Haruki Murakami

Growing up in the suburbs in post-war Japan, it seemed to Hajime that everyone but him had brothers and sisters. His sole companion was Shimamoto, also an only child. Together they spent long afternoons listening to her father's record collection. But when his family moved away, the two lost touch. Now Hajime is in his thirties. After a decade of drifting he has found happiness with his loving wife and two daughters, and success running a jazz bar. Then Shimamoto reappears. She is beautiful, intense, enveloped in mystery. Hajime is catapulted into the past, putting at risk all he has in the present.

South of the Border, West of the Sun

国境の南, 太陽の西 / Kokkyō no minami, taiyō no nishi

This spoke to me, so much. How anything can be a source of hurt. And how it is Okay to be unaware of how you get hurt and how you hurt at times, not oblivious; simply unaware 

Anushree Taparia

I didn’t understand then that I could hurt somebody so badly she would never recover that a person again just by living damage another human being beyond repair

I just feel this paragraph all over my body 

We were, the two of us, still fragmented beings, just beginning to sense the presence of an unexpected, to be acquired reality that fill us and make whole. We stood in front of the door would never seen before. The two of us alone, we beneath a glimmer of light, our hands  tightly class class together for fleeting 10 seconds of time.

How can a person not read this and be reminded of someone they’ve loved the greatest, love that’s pained them the most. How can someone read this and not immediately fall utterly in love with nostalgia and this book all over again.

"For a long time, she held a special place in my heart.I kept this specialplace just for her,like a "Reserved" sign on a quiet corner table in a restaurant Despite the fact that I was sure I'd never see her again.

 I felt as though these friends were trying to crush me all the time and I had to always be prepared to defend myself. 

For a long time, she held a special place in my heart. I kept this special place just for her, like a Reserved sign on a quiet corner table in a restaurant. Despite the fact that I was sure l’d never see her again.

South of the Border, West of the Sun quotes

Join the club