Sebelum menyimak catatan reflektif ini, saya menyarankan rekan-rekan meluangkan sedikit waktu untuk menengok apa yang sudah ditulis oleh Damai tentang buku yang belum lama selesai dibacanya. Tulisan berjudul “Book Review: Kafka on the Shore – Haruki Murakami” ini menggambarkan setidaknya tiga hal: (1) Salah satu jenis buku yang diakses oleh Damai; (2) Bagaimana ia mengambil pelajaran dari materi yang telah dibacanya; dan (3) Bagaimana ia mengolah informasi dan pemahaman untuk memberikan catatan preventif bagi orang lain yang akan mengikuti membaca buku tersebut, agar tidak terjebak pada pemaknaan yang berdampak kurang baik.

Saya kutipkan beberapa bagian tulisan Damai. Terkait poin pertama, gambaran jenis buku:

Through this book, Haruki Murakami explores the theme of consciousness and unconsciousness. It’s very interesting, since the book follows 2 storylines simultaneously.  For every odd numbered chapter, it is about a boy named Kafka Tamura, who lives with his dad; a famous sculptor, in Tokyo. On his 15th birthday, he makes up his mind to run away from home with hope to break the Oedipus curse that his father made about him.

Lalu tentang bagian dari pelajaran yang diambil:

This combination of bizarre plot, mysterious characters, and the use of figurative language are some of the aspects that distinguish Haruki Murakami works with other stories. Everything in ‘Kafka on the Shore’ feels so dream-like, yet so vivid. While reading, the narrative evokes our imagination to feel the surroundings. What does it look like, what kind of emotions that the character feels, what sounds we would hear, and more.

For me, the novel tells that it is nearly impossible for us to be able to understand our own fate. Even if fate itself might be something that affects our life the most. And through the writing style, the reader may learn how to capture the five senses using language. But at the end, I believe that everyone may learn a lot of different things from ‘Kafka on the Shore’.

Dan bagian ketiga tentang bagaimana Damai memberi catatan untuk calon pembaca buku tersebut:

However, for those who want to read this book, it’s better to know that violence is usually described explicitly in certain chapters. And it might be triggering for some people.

There are also some controversial thoughts and concepts that not everyone might agree on. Therefore it’s way better if you keep an open mind while reading the book. As it might stirred up your perspectives towards these certain concepts and leave you wondering about your understanding about your mind and the world around you.

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