Haruki Murakami released Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage earlier this year and it was pretty lackluster in the “creamy brains” department. Oh, you haven’t read Murakami? You’re unsure why someone would title a blog Creamy Brains. Well, Murakami is a master of magical realism, and magical realism is probably my favorite genre of books. Think plot-lines like those of 2010’s Inception directed by Christopher Nolan, add men that wear sheep costumes and fry donuts, and you have the basics of a Murakami novel.
Colorless rarely ventured into the realms unknown and left me extremely underwhelmed. I think if the book would have completely omitted the dream sequences and replaced those pages with more of what the novel is actually about (a middle aged man examining a life once lived) it would have been much more enjoyable for me. As it stands, the book is a great reflection of the title character: it was somewhat colorless, and drab.
The Strange Library is the second book Murakami has released this year, and I consider it masterful. The book is a concise tour de force of magical realism. Knopf has paired Chip Kidd +(designer and art director) with the author Murakami to create a beautiful book that allows the reader to fall into an uneasy and uncomfortable experience.
It tells the story of an unnamed narrator. He quickly finds himself trapped inside of the library, uneasy and intruding. He is tasked with memorizing three tomes with a one month deadline. His only companion, the aforementioned sheep man. His captor tells him if he completes this task, he will be set free, but conflicting information tells him his captor traps young minds, has them read for one month, and eats the brains to absorb the information.
The more information, the creamier the brain.
Creamy brains.
This is all weird stuff, and if you have ever read any of my past blogs here on the Lemuria Blog, you’ll understand that I love weird. The Strange Library is like a bad dream. A bad dream of a small Japanese boy that is fundamentally incapable of disobeying the wishes of an elder. Despite his terrifying predicament, his primary concern is that of worrying his mother by showing up to dinner late. The book reminds me of a Studio Ghibli film. Ghibli is famous for turning Japanese parables and fairy tales into modern masterpieces.
The Strange Library is available now at Lemuria Bookstore, and is absolutely perfect for an afternoon away from reality.
Written by Andre
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