The City and Its Uncertain Walls: The Sunday Times bestselling novel from the author of Norwegian Wood

The City and Its Uncertain Walls: The Sunday Times bestselling novel from the author of Norwegian Wood

€8.99

-
+

Specs

Categories: ,

Description

What will you find in the city? READERS LOVE THE CITY AND ITS UNCERTAIN WALLS ‘Felt like stepping into a dream’ ‘I really loved getting lost in this book’ ‘Everyone on this planet should read Murakami at least once in their lifetime’ ‘Riveting and irresistible’ ‘It’s magical, it’s wise . . . deeply comforting’ A love story, a quest, an ode to books and to the libraries that house them, a breathtaking new novel about the boundaries between worlds and individuals, from the Sunday Times bestseller. When a young man’s girlfriend mysteriously vanishes, he sets his heart on finding the imaginary city where her true self lives. His search will lead him to take a job in a remote library with mysteries of its own. When he finally makes it to the walled city, a shadowless place of horned beasts and willow trees, he finds his beloved working in a different library – a dream library. But she has no memory of their life together in the other world and, as the lines between reality and fantasy start to blur, he must decide what he’s willing to lose. The ultimate treat for Murakami fans. PRAISE FOR THE CITY AND ITS UNCERTAIN WALLS ‘Quietly miraculous’ Telegraph ‘Bewitching’ Financial Times ‘Enveloping’ Independent

  • Author: Haruki Murakami
  • Publisher: Random House
  • Published: 2024-11-19
  • Pages: 451
  • ISBN-13: 9781529926958

Additional information

Author

Haruki Murakami

Reviews

There are no reviews yet.

Be the first to review “The City and Its Uncertain Walls: The Sunday Times bestselling novel from the author of Norwegian Wood”

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Summary

What the internet says

Aggregated insights from reviews and discussions across the web.

Overall reception: Mixed reception

Haruki Murakami's 'The City and Its Uncertain Walls' has received a mixed reception from readers and critics since its 2024 English release. The novel, which is a reworking of a 1980 novella and shares thematic DNA with 'Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World,' explores familiar Murakami territory: identity, lost love, dreams, and the boundaries between reality and fantasy. Many fans appreciate the atmospheric writing and the author's signature dreamlike quality, with readers describing it as 'astonishing, puzzling, and hallucinatory' and praising its elegant weaving of ordinary reality with shadow worlds. However, several reviewers note that the book feels repetitive both within itself and across Murakami's broader body of work, with some parts dragging and the magical realism feeling dated.

What readers loved

  • Atmospheric and dreamlike narrative voice that creates a sense of wonder and whimsy
  • Thoughtful exploration of themes including identity, loss, loneliness, and the nature of reality
  • Effective use of libraries and books as central metaphors and settings
  • Strong emotional resonance in portraying impossible loss and how it shapes a life
  • Accessible short chapter structure (10-15 pages) that makes the reading experience manageable
  • Unique second-person narration that creates an intimate, love-letter quality
  • Rich worldbuilding with memorable fantastical elements like unicorn-like beasts and dream reading

Common critiques

  • Parts of the narrative drag and feel unnecessarily repetitive
  • The dreamscapes feel 'entirely unmoored from reality' with endlessly deferred meaning
  • Murakami's style has not evolved and the book feels like he is 'stuck on repeat' with familiar tropes
  • Not recommended as an entry point for new Murakami readers compared to other works like 'Killing Commendatore'
  • The magical realism feels dated and the work hasn't moved beyond forms established in his early novels

Based on reviews from

  • Goodreads
  • Goodreads Discussion
  • BookReporter
  • Wikipedia
Last updated May 18, 2026 Summary based on publicly available reviews. May not reflect every reader's experience.

Related products