617:. This emotional state is established early on as he explains that there is sometimes a strange feeling that comes over him, a feeling as if he is splitting into pieces. Shadows of his past keep following him as he is trying to move on. He expresses himself often on Naoko and her family, and travels to a train station she had described to him in an attempt to mourn. There is also in a sense the loss of the Rat, who is still alive and present in the story, but not in contact with the protagonist anymore. The pinball machine is a direct reference to both Naoko and the Rat, and therefore to a life he will never find back.
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apartment one morning, and disappear at the end of the book. Interspersed with the narrative are his memories of the
Japanese student movement, and of his old girlfriend Naoko, who hanged herself. The plot alternates between describing the life of the narrator and that of his friend, Rat. Many familiar elements from Murakami's later novels are present. Wells, which are mentioned often in Murakami's novels and play a prominent role in
411:-sized pocket editions. Before being reprinted in 2009, these novels were difficult to locate and quite expensive, especially outside Japan. Murakami is alleged to have said that he did not intend these novels to be published outside Japan. Whether or not this is true, both novels are much shorter than those that follow and make up the bulk of his work, and are less evolved stylistically. The title reflects that of the well-known
675:, Nick Romeo said: "Both books are powerful, unsettling, mature novels, replete with many of the same distinctive traits that characterize his later fiction: jazz, beer, a gentle surrealism, a tendency to treat the strange and the mysterious as mundane facts of life and characters haunted by an ineffable, pervasive melancholy, a kind of metaphysical perplexity that arises from the basic nature of being human."
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as well as the Rat
Trilogy in general, introduces themes known today as classic Murakami tropes such as the appearance of the uncanny into the mundane. The narrative, detached from the tangible world and highly introspective, sets a surreal tone for the novel, in which the narrator seems to find
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shares many elements with
Murakami's later novels. It describes itself in the text as "a novel about pinball," but also explores themes of loneliness and companionship, purposelessness, and destiny. As with the other books in the "Trilogy of the Rat" series, three of the characters include the
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The plot centers on the narrator's brief but intense obsession with pinball, his life as a freelance translator, and his later efforts to reunite with the old pinball machine that he used to play. He describes living with a pair of identical unnamed female twins, who mysteriously appear in his
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Similar to many of
Murakami's other novels, the protagonist is a detached, apathetic character whose deadpan demeanor stands either in union or, more often, starkly in contrast with the attitudes of other characters. He confesses in the novel that he is at a stage in life where he copes with a
703:, said: "Murakami fans will find enough familiar elements here to feel at home, yet this is also this collection’s weakness. Murakami himself doesn’t rank these novellas very highly in his oeuvre, which is surprising for one reason: Murakami hasn’t really changed as a writer since 1979, when
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half of the two was stronger: "With its more assured voice, its greater mastery of tone and the confidence of a sharper and more mature whimsy, 'Pinball, 1973' demonstrates the extent to which the author was already progressing in leaps." For
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stated that the novellas were "Not as well-developed as the later books, and mostly for completists. Still, it’s interesting to see hints of the masterly novels to come in these slender, pessimistic tales." Likewise, Karl
Williams in
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meaningless routine by "wanting nothing more". However, the protagonist's calmness appears to be a protection against the loss he went through in the first novel of the trilogy, which explains his attitude of detachment.
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was written. You’ll find mentions of wells aplenty, as well as baseball and the other stalwarts of jazz and women with apparently alluring physical deformities. It’s in the early stages, but it is all there."
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Completely identical, the protagonist awakens to both of them in his bed one morning. They do not reveal their names and live with the protagonist. It is mentioned multiple times that they make good coffee.
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little unusual about such things as living with twins whom he cannot distinguish and whose names he does not know, or performing a funeral for a telephone circuit box. The novel also hints vaguely at
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said that "One can see the scaffold upon which
Murakami would build his illustrious career. Most of the pleasure from reading his early novels stems from witnessing a deft writer learn his craft."
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The narrator of the story, 24 years old. He is the co-founder of a translating company and he takes care of the twins. He is looking for a pinball machine named the three-flipper
Spaceship.
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wrote that the novellas lacked story, though "What keeps the reader engaged are the
Murakamian swerves, the long shots, the non sequiturs and the odd adjacencies." Another review in
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The protagonist's friend from university, 25 years old. Rich university dropout, he seems to be stuck in time since the spring he quit school. He goes to J's bar daily.
696:, noted that "For newcomers, these early works are an excellent introduction to a writer who has since become one of the most influential novelists of his generation."
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She is a young woman out of business school and an employee of the translating company. Described as having long legs and a sharp mind, she likes humming the song "
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J is a 45 year old
Chinese man and he owns a bar where the protagonist and the Rat used to go frequently during their university days. The Rat still goes daily.
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She lived above the protagonist in university, until she dropped out of school. The protagonist would often answer phone calls that were intended for her.
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occurrences (which often appear in
Murakami's fiction), for instance with the anthropomorphic presence of the three-flipper Spaceship pinball machine.
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He is a university Spanish instructor and a pinball machines junkie. He helps the protagonist on his quest to find the three-flipper Spaceship.
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491:. There is also a brief discussion of the abuse of a cat, a plot element which recurs elsewhere in Murakami's fiction, especially in
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The friend is the co-founder of the translating company. He translates from French. He also has a sick wife and a 3 year old son.
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The repairman is from a phone company and he shows up at the protagonist's apartment to replace his switch panel.
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1022:"Hear the Wind Sing/Pinball, 1973 by Haruki Murakami review – an excellent introduction to an important novelist"
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459:, with translations by Prof. Ted Goossen of York University, was released in the United States in August, 2015.
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503:(in which the search for a missing cat is an important plotline). Rain and the sea are also prominent motifs.
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779:"Rethinking the Rat Trilogy: Detachment, Commitment and Haruki Murakami's Politics of Subjectivity"
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989:"Hear the Wind Sing/Pinball, 1973 by Haruki Murakami review – super-elliptical pop-noir"
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Furthermore, there is an overall sense of melancholia that follows the protagonist in
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stated that they were "two excellent, though fragile, works in their own right."
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She is a woman in her fifties. She helps the protagonist regain hearing.
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under their Kodansha English Library branding, and both only as
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525:- She is the deceased college girlfriend of the protagonist.
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An omnibus English edition of Murakami's first two novels (
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Underground: The Tokyo Gas Attack and the Japanese Psyche
964:"Review: 'Wind/Pinball: Two novels' by Haruki Murakami"
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Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage
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49:. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.
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699:Chris Corker, reviewing the novellas for
109:Learn how and when to remove this message
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351:Sen-Kyūhyaku-Nanajū-San-Nen no Pinbōru
165:Sen-Kyūhyaku-Nanajū-San-Nen no Pinbōru
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1169:South of the Border, West of the Sun
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512:In order of appearance in the story.
47:adding citations to reliable sources
882:"Daily Book Review: 'Wind/Pinball'"
1054:"The Japan Society - Pinball/Wind"
931:"Haruki Murakami's 'Wind/Pinball'"
737:Murakami, Haruki (4 August 2015).
14:
906:"Wind/Pinball by Haruki Murakami"
133:cover of English-language edition
1233:The City and Its Uncertain Walls
1020:Beckerman, Hannah (2015-08-04).
23:
34:needs additional citations for
929:Erickson, Steve (2015-08-12).
783:New Voices in Japanese Studies
724:Noma Literary Newcomer's Prize
1:
880:Williams, Karl (2015-09-20).
866:WIND/PINBALL | Kirkus Reviews
467:Despite being an early work,
16:1980 novel by Haruki Murakami
1421:Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman
1272:Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman
835:10.1080/09555803.2010.488942
817:Dil, Jonathan (2010-06-24).
423:Football, First Year of the
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1177:The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle
987:Sansom, Ian (2015-08-13).
962:Romeo, Nick (2015-08-27).
500:The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle
484:The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle
439:Man'en Gannen no Futtobōru
1449:Novels by Haruki Murakami
570:The girl with long hair -
487:, occur several times in
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242:Published in English
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1257:The Second Bakery Attack
910:www.publishersweekly.com
739:Wind/Pinball: Two Novels
731:English Language Edition
626:English translation for
582:The Spanish instructor -
1058:www.japansociety.org.uk
1327:Novelist as a Vocation
215:Kodansha International
1381:The Elephant Vanishes
1292:First Person Singular
1252:The Elephant Vanishes
777:Byron, Alice (2017).
1444:1980 Japanese novels
1225:Killing Commendatore
43:improve this article
1454:Works about pinball
1354:The Strange Library
796:10.21159/nvjs.09.03
455:), under the title
149:Original title
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1373:Kaze no uta o kike
1193:Kafka on the Shore
1185:Sputnik Sweetheart
1137:A Wild Sheep Chase
1121:Hear the Wind Sing
935:The New York Times
886:The Michigan Daily
705:Hear the Wind Sing
661:The New York Times
643:The Michigan Daily
621:Critical reception
494:Kafka on the Shore
449:Hear the Wind Sing
401:Hear The Wind Sing
385:A Wild Sheep Chase
382:) and followed by
375:Hear the Wind Sing
327:A Wild Sheep Chase
314:Hear the Wind Sing
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594:Major themes
588:The doctor -
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476:Plot summary
468:
466:
457:Wind/Pinball
456:
452:
448:
446:
422:
416:
413:Oe Kenzaburo
400:
396:
394:
383:
373:
337:
336:
335:
325:
312:
154:Pinball,1973
152:
105:
96:
86:
79:
72:
65:
53:
41:Please help
36:verification
33:
1424:(2022 film)
1416:(2021 film)
1408:(2018 film)
1400:(2010 film)
1392:(2004 film)
1384:(2003 play)
1376:(1980 film)
1365:Adaptations
1338:Other books
1314:(1997–1998)
1303:Non-fiction
1267:(1999–2000)
1212:(2009–2010)
1180:(1994–1995)
823:Japan Forum
743:Ted Goossen
726:- nominated
720:- nominated
576:The woman -
529:The twins -
433:万延元年のフットボール
345:1973年のピンボール
268:207 pp (JP)
266:215 pp (US)
183:Ted Goossen
159:1973年のピンボール
1438:Categories
1201:After Dark
1063:2024-07-30
1039:2024-07-30
1006:2024-07-30
973:2024-07-30
948:2024-07-30
915:2024-07-30
891:2024-07-30
761:References
686:Ian Sansom
552:Penny Lane
548:The girl -
507:Characters
175:Translator
99:March 2011
69:newspapers
1104:Works by
1034:0261-3077
1001:0261-3077
943:0362-4331
851:143782236
843:0955-5803
789:: 48–70.
536:The Rat -
303:417360370
256:Paperback
226:June 1980
211:Publisher
630:together
405:Kodansha
366:Japanese
194:Japanese
190:Language
181:(1980),
1405:Burning
666:Pinball
489:Pinball
469:Pinball
415:novel,
368:author
254:Print (
83:scholar
1357:(2005)
1349:(2002)
1330:(2022)
1322:(2007)
1295:(2020)
1287:(2014)
1236:(2023)
1228:(2017)
1220:(2013)
1204:(2004)
1196:(2002)
1188:(1999)
1172:(1992)
1164:(1988)
1156:(1987)
1148:(1985)
1140:(1982)
1132:(1980)
1124:(1979)
1113:Novels
1032:
999:
941:
849:
841:
749:
712:Awards
658:, for
425:Man'en
399:, and
329:
316:
286:
185:(2015)
139:Author
85:
78:
71:
64:
56:
847:S2CID
523:Naoko
358:novel
356:is a
263:Pages
235:Japan
205:novel
200:Genre
90:JSTOR
76:books
1209:1Q84
1030:ISSN
997:ISSN
939:ISSN
839:ISSN
747:ISBN
497:and
451:and
427:Era
390:1982
380:1979
362:1980
297:OCLC
284:ISBN
274:ISBN
62:news
831:doi
791:doi
678:In
554:".
364:by
45:by
1440::
1279:")
1259:")
1056:.
1028:.
1024:.
995:.
991:.
966:.
937:.
933:.
908:.
884:.
845:.
837:.
827:22
825:.
821:.
805:^
785:.
781:.
769:^
745:.
684:,
444:.
436:,
409:A6
348:,
162:,
1097:e
1090:t
1083:v
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951:.
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87:·
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39:.
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