Hip and Well Read: Kafka on the Shore

Hey Hipsters and Bibliophiles, The people have voted and December's book is... Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami. *** NOTE: due to the usual meetups being on the last Wed. of the month, and this being the holiday season, I'm moving the meetup to the middle of December. *** description: In this latest addition to the author's incomparable oeuvre, 15-year-old Kafka Tamura runs away from home, both to escape his father's oedipal prophecy and to find his long-lost mother and sister. As Kafka flees, so too does Nakata, an elderly simpleton whose quiet life has been upset by a gruesome murder. (A wonderfully endearing character, Nakata has never recovered from the effects of a mysterious World War II incident that left him unable to read or comprehend much, but did give him the power to speak with cats.) What follows is a kind of double odyssey, as Kafka and Nakata are drawn inexorably along their separate but somehow linked paths, groping to understand the roles fate has in store for them. Murakami likes to blur the boundary between the real and the surrealÂÂ-we are treated to such oddities as fish raining from the sky; a forest-dwelling pair of Imperial Army soldiers who haven't aged since WWII; and a hilarious cameo by fried chicken king Colonel SandersÂÂ-but he also writes touchingly about love, loneliness and friendship. I had no problems finding this at the local independent bookstore. Kafka on the Shore is available on Amazon.com, however, I encourage you all to support your local independent book store or library: City Paper's List of Independent Bookstores Google Map/Listing of Independent Bookstores in Philly You will notice that that if you RSVP "Yes," you'll be charged to attend. This is to help me cover my costs as Organizer and reduce the number of no-shows we have at meetings. Please keep in mind I'm only giving refunds if the meeting is canceled or rescheduled, not if you change your mind about attending. Thinking about coming when the Meetup is FULL? Read/click here. Happy Reading! Michelle