Hacker News Reader

Comment by hkmurakami | Hacker News Reader

As others have noted, you'll likely find what you're looking for by finding other magical realism authors rather than other Japanese authors.

If looking for existentialist ennui authors, then Japan may offer other writers.

What about Murakami's works appeal to you in particular?

View on HN

Yes, I like the magical realism of murakami. However I also enjoy the Japanese cultural references. Maybe it is the gaijin in me, but I feel that the mystery of Japanese culture (as seen from the eyes of a westerner) is a good match for magical realism.

I’ve often heard of murakami described as similar to Philip K Dick. Though I like Dick, I don’t really see the relation. (Though the second season of amazons Man in the Hogh Castle seems very Murakami-esque to me)

I’ve read a lot of French and German existential ennui authors and don’t get the same feelings (some I’ve read in both English translation and original text).

I do get some similar feelings from some Hemingway works, though clearly not magical realism.

Do you have any magical realism authors you can suggest?

For more magical realism, definitely give Gabriel Garcia Marquez a try. It doesn't feel quite as foreign as Japanese culture, but it definitely captures the same kind of mystery.

One Hundred Years of Solitude is generally regarded as a good place to start. It's one of my favorite books and has so much character and imagery that sticks in your head.

I agree with you that there's little resemblance between Murakami and PKD.

I think I know what you mean regarding Hemingway. I got that "feeling" as a reader reading For Whom The Bell Tolls.

I'd look at "the Surrendered" by Chang-rae Lee, a Korean American author and a Pulitzer finalist. I'm only halfway through the book but it's very much a Hemingway esque war book, and I think I get a similar feeling reading it. Maybe it has to do with being very deep inside the psyche of the existentially troubled, conflicted protagonist.

If you do read it and enjoy it, drop me a note at me email. Would love to hear what you think.

Funny, I’ve read all of Hemingway’s novels and the one I was explicitly thinking of was For Whom the Bell Tolls. Yes, that “feeling” was the one I was referring to.

I’ll try to check out that Korean American author too. I just finished “pachinko” by Min Jin Lee, another Korean American author. Definitely _not_ magical realism but a lot of enui.

I (along with some others here) highly recommend Yasunari Kawabata. In a way, he reminds me of Hemingway because he writes sparsely and with a deep sense of melancholy. He also was focused on preserving the "Japanese character" at a time when there was a lot of pressure to Westernize, so in a way he writing encapsulates a Japanese perspective of what makes Japan unique and interesting.

He is also just an amazing writer (he won the Nobel). Some interesting works by him: Master of Go, the novelization of a Go match between two masters (I barely understand how to play Go and still found it interesting) and Thousand Cranes, which centers around the tea ceremony. That story is interesting because a few old tea bowls are treated almost like characters that exert influence over some of the other characters whose lives are kind of intertwined almost like a Shakespearean drama. Anyway, a very interesting and unique author.

I also recommend Musashi from Eiji Yoshikawa. He writes big historical fiction novels that read like fantasy page-turners. Taiko is his lesser known novel in translation, but it is a really awesome overview of the Japanese feudal period and a fun read as well.

Will do! Thanks.

Not completely magical realism, but I would suggest Vonnegut. Murakami slightly reminds me of a younger version.

Interesting. I hadn’t made that connection before. I’ve ready 3-4 Vonnegut books but admittedly not since I was a kid. Maybe I was too young to understand. Or maybe I hadn’t yet identified the right feelings yet. I’ll give him another try.

Check out For the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki. It has magical realism elements, and half of it takes place in Japan. It definitely reminded me of Murakami.

I agree here: liking Murakami is no guarantee of liking other contemporary Japanese authors (as you can gather from the article in question).

Side question: re your username, are you a big haruki murakami fan or just a coincidence?

Those are my initials and my last name, which coincidentally resembles the author's name. My first name is the name of one of his protagonists, which adds to the mystery ;)

My college classmates would often ask if I was related, especially since he was a visiting lecturer back in the day.

Ha!

Reply on news.ycombinator.com