The Collected Works of Haruki Murakami -- South of the Border, West of the Sun

Author: Haruki Murakami
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2001-08-01
Features: This book is impossible to put down. It's so heart-wrenching. A person's heart is hard to grasp; understanding them makes it even harder. I'm in love, and I understand each other's pain. The story of South of the Border, West of the Sun revolves around the narrator's relationships with three women. The first is Islando, his primary school classmate, who was exceptionally beautiful. The two of them listened to Nat King Cole's album South of the Border, West of the Sun together at Islando's house. The ten seconds they shook hands became an indelible beautiful memory for the protagonist. The second woman is Izumi, his high school classmate. His interactions with her were always accompanied by restless unease, as he couldn't open up to her completely. He then turned to seek physical intimacy, but was rejected. Soon after, he had a sexual relationship with Izumi's cousin, leading to Izumi's furious departure. The third woman is Yoko, whom he met while traveling and who was thirty years old. After marriage, we opened two bars and had two daughters, living what others would consider a happy life. But Islando suddenly reappeared after eighteen years. This novel can be said to be a record of a person's growth: the moment one achieves what they seek is also the moment it ends, and the search itself is the process of losing.