Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman Review

I've just finished reading Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman by Haruki Murakami my favourite literary author. It's a collection of short stories, some of them are heartachingly bittersweet. I find it easy to relate to Murakami's characters, they all seem like lost souls, none of them are perfect. Instead they're usually lonely, confused, bored, sad and all of them have extraordinary tales to tell.

Three stories stuck out for me out of the 24, note that these contain spoilers!

A folklore for my generation: a history of late stage capitalism
Young love is broken by youth itself. Girl and boy are together but never consummate their relationship as girl wants to stay a virgin until she is married. Boy remains in love with her, girl remains indifferent. She loves him but views their relationship as if she outside of it and refuses to marry him. Instead she promises to sleep with him when she is married...to someone else.

Firefly
A college student befriends the former girlfriend of a high school friend who committed suicide. Their relationship is never "official" but their loneliness and lack of other friends appears to drive them together. They have conversations but not about their dead friend, in the end she commits herself to a sanatorium.

Hanalei Bay
A mother loses her son in a shark attack in Hawaii. Every year she returns to the town "Hanalei Bay" around the anniversary of his death. She was never maternal and let her son do whatever he pleased. She ends up befriending two young Japanese surfers and looking after them in Hawaii...the ghost of her son appears to the surfers but not to her...

Murakami's writing feels so flawless sometimes, he claims that he's been able to write one a week (!) and is naturally compelled to write them. After reading his work I always feel...speculative as if all the odd things that have happened in my life have unique consequences. They also make me really want to visit Japan.