At the End of the World and the Cold（Collected Works of Haruki Murakami）

Author: [Japanese] Murakami Haruki, translated by Lin Shaohua
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-12-01
Features: This is one of Murakami Haruki's most important novels, alongside Norwegian Wood and Dance Dance Dance, forming his three major masterpieces. In 1996, it was published by Lijiang Press with a total print run of 42,000 copies, already having a significant impact among readers. The novel consists of 40 chapters, with odd-numbered chapters titled "Cool" and even-numbered chapters titled "World's End." This cross-parallel storytelling technique is a hallmark of Murakami Haruki's novels, and this book is the most typical embodiment of that feature.
"Cool" depicts two black organizations vying for a brain-controlling device invented by an elderly scientist, who has taken refuge underground. The protagonist "I" becomes the scientist's experimental subject, subjected to threats from the black organizations. With the help of the scientist's granddaughter, "I" embarks on a thrilling journey underground, only to finally find the scientist and learn that due to the scientist's calculation error, "I" has only 24 hours to live and will transition to another world, "World's End."
"I" returns to the surface, spends one last night with his girlfriend as a farewell, and then drives to the seaside to await death. "World's End" presents a starkly different scene—a world cut off from the outside, where residents live in harmony but lack hearts, emotions, and goals. "I" constantly tries to escape but chooses to stay at the brink of success, realizing that "World's End" is actually a creation of his own.
This book features extraordinary imagination, high artistic standards, and a plot that is both wildly absurd and thematically profound. Through its (metamorphic technique), it captures the true state of mind of people who feel trapped and unable to escape the chaotic reality of contemporary capitalist society.