davramlocke's Reviews (777)

While I'll admit to liking After the Quake more, that doesn't mean much in the context of Murakami. I was disappointed at a few of the stories in The Elephant Vanishes, but there were others that more than made up for the lackluster additions.

The Dancing Dwarf, for instance, is one of the more entertaining short stories in Murakami's lexicon. It reads like a modern-day fairy tale, complete with moral lesson embedded within, but not in a "smack you in the face with it" kind of way that is present in most actual moral tales.

The titular story is also interesting, The Elephant Vanishes, and as with many of these collections, ends the overall book with something memorable, lines that are poetic in their exit. What the story actually means is completely ambiguous, as far as I can tell, but that doesn't make it any less enjoyable or satisfying.

I've heard it said that Murakami's short stories are better than his longer fiction, and while I could not agree with that statement, I can see what someone might make it given just how good his short stories are. After the Quake is no exception, and one of the first short story books I've even finished in a long while. I'm not generally a fan of the genre, but...well, it's Murakami. I hardly even feel a need to say more than that at this point.