Book Impressions: Kafka on the Shore

Picked this up for an airplane ride since I've heard a lot about Murakami lately and haven't read any of it. Basic impression is that I didn't "get it." The world that Murakami creates is surrealistically interesting but I'm not sure what I am supposed to take away from it. The narrative is halfway compelling and halfway non sequitur. Murakami switches seamlessly from little personal obsessions like Jazz, to plot that seems to point to a greater resolution, to symbolic surrealism, but not in a good way. The obsessions don't seem to contribute to the plot, the plot doesn't move toward a resolution, and the symbols aren't accessible, at least to me. Nevertheless, it was still an interesting read because I've never encountered this kind of narrative before.