Killing Commendatore
- Downloads：9611
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-04-22 10:59:57
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Haruki Murakami
- ISBN：1784707333
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
- Download
Summary
'Beguiling。。。 Murakami is brilliant at folding the humdrum alongside the supernatural; finding the magic that's nested in life's quotidian details' Guardian
When a thirty-something portrait painter is abandoned by his wife， he holes up in the mountain home of a famous artist。 The days drift by， spent painting， listening to music and drinking whiskey in the evenings。 But then he discovers a strange painting in the attic and unintentionally begins a strange journey of self-discovery that involves a mysterious ringing bell， a precocious thirteen-year-old girl， a Nazi assassination attempt and a haunted underworld。
A stunning work of imagination， Killing Commendatore is a surreal tale of love and loneliness， war and art。
When a thirty-something portrait painter is abandoned by his wife， he holes up in the mountain home of a famous artist。 The days drift by， spent painting， listening to music and drinking whiskey in the evenings。 But then he discovers a strange painting in the attic and unintentionally begins a strange journey of self-discovery that involves a mysterious ringing bell， a precocious thirteen-year-old girl， a Nazi assassination attempt and a haunted underworld。
A stunning work of imagination， Killing Commendatore is a surreal tale of love and loneliness， war and art。
Reviews
Art
，
Reading this book was a trip。 Not a vacation or a tourist destination， romantic， exciting and full of wonder。 It was a locomotive ride through Japanese countryside; a lot of stunning imagery and beautiful mountains， breathtaking bridges and stunning valleys。 But now and then you ride through miles of drab fields， enter endless unlit tunnels where you cannot even see the plot and generally get bored looking out the same old window for hours。 Still， the book got me hooked by its clean simplicity a Reading this book was a trip。 Not a vacation or a tourist destination， romantic， exciting and full of wonder。 It was a locomotive ride through Japanese countryside; a lot of stunning imagery and beautiful mountains， breathtaking bridges and stunning valleys。 But now and then you ride through miles of drab fields， enter endless unlit tunnels where you cannot even see the plot and generally get bored looking out the same old window for hours。 Still， the book got me hooked by its clean simplicity and I personally found comfort in its monotonous tone。 I felt some lack of explanation on a subject or two， but overall it was a satisfying experiment。 Writing & Literary devices: - 7Plot & Pacing: - 6Theme & Message: - 5Characters: - 5Dialogues: - 7Entertainment: - 6World Building: - 8 。。。more
Lily
，
Though I love Murakami's writing genrally， reading this I just couldn't forgive the level of misogyny- all the female characters， even the prepubescent ones are descibed in such a sexualised manner and only serve to have personalities as far as it propells the narrative of the main male charcter。 I wish I could have enjoyed this book。 Though I love Murakami's writing genrally， reading this I just couldn't forgive the level of misogyny- all the female characters， even the prepubescent ones are descibed in such a sexualised manner and only serve to have personalities as far as it propells the narrative of the main male charcter。 I wish I could have enjoyed this book。 。。。more
Lucie Králová
，
Uff。。。 i u vašeho nejoblíbenějšího autora se prostě může stát， že to s nějakou knihou z nějakého důvodu nepůjde。 Takže si vypůjčím větu Tomáše Jurkoviče z doslovu， která mluví za vše:“Murakami své románové příběhy nikdy nevypráví jednoduchým způsobem。 Pravdou bývá spíš opak: to，co se v románech “skutečně” děje， je skryto v košatém a velmi barvitém vyprávění， v labyrintu proplétacích se námětů， obrazů， narážek a odkazů， z nejž pak musíme příběh místy doslova rekonstruovat， pokud ho chceme poznat。 Uff。。。 i u vašeho nejoblíbenějšího autora se prostě může stát， že to s nějakou knihou z nějakého důvodu nepůjde。 Takže si vypůjčím větu Tomáše Jurkoviče z doslovu， která mluví za vše:“Murakami své románové příběhy nikdy nevypráví jednoduchým způsobem。 Pravdou bývá spíš opak: to，co se v románech “skutečně” děje， je skryto v košatém a velmi barvitém vyprávění， v labyrintu proplétacích se námětů， obrazů， narážek a odkazů， z nejž pak musíme příběh místy doslova rekonstruovat， pokud ho chceme poznat。 Výjimkou není ani Komturova smrt。”A mně osobně ta rekonstrukce právě v této knize nějak nešla。 。。。more
Federica Caffo
，
Affirmative！ （only understandable if you have read this）
Marko Kostelec
，
Haruki Murakami is one of my favorite authors。 The Killing Commendatore is another masterpiece。
Jason
，
I have loved many Murakami books， started with Kafka on the Shore and Hardboiled Wonderland。 I've spent time in Japan and love to understand the nuances of Japanese daily life and culture。But I kept finding myself hating this book。 I like to give authors the benefit of the doubt even， assume they mean to write everything they write， but this entire novel smacked of deeply mysogynistic and off-base magical thinking （not the kind I come to Murakami to show me）。 It should come with content warnings I have loved many Murakami books， started with Kafka on the Shore and Hardboiled Wonderland。 I've spent time in Japan and love to understand the nuances of Japanese daily life and culture。But I kept finding myself hating this book。 I like to give authors the benefit of the doubt even， assume they mean to write everything they write， but this entire novel smacked of deeply mysogynistic and off-base magical thinking （not the kind I come to Murakami to show me）。 It should come with content warnings: （view spoiler）[of marital dream rape that turns into *maybe* offspring？;constant and， presumably authorial and cultural？， misogyny about women and girls' breast development， size， growth， and nipple hardness;un-examined， and therefore authorial suspect， amounts of child voyerism and its tolerance;the ability of women （or men） to magically know when they're pregnant。。。I like a good， long novel， but the didactic and repetitive nature of that detail was lost upon me。 I get that can be a tool of some use， but it seems sullied。And when it finally comes to a climactic point of understanding the protagonist's journey through metaphor and his saviorism complex， the dots just don't get connected in any meaningful way。（hide spoiler）]More detail and discussion on this thread for reference: http://www。reddit。com/r/murakami/comm。。。Rarely do I bother to return an audiobook， but jeez， this one。。。 just， avoid at all costs。 。。。more
Azhar Sa'Ad
，
Disappointment。 Long， draggy plot。
Rocky Sunico
，
Wow， this was a struggle of a Murakami book to get through - and not just because of length but really more it never really gripped me。 He had some ideas and some fantastical elements， but it never really went anywhere significant or impactful unlike many of his other books。 And I don't know what he wanted to say here。We also had way too much focus on the breast sizes of underage girls。 I normally try to gloss over or "forgive" such moments under the banner of this being more a cultural thing to Wow， this was a struggle of a Murakami book to get through - and not just because of length but really more it never really gripped me。 He had some ideas and some fantastical elements， but it never really went anywhere significant or impactful unlike many of his other books。 And I don't know what he wanted to say here。We also had way too much focus on the breast sizes of underage girls。 I normally try to gloss over or "forgive" such moments under the banner of this being more a cultural thing to Japan that may sound a little weird outside the country。 But in this book is just felt very awkward and uncomfortable。So things just sort of happened to the protagonist， but I don't know if he really grew from the experience。 The really big climax fantasy moment in the middle felt clumsy and tried to sound more profound than it actually was。 And the way things ended felt like it didn't really push that anyone had learned anything and they just went back to old patterns or just sort of side-stepped the bigger things that loomed over them for most of the book。All that aside， the book still has great moments and some very powerful lines throughout， and thus it's not a total loss。 It's just not that exceptional or amazing either。 。。。more
رؤى
，
الرواية اشبه بلوحة فنية واضحة المعالم خفية المعاني، على سطحها بضع شخصيات رُسمت بألوان هادئة وعميقة。 متشوقة لقراءة الجزء الثاني 🙏🏻
Lexie
，
One of my favorites so far， I read the book at least 3 times， now looking forward to part II
Kitija
，
Ilgi lasījās， bet tas tikai tāpēc， ka pēc katras nodaļas izlasīšanas， to gribējās pagremot ilgāk。 Pabaudīt。 Tā šī bauda izstiepās vairāku mēnešu garumā。 Jāsaka， ka viss sākās un beidzās īstajā laikā。 Ar grāmatā valdošo mistisko noskaņu， paliku arī savā pasaulē， ārpus grāmatas ietvara。 Ilgi lasījās， bet tas tikai tāpēc， ka pēc katras nodaļas izlasīšanas， to gribējās pagremot ilgāk。 Pabaudīt。 Tā šī bauda izstiepās vairāku mēnešu garumā。 Jāsaka， ka viss sākās un beidzās īstajā laikā。 Ar grāmatā valdošo mistisko noskaņu， paliku arī savā pasaulē， ārpus grāmatas ietvara。 。。。more
Macha
，
the unnamed narrator has suffered a profound dislocation: his wife has left him。 in response he has left his previous job， gone on a road trip， moved into the empty family house of an old friend， developed a girlfriend， acquired some possibly unfriendly spirits， and uncovered a pit。 he's also enamoured of the advantages of not thinking。 he's caught between presence and absence， between Idea and Metaphor。 he seems functional， but he's sinking。 this is a very metaphysical novel， in all its senses。 the unnamed narrator has suffered a profound dislocation: his wife has left him。 in response he has left his previous job， gone on a road trip， moved into the empty family house of an old friend， developed a girlfriend， acquired some possibly unfriendly spirits， and uncovered a pit。 he's also enamoured of the advantages of not thinking。 he's caught between presence and absence， between Idea and Metaphor。 he seems functional， but he's sinking。 this is a very metaphysical novel， in all its senses。 it's existential， surrealist， and it hinges on a psychic detective story， which makes it vintage Murakami。 not every bit of it works， but almost。 。。。more
Dallas
，
Tedious
Adam
，
Loved the idea of the artist removed from normal life， and especially enjoyed the realistic （and magical） characters that populate his experience。 This has become one of my favourite Murakami books。4 stars。 I'm usually never disappointed when I read a Murakami book。 This one really drew me in。 Entertaining as hell。 Loved the idea of the artist removed from normal life， and especially enjoyed the realistic （and magical） characters that populate his experience。 This has become one of my favourite Murakami books。4 stars。 I'm usually never disappointed when I read a Murakami book。 This one really drew me in。 Entertaining as hell。 。。。more
Martina
，
You have no idea， how much I was excited about this book。 I love Murakami， but this was just disappointing。 I can't believe that I forced myself to finish this。 I'm gonna pretend that this never happened。 You have no idea， how much I was excited about this book。 I love Murakami， but this was just disappointing。 I can't believe that I forced myself to finish this。 I'm gonna pretend that this never happened。 。。。more
nimra
，
a portrait artist sets out for a journey in his car after getting divorced and gets settled in his friend Masahiko's dad and famous artist， Tomohiko Amada's isolated house on a mountain。 Soon he finds himself invested in the history of this house and Tomohiko Amada， so sucked in the mystery of it all that it's too late to get out。 the book follows him on his day to day solitary routine and development of his character as he starts unveiling secrets about the house and it's inhabitant。 if i were a portrait artist sets out for a journey in his car after getting divorced and gets settled in his friend Masahiko's dad and famous artist， Tomohiko Amada's isolated house on a mountain。 Soon he finds himself invested in the history of this house and Tomohiko Amada， so sucked in the mystery of it all that it's too late to get out。 the book follows him on his day to day solitary routine and development of his character as he starts unveiling secrets about the house and it's inhabitant。 if i were to categorise this book in genre， i couldn't have because it contains so many elements from different genres; at times it was a horror， definitely a historical fiction and absolutely a work of magical realism。 these 681 pages were a true journey and one that i am grateful to have taken。 the only thing i would have appreciated more would have been some closure of Mr。 Menshiki's life。now i am all here for an open ending but a detailed exploration of Menshiki's character would've been amazing since there was too much suspense built around him and i was anticipating it， other than that though， i don't think i have another complain with this book。 。。。more
Noor AL-Huda
，
I’ve read every Murakami book， I think this one is my favorite。 You can take that for what it’s worth， but I’m not going to recommend it。 What’s the point？ It’s a Murakami book — read it， or don’t。 You’ll like it， or you won’t。 Someone once asked me what one of his books was “about” 。。。 all I could answer was “that’s the wrong question。”
Faree Kerubo
，
Just finished reading this book and am still working through what i really got from it。This being my first Murakami book i really enjoyed it for a couple of reasons;There was an incredible blend of real/surreal narrative; Killing Commendatore balanced out the wild surrealism with the structure of the protagonist's mundane life。 More appreciably， Murakami lets the reader into his protagonists' minds so that you can react to and process their surreal experiences along with them。Minimal character d Just finished reading this book and am still working through what i really got from it。This being my first Murakami book i really enjoyed it for a couple of reasons;There was an incredible blend of real/surreal narrative; Killing Commendatore balanced out the wild surrealism with the structure of the protagonist's mundane life。 More appreciably， Murakami lets the reader into his protagonists' minds so that you can react to and process their surreal experiences along with them。Minimal character development; Throughout the protagonist did not experience much behaviour shift， He is someone who， until the beginning of the story， lived his life bogged down by demons from his past （the feelings brought on by his sister's early death） and lack of self expression （painting portraits of clients that can hardly qualify as "art"）。 After experiencing separation from Yuzu， he finds himself confronting his demons through self expression （painting the Man in the White Subaru Forester， who he begins to see as a personification of his demons which follow him everywhere） and by facing his claustrophobia （related to his sister's cremation， and the memory of her crawling into the wind caves shortly before her death）。 It is only after he has confronted his demons that he can return to Yuzu （whom he was initially drawn to because she reminded him of his sister）。My few reservation about this book were mainly because of the obsession with breasts， the fixation was reaching frankly ridiculous limits。 I was extremely uncomfortable with the fact that he was fixated with not one girl， but two girls' breasts， with one of them being his late sister。 Something that was somewhat of a bummer and the ultimate reason that this book received a 4 instead of a 5 star was the character resolution。 The character resolution was way too fast， everything essentially happened in the last 150 pages with the previous 500pages being an incredible long-winded and slow set up， which felt drawn out and at times， a little unnecessary in its lack of "happening"。 Within the final part of the book， where the resolution is depicted， i got the feeling that the characters and the story were thrown into action， fairly little of which was controlled by them personally。 A lot of things in the end felt pre-determined， and controlled by forces/characters that were not always integral to the story。 。。。more
Jason Alexander
，
I like how the story quietly progressing towards the middle and went straight confusing at the end， it's hard to say for a hard-boiled fan that I'm not too fond of this exact title， but it was an easy read nonetheless。 I like how the story quietly progressing towards the middle and went straight confusing at the end， it's hard to say for a hard-boiled fan that I'm not too fond of this exact title， but it was an easy read nonetheless。 。。。more
Muayad Habeeb
，
موراكامي يخلق أسلوب فريد من نوعه من حيث كتابة الرواية اليابانية وتجدها مغرية ومثيرًة للفضول وشديدة الخيال وغامضة في كثير من الأحيان 。 تاخذك اللوحة مقتل الكومنداتور الى سرد من العوالم ساحرة ومتعددة الألوان متمثلة بالمنطقة النائية البعيدة في الجبال و رجل الاعمال الثري الغريب الاطوار وحفرة غامضة ورسام مشهورمن الماضي علاوة على بطل الرواية الذي يقودنا الى هذه العوالم الغريبة بعد ان اكتشف القوة الابداعية الموجودة في نفسة من خلال تذكرة لماضية و العيش مع الواقع الجديد 。 الرواية تمنح تحفيز الذات لكشف الط موراكامي يخلق أسلوب فريد من نوعه من حيث كتابة الرواية اليابانية وتجدها مغرية ومثيرًة للفضول وشديدة الخيال وغامضة في كثير من الأحيان 。 تاخذك اللوحة مقتل الكومنداتور الى سرد من العوالم ساحرة ومتعددة الألوان متمثلة بالمنطقة النائية البعيدة في الجبال و رجل الاعمال الثري الغريب الاطوار وحفرة غامضة ورسام مشهورمن الماضي علاوة على بطل الرواية الذي يقودنا الى هذه العوالم الغريبة بعد ان اكتشف القوة الابداعية الموجودة في نفسة من خلال تذكرة لماضية و العيش مع الواقع الجديد 。 الرواية تمنح تحفيز الذات لكشف الطاقات الروحية الكامنة في النفس البشرية عمل فني تنبض شخصياته بالحياة و كانت لي حقا قراءه ممتعة 。。。more
Giorgio
，
You should not read books in sequence from some authors。Since 2019， I read A LOT of Murakami´s。。。 even the worst one is better than almost any other book。But （I am the king of "buts"）， reading this one I felt a。。。 repetition， a ciclical feedback。I am going to stop reading him， put some time till other Murakami， to forget a little about his style and themes。As for this book， there are some very interesting parts about art and painting and characters construction， for sure。。。 no Murakami is bad， n You should not read books in sequence from some authors。Since 2019， I read A LOT of Murakami´s。。。 even the worst one is better than almost any other book。But （I am the king of "buts"）， reading this one I felt a。。。 repetition， a ciclical feedback。I am going to stop reading him， put some time till other Murakami， to forget a little about his style and themes。As for this book， there are some very interesting parts about art and painting and characters construction， for sure。。。 no Murakami is bad， not even average， but this one， for me， stands below 1Q84 and Kafka on the shore。I kinda disliked a change of pace， or theme， or "narrative construction" between volume 1 an 2。。。 it seemed to me he was writing without a previous planing， so the story changed， turned into something more。。。 abstract！Don´t take my word， my impressions are very personal， more than the usual reader。。。 I just want to say: put some time between his books， the taste will be better！ 。。。more
Damian
，
It's not quite the epic of 1Q84， but pretty good。 If you like Murakami's style， this won't disappoint。 It's not quite the epic of 1Q84， but pretty good。 If you like Murakami's style， this won't disappoint。 。。。more
Tina
，
Looking back I realized it took me almost a year to read this book。 I read a book of his short stories before I started and many other books in between。 To it's credit something kept me reading it and every time I picked it up I could be right back there again。 In some ways it's like a sparse version of a Tom Robbins book， a magical realism of sorts。 there is a lot to like yet I didn't like it as much as his short stories。 He has a new book of shorts out and maybe I'll read those first before I Looking back I realized it took me almost a year to read this book。 I read a book of his short stories before I started and many other books in between。 To it's credit something kept me reading it and every time I picked it up I could be right back there again。 In some ways it's like a sparse version of a Tom Robbins book， a magical realism of sorts。 there is a lot to like yet I didn't like it as much as his short stories。 He has a new book of shorts out and maybe I'll read those first before I read the book I planned all along， The Wind up Bird Chronicles。 。。。more
Katarina
，
Clasic motifs for Murakami， but the main character is more defined and active， giving this book an appreciated breath of fresh air。
Bagas Adhikaputera
，
I can safely say that his books really are erotic。。 in many ways。 This one was easier to comprehend but yet also still filled with voids that are best to left alone。 I feel like getting to know him better with his style and interests （yepp）。
Keatyn
，
As usual with Murakami’s books it took me a long time to get through this book but I really enjoyed it。
Alex Emery
，
I enjoyed the book but didn’t think it was anything special。 Nothing impactful really happens and the characters never fully develop。 Great author， inconsequential story。
Eman Shaltoot
，
واضح ان الإنسان اكتشف كاتب مفضل جديد ليه ♥️
Kyle Giannone
，
What a bizarre book。 I honestly don't even know what to say or how I feel about it。 There's some seriously questionable pedophilia thought recited by the decidedly unreliable narrator。 Good compelling writing though。 What a bizarre book。 I honestly don't even know what to say or how I feel about it。 There's some seriously questionable pedophilia thought recited by the decidedly unreliable narrator。 Good compelling writing though。 。。。more
Thomas Taylor
，
Killing Commendatore proceeds at a slower pace than other novels by Murakami but has an engaging story and provides interesting explorations of relationships and loneliness as well as art and music。 Occasional touching moments as the main character reflects on childhood experiences with his deceased younger sister however there is also plenty of typically creepy over-sexualisation of a number of female characters which seems to be a feature of Murakami's writing。My main issue with this book is s Killing Commendatore proceeds at a slower pace than other novels by Murakami but has an engaging story and provides interesting explorations of relationships and loneliness as well as art and music。 Occasional touching moments as the main character reflects on childhood experiences with his deceased younger sister however there is also plenty of typically creepy over-sexualisation of a number of female characters which seems to be a feature of Murakami's writing。My main issue with this book is similar to when I finished 1Q84。 Murakami spends a long time creating an interesting， mysterious and magical world that blends with the character's ordinary experiences， however this seems to run out of steam towards the end of the novel and doesn't provide satisfying explanations of a number of events that occur。 It feels like he comes up with these creations for his books without a clear idea as to how it will all tie together in the end。 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Killing Commendatore
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Killing Commendatore&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Killing Commendatore&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0