Lit. of Horror, Fantasy & Sci-Fi: A Wild Sheep Chase

"A Wild Sheep Chase" 

Reading "A Wild Sheep Chase" by Haruki Murakami was quite...an odd turn of events. Even now I am still questioning what I just read! It was definitely a unique story, one I've never read before. Was it my favorite read? Not exactly, but it wasn't a jarring experience. But the more I read, I began to lose interest because of the story length. Plus, with all the mystery and fantasy elements, I was just eager to find out what the heck was really going on.

The first thing that threw me in a loop was that there was no literal sheep--but a Sheep MAN. A guy in a sheep suit, but isn't even a guy--he's a freaking ghost or spirit! There's the mythological element of the story.

Second thing that got my brain scrambled was finding out that Rat was actually dead, appeared as a ghost, and is ALSO THE SHEEP MAN IN A DIFFERENT FORM. Rat apparently died by hanging himself to escape the Sheep's hold because it affected him like The Boss and the hotel keeper's father. The Sheep, from what I understand, once attached to someone, grants them prosperity; but when the Sheep leaves the person's body, it drains away all the good in their lives until they're miserable and ruined.

This journey also had a second meaning; the nameless narrator not only seeks out the star-marked Sheep, but also tries to discover his own identity. He seems to have found it by the end of the story, because by that time, he cries for the first time ever in the book. 

I personally give the book a 5/10 because of losing interest as I read, and because of how long it took for the story to really spice things up. 

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