi stories. It takes place after a visit from an unknown #alien species and the impact of their coming and going. A unique read from the #StrugatskyBrothers who went through a lot to have this work published in Soviet Russia. It was the inspiration for the film #Stalker by #Tarkovsky, which I also recommend. Please read.

Can't wait to dive into this after dinner. Read the sample this morning and got super excited to read more. #Murakami may be my favorite author alive today.

I found out about this book through Henry Miller's Stand Still Like the Hummingbird. It has been a wild ride every time I've picked it up. I've yet to finish it but I definitely will. For those who are into #surrealist works I suggest giving this a gander.