Down here in Australia it is winter. And in a way it is winter for my reading. I detect that the majority of posters are 'young'. I am not. I am 59, have read prolifically all my life. Until recently. I have tried to work out why and have come to various conclusions, none of which add up. One of the 'reasons' is that the last book I read was "Austerlitz" by W.G.Sebald. This was about a year ago. In my opinion this is the best thing I have ever read in over 50 years of reading. So much so that when I try to read any another book it seems trivial. The closest I can get to an analogy is that after listening to a lot of Coltrane in a short time - as I do and have done - I find it impossible to listen to any other jazz for a time. I shall try the Murakami - maybe it is exactly what I need! Billy