To celebrate the author’s latest release, I’ve collated the top quotes by Haruki Murakami, organized by the books they are from, in the order they were published (plus some other notable quotes outside his books).
Murakami’s writing is full of contemplative and dream-like insights, blending the surreal with the everyday. When reading his books, I constantly find myself underlining or highlighting quotes that resonate with me.
So, here are a few of my favourites…
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I’ve included Amazon links to each book, but you can also read where to get e-books and audiobooks for free for alternatives. (Check out how to gift Kindle books and how to gift Audible for digital versions.)
- 1. Hear the Wind Sing (1979)
- 2. A Wild Sheep Chase (1982)
- 3. Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World (1985)
- 4. Norwegian Wood (1987)
- 5. Dance Dance Dance (1988)
- 6. The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle (1994)
- 7. Sputnik Sweetheart (1999)
- 8. Kafka on the Shore (2002)
- 9. After Dark (2004)
- 10. 1Q84 (2009)
- 11. Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage (2013)
- 12. Men Without Women (2014)
- 13. Killing Commendatore (2017)
- Honorable Mention: What I Talk About When I Talk About Running (2007)
- Additional Quotes (Outside of Books)
- More Haruki Murakami books and quotes
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1. Hear the Wind Sing (1979)
Hear the Wind Sing marks the beginning of Murakami’s career, introducing readers to his characteristic style: a blend of surrealism, detachment, and introspective narration.
This novel follows a nameless narrator reflecting on his relationships, loneliness, and existential thoughts while spending his summer in his hometown. The narrator’s connection with a mysterious woman and his musings on life are central themes.
The novel is brief and episodic, and it sets the tone for Murakami’s later, more expansive works.
Quote:
“Everyone who has something is afraid of losing it, and people with nothing are worried they’ll forever have nothing. Everyone is the same.”
2. A Wild Sheep Chase (1982)
This novel is the first in Murakami’s “Trilogy of the Rat” and is a surreal, dreamlike story about an unnamed protagonist who embarks on a strange quest to find a mystical sheep with unique powers.
Blending detective fiction with magical realism, A Wild Sheep Chase explores themes of identity, obsession, and existentialism. The protagonist’s search leads him deep into rural Japan, encountering bizarre characters and philosophical dilemmas along the way.
Quote:
“If you’re in pitch blackness, all you can do is sit tight until your eyes get used to the dark.”
3. Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World (1985)
One of Murakami’s most experimental novels, Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World tells two parallel stories: one set in a futuristic dystopian Tokyo where a data processor navigates a dangerous underworld, and the other in a mysterious town surrounded by a wall, where the inhabitants have no shadows.
The novel explores themes of consciousness, memory, and the nature of the self, juxtaposing the hyper-technological with the metaphysical. The dual stories reflects tension between reality and imagination.
Quote:
“In this world, there are things you can only do alone, and things you can only do with somebody else. It’s important to combine the two in just the right amount.”
4. Norwegian Wood (1987)
A breakthrough novel for Murakami, Norwegian Wood is a deeply emotional, coming-of-age story that departs from his typical surrealist style.
The novel follows Toru Watanabe as he reflects on his student days in 1960s Tokyo and the profound relationships he formed during that time. His bond with Naoko, a fragile woman dealing with grief, and Midori, a lively, unconventional girl, shapes his journey of self-discovery.
The novel deals with heavy themes such as mental illness, love, death, and memory, set against a backdrop of political unrest and societal change.
This was the first Murakami book I ever read, on a trip to Japan, and I think it’s a great one to start with. I also included it on my list of the best Japanese novels in English.
Quote:
“If you only read the books that everyone else is reading, you can only think what everyone else is thinking.”
Quote:
“Death is not the opposite of life, but a part of it.”
5. Dance Dance Dance (1988)
A sequel to A Wild Sheep Chase, Dance Dance Dance follows the same unnamed protagonist as he tries to make sense of his disconnected life. He is drawn back to the eerie Dolphin Hotel, where he encounters strange phenomena and enigmatic characters, including a reclusive psychic teenager and a missing ex-girlfriend.
The novel is a blend of mystery, metaphysics, and a commentary on modernity, loneliness, and the dehumanizing effects of capitalism.
Quote:
“What we seek is some kind of compensation for what we put up with.”
6. The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle (1994)
A complex, layered narrative, The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle centers on Toru Okada, a Tokyo man whose wife goes missing under mysterious circumstances. As Toru searches for her, he encounters a strange cast of characters, including a psychic prostitute, a war veteran, and a teenage girl with an unsettling wisdom.
The novel weaves together Japan’s wartime history, mysticism, and surreal dream sequences to explore themes of personal identity, power, and trauma. It is often regarded as one of Murakami’s masterpieces for its intricacy and emotional depth.
Quote:
“Pain is inevitable. Suffering is optional.”
Quote:
“What happens when people open their hearts? They get better.”
7. Sputnik Sweetheart (1999)
Sputnik Sweetheart is a story of unrequited love and existential yearning. The novel follows K, a teacher who is in love with his friend Sumire, an aspiring writer. Sumire, however, becomes infatuated with an older woman named Miu, which sends all three characters into a spiral of emotional turmoil.
Set in both Tokyo and a remote Greek island, the novel explores themes of loneliness, identity, and the elusiveness of human connection, wrapped in Murakami’s typical dreamlike narrative style.
Quote:
“I dream. Sometimes I think that’s the only right thing to do.”
8. Kafka on the Shore (2002)
One of Murakami’s most ambitious and popular novels, Kafka on the Shore follows two seemingly unrelated narratives: Kafka Tamura, a 15-year-old runaway searching for his identity, and Nakata, an elderly man who can talk to cats.
As their stories gradually intertwine, the novel explores fate, memory, alternate realities, and the unconscious mind. Full of symbolism and references to mythology and philosophy, Kafka on the Shore is a deeply enigmatic novel that blends the surreal with the real.
Quote:
“Memories warm you up from the inside. But they also tear you apart.”
Quote:
“In everybody’s life there’s a point of no return. And in a very few cases, a point where you can’t go forward anymore. And when we reach that point, all we can do is quietly accept the fact.”
9. After Dark (2004)
Set over the course of a single night in Tokyo, After Dark explores the interconnected lives of a handful of characters, including Mari, a student who spends her nights reading in a diner, and her sister Eri, who has been sleeping for months.
As the story unfolds in a series of brief, cinematic snapshots, Murakami delves into themes of alienation, the unconscious, and the hidden sides of urban life. After Dark is a meditation on time, identity, and the unseen currents that shape our lives.
Quote:
“People’s memories are maybe the fuel they burn to stay alive. Whether those memories have any actual importance or not, it doesn’t matter as far as the maintenance of life is concerned.”
10. 1Q84 (2009)
Murakami’s longest and most complex novel, 1Q84 is a dystopian love story set in an alternate version of 1984. The plot follows two characters: Aomame, an assassin, and Tengo, a writer, as they navigate a parallel reality that is subtly different from the world they know.
The novel deals with themes of fate, free will, the nature of reality, and the power of storytelling. Its surreal world is filled with shadowy cults, mysterious “Little People,” and an ever-present sense of foreboding.
Quote:
“If you can’t understand it without an explanation, you can’t understand it with an explanation.”
Quote:
“No matter how far you travel, you can never get away from yourself.”
11. Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage (2013)
Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage follows Tsukuru Tazaki, a man haunted by the sudden, unexplained severance of his friendships during his youth. Years later, he embarks on a journey of self-discovery to confront the reasons behind his alienation and heal old wounds.
The novel explores themes of loss, guilt, identity, and personal growth, all while echoing Murakami’s recurring motifs of isolation and existential searching.
Quote:
“But what seems like a reasonable distance to one person might feel too far to somebody else.”
12. Men Without Women (2014)
A collection of seven short stories, Men Without Women focuses on men who, for various reasons, have found themselves alone. Each story presents a different aspect of solitude, often tied to love, loss, and the emotional isolation that can come with failed relationships.
The characters grapple with feelings of abandonment, existential crisis, and the fragility of human connection, with Murakami’s subtle magic realism always lurking in the background.
Quote:
“I’m not the person I used to be, but at the same time, I’m not a different person, either. It’s hard to explain.”
13. Killing Commendatore (2017)
This metaphysical novel revolves around a portrait painter who retreats to a mountain cabin after his marriage collapses. There, he discovers a mysterious painting titled Killing Commendatore, which leads him into a surreal world where ideas take physical form.
The novel weaves together themes of art, history, and personal transformation, exploring the thin line between reality and imagination in Murakami’s signature style.
Quote:
“A person’s destiny is something you look back at after it’s past, not something you see in advance.”
Honorable Mention: What I Talk About When I Talk About Running (2007)
In the memoir What I Talk About When I Talk About Running, Haruki Murakami reflects on his experiences as a runner and how running has shaped his life and his writing. Blending his passion for running with personal anecdotes and philosophical musings, Murakami shares insights into the discipline, endurance, and solitary nature of both running and writing.
The book is an introspective look at how these two practices are interconnected in Murakami’s life, offering readers a deeper understanding of his creative process and personal philosophy.
I love this book. It’s about running, it’s about writing, but it’s also about life.
Quote:
“Pain is inevitable. Suffering is optional. Say you’re running, and you start to think, Man, this hurts, I can’t take it anymore. The ‘hurt’ part is an unavoidable reality, but whether or not you can stand any more is up to the runner himself.”
Quote:
“Exerting yourself to the fullest within your individual limits: that’s the essence of running, and a metaphor for life—and for me, for writing as well.”
Additional Quotes (Outside of Books)
On Writing and Storytelling:
“I write stories. I write them because I have to write them. I’ve got a story to tell, a story that I have to get out of me.”
— Haruki Murakami in interviews.
On Life:
“No matter how much suffering you went through, you never wanted to let go of those memories.”
— Haruki Murakami, personal musings.
More Haruki Murakami books and quotes
Haruki Murakami’s latest book, The City and its Uncertain Walls was released on 19th November 2024, so its best quote are yet to be discovered! This new novel follows a quest for lost love, but is also an ode to books and the libraries that house them.
“Truth is not found in fixed stillness, but in ceaseless change/movement. Isn’t this the quintessential core of what stories are all about?” — from the afterword
You can also check out more of his works here.
I’ve also seen some cool items with Murakami quotes on Etsy:
In general, Murakami’s ability to capture the complexities of life, memory, and identity shines through, making him one of the most influential writers of contemporary fiction.
His characters often grapple with feelings of loneliness, searching for meaning and connection in a world that is both familiar and fantastical. Who can’t relate to that?
Let me know in the comments your favourite Haruki Murakami books and quotes.