Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami

I have been reading Murakami for years and Kafka on the Shore is one of his best. It is the entrancing 'coming of age' story of Kafka Tamara, a fifteen year old boy who runs away from his home in Tokyo, and old Nakata who was changed by a mysterious incident during World War II that left him 'simple'.

Kafka is running away to find his mother and sister who disappeared when he was very young. He is estranged from his father and is desperate to escape an oedipal prophecy. Nakata, mentally challenged and unable to
articulate his thoughts is able to talk to cats. He is on a journey to find "the entrance stone".

Murakami weaves the journeys of these two beautifully. Each of them is haunted by a brutal murder. Both characters find people on their journeys who support, guide and protect them. Kafka is befriended by a young woman, a librarian and a librarian's assistant when he finds refuge in a private library. Eventually he journeys into a forest from which people have never returned.

Nataka's friend who goes awol from his job to accompany Nakata makes possible his journey. Nakata knows he must find "the entrance stone" that connects the parallel worlds of Kafka and Nakata.
There are wonderful philosophical discussions in the book. What might seem like unbelievable happening in the plot work well in the hands of this great storyteller. It's hard to put the book down once you've dipped in.