Opinion: Hard-boiled Wonderland and the End of the World

I finished Hard-boiled Wonderland and the End of the World last week, but didn't have the opportunity to do a proper review. What can I say, Haruki Murakami left me stunned once again. The chapters alternate between two parts - the "Hard-boiled Wonderland" part and "The End of the World" part. The narrator in the "Hard-boiled Wonderland" chapters is a human data processor who has been trained to use his subconscious as an encryption key. He works for a company whose purpose is to protect information, and, quite logically, a rivaling company exists that steals information. The narrator completes a task for a mysterious scientist whose laboratory is in the sewers of Tokyo, and eventually discovers shocking truths about his subconscious. The even numbered chapters take place at "The End of the World", an isolated town surrounded by an impenetrable wall. Residents of this strange town have no Shadows, and therefore, no minds. The narrator in this world has just entered the Town, and still has traces of his mind, but not his memory. His Shadow is cut from him and is expected to die in the winter, along with many "beasts", which are unicorns.

This novel took a while to sink in. I figure that this unfinished feeling is a puzzling yet common effect left on readers of Haruki Murakami. Last year, after I read Norwegian Wood, I had a similar impression as I did when I finished this book. I was a little bored with Norwegian Wood and rushed through the pages. However, as I learned soon after, that was not a good idea. The story did not want to leave my head for days, even though I was already reading another book. I was forced to sit down with myself and really think about the novel, pondering the ideas and concepts, how they applied to my own life. Similarly, with Hard-boiled Wonderland and the End of the World, I felt like I needed time to reflect on what I had just read, not put the book out of my mind when I had closed the cover.
The author does a fantastic job of encouraging this reflection process. Both books are written in first person, which makes it easier to imagine that the narrators' lives are our own. None of his main characters are described at length, save a few hobbies and past experiences. Murakami gives the reader an opportunity to paint their own picture of the character in order to better relate to them - often, they put themselves into the main's shoes. In Hard-boiled Wonderland and the End of the World, none of the characters are named. This allows the reader to plug in people from their own lives and live within the story.
Murakami's work is unique, in the sense that he doesn't provide all his ideas on a silver platter and the reader simply ingests it. If that were to occur, then reading the book would have been rather useless, as everything that is ingested must also be eliminated. Instead, if read properly, the story and message are digested. Murakami almost makes the reader think about the information he has presented, which results in his books being somewhat interactive - many pieces don't line up right away, but after some thought and inner discussion, they fall perfectly into place. The reader is ultimately left to interpret the storyline as it best suits their own life. In short, each of his novels embodies an opportunity to meditation and enlightenment.