The Elephant Vanishes

By Haruki Murakami,

Book cover of The Elephant Vanishes: Stories

Book description

A dizzying short story collection that displays Murakami's genius for uncovering the surreal in the everyday, the extraordinary within the ordinary

*Featuring the story 'Barn Burning', the inspiration behind the Palme d'Or nominated film Burning*

When a man's favourite elephant vanishes, the balance of his whole life is subtly upset.…

When you buy books, we may earn a commission that helps keep our lights on (or join the rebellion as a member).

Why read it?

5 authors picked The Elephant Vanishes as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

I was drawn to The Elephant Vanishes because of Murakami’s unique ability to make the strange feel oddly familiar. The stories in this collection range from the fantastical to the eerily mundane, with each one pulling you into a world that feels like a dream you can’t shake. Murakami’s language is concise yet loaded with atmosphere, and he masterfully balances mystery with a sense of nostalgia. These stories are often left open-ended, creating a feeling that reality and dreams are intertwined—a style I deeply appreciate.

Murakami’s approach reminds me of the power in subtly blending the surreal with the familiar,…

The Elephant Vanishes includes two of my favorite stories by any contemporary writer.

Set in the forested vicinity of a factory that makes elephants, “The Dancing Dwarf” follows the adventures of a marvelous dwarf who once danced for the king, alas, now pursued by soldiers of the revolution. The other side of the spectrum, “The Last Lawn of the Afternoon” partakes of the fantastic only by osmosis. The care this teenage boy takes mowing and trimming his assigned lawns feels so real it reminds me of myself.

This range keeps the reader slightly off balance and full of expectation, which…

From Robert's list on strangely miraculous short fiction.

Wildcat: An Appalachian Romance

By Jeffrey Dunn,

Book cover of Wildcat: An Appalachian Romance

Jeffrey Dunn Author Of Wildcat: An Appalachian Romance

New book alert!

Why am I passionate about this?

Author Creative writer Dream fisher History miner Divergent Dyslexic

Jeffrey's 3 favorite reads in 2024

What is my book about?

A retired English teacher has come home to Appalachia, a land of industrial disaster and natural beauty. He has been enticed with stories of Wildcat’s transformation: of the collective action embodied in Hotel Wildcat as well as the artisanal pursuits springing to life in the old iron mill. But in returning, he must confront his dark memories: the lost love of his hippie chic girlfriend not to mention the lost trust between his middle-class family and working-class Wildcat.

Written in the lyrical grit so characteristic of America’s Rust Belt, Wildcat: An Appalachian Romance is a testament to the redemptive potential…

Wildcat: An Appalachian Romance

By Jeffrey Dunn,

What is this book about?

Journey into Appalachia's Heart: Love, Loss, and the Resilience of a Forgotten Land

Discover the captivating allure of the Appalachian region as Jeffrey Dunn skillfully weaves a tale of love, loss, and redemption in his exquisitely crafted literary fiction masterpiece, Wildcat: An Appalachian Romance. Immerse yourself in the depths of the rust belt's rugged landscapes, where the echoes of industrial disaster intertwine with the sublime beauty of nature, all while the characters navigate the delicate dance between past and future.

In this poignant narrative, our protagonist, a retired English teacher, returns to his roots, lured back to the once-shuttered Hotel…


His short stories have their own strange endings. I love how he brings the reader into a believable make-believe, and a snapshot of life many of us have oftentimes overlooked. Haruki Murakami has indeed become a popular novelist, and has written many beautiful books. But I believe The Elephant Vanishes is a hidden gem less read by many. He has made me see life from a completely different, and refreshing perspective.

From Haresh's list on off tangent stories.

Take Faulkner’s story, but move the action from post-Civil War Mississippi to modern-day Japan. Replace all the characters but a sociopathic barn burner. Add a mime. Roughly speaking, that’s the recipe for Murakami’s beautiful, baffling and disturbing meditation on the nature of evil. Each time I read it, I feel the metaphysical mystery is just beyond my ken—but I still love everything about it. 

Burning, the 2018 film adaptation directed by Lee Chang-dong, is just as good. It takes Murakami’s story, transports the action to South Korea, sprinkles in a couple of Faulkner references, adds a nod to Schrödinger’s…

Want books like The Elephant Vanishes?

Our community of 12,000+ authors has personally recommended 100 books like The Elephant Vanishes.

Browse books like The Elephant Vanishes

Book cover of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Book cover of One Hundred Years of Solitude
Book cover of Barn Burning

Share your top 3 reads of 2024!

And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.

1,175

readers submitted
so far, will you?

5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in Japan, South Korea, and presidential biography?

Japan 516 books
South Korea 36 books