Book Reviews (Commonwealth Union)
Haruki Murakami, often praised for his surreal storytelling, delivers yet another enigmatic novel with The City and Its Uncertain Walls. First published in Japan in April 2023, this book marks a reappearance of themes and ideas Murakami had explored earlier in his career. The novel is a reimagining of an eponymous novella he penned in 1980, which left him dissatisfied, feeling it was an incomplete expression of his vision. After decades of writing, he revisits the story, weaving together real and fantastical elements into a richly layered narrative.
As per Murakami’s signature style, the novel defies straightforward interpretation. Readers are drawn into a surreal world where a walled city harbors peculiar characters and strange phenomena: a speaking shadow, a teenage boy with perfect memory, and a library devoid of books, where visitors listen to “old dreams,” the elements blend seamlessly with various touchpoints, familiar for Murakami’s international fans.
A 15-year-old girl opens the story with a mysterious tale of an impenetrable wall enclosing a city devoid of music and books. She asserts that this city is only a reflection of her true self. Despite their budding love, the narrator loses her when she vanishes into the enigmatic world she describes. Years later, now middle-aged, he finds himself drawn into the city, where he must surrender his shadow and endure physical wounding to enter. Inside, time stands still, and the narrator embarks on a journey of dream-reading with the girl who remains forever young.
At its core, the novel explores themes of isolation, the barriers that separate us, and the storytelling process itself. Murakami invites his readers to reflect, with his symbolic use of the city and its walls as metaphors for human constructs—social, emotional, and ideological. The walls in his story are neither indestructible nor concrete, but elusive and mutable, shaped by belief and perception. The narrator’s shadow ultimately discerns the artificiality of the wall, revealing it as a construct born of human imagination—a mere story, the revelation underscoring a central message: by questioning the narratives that confine us, we might overcome the illusions that divide us.
Murakami’s reflections on walls and division resonate with his 2009 Jerusalem Prize acceptance speech. Delivered in the wake of the Gaza War, where he declared his allegiance to “the side of the egg,” Murakami emphasized the fragility of humanity against oppressive systems. His metaphorical egg, representing human vulnerability, is central to his worldview: while we create the walls that divide us, we also have the power to dismantle them.
The City and Its Uncertain Walls echoes this by challenging the reader to contemplate the fluidity of truth and the transformative potential of stories. The walled city is idyllic at times and, at others, coercive, serving as a reminder of the duality of the barriers we erect. These walls provide safety and structure but also stifle individuality and freedom. The narrator’s eventual realization that the wall is illusory is both liberating and deeply human—an acknowledgement of our shared power to reshape our realities.
The novel’s ending, set in Fukushima Prefecture, holds poignant significance. Murakami blurs the boundaries between the real and the surreal by situating his protagonist as a librarian in a region still scarred by the 2011 nuclear disaster. The ghost of the previous librarian becomes a fitting recipient for the narrator’s tale, symbolizing the enduring need to confront and process our past through storytelling. This interplay between reality and the fantastical is a hallmark of Murakami’s work, allowing him to address profound truths while maintaining an air of mystery.
Murakami’s afterword offers a rare glimpse into his creative philosophy. He reflects on the nature of truth, emphasizing its inherent dynamism: “Truth is not found in fixed stillness, but in ceaseless change and movement.” This perspective aligns with the novel’s themes, inviting readers to embrace uncertainty and explore multiple interpretations of reality.
Critics often label Murakami’s works as “un-Japanese” due to their Western cultural references and departure from traditional Japanese literary conventions. Yet it is this very quality that has endeared him to a global audience. In The City and Its Uncertain Walls, his storytelling transcends cultural boundaries, emphasizing universal experiences of love, loss, and the search for meaning.
The novel also serves as a tribute to the power of stories. Through its complex layers, Murakami reminds us that storytelling is an act of creation—a means of bridging divides and confronting the unknown. By listening to the “old dreams” within us, as his characters do, we can begin to challenge the walls that separate us from one another and ourselves.
While it is definitely not an easy read, The City and Its Uncertain Walls is a deeply rewarding one that demands patience and an open mind, encouraging readers to embrace ambiguity and seek truth in its many forms. For long-time fans and newcomers alike, Murakami’s latest work reiterates his status as a master of modern literature, capable of spinning tales that linger long after the final page.
