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‘The Trilogy of the Rat’ series includes Murakami’s first books: Hear the Wind Sing, and Pinball, 1973 as well as A Wild Sheep Chase.
Hear the Wind Sing 風の歌を聴け Kaze no uta o kike)
First published in Japanese in 1979.
Translated into English by Alfred Birnbaum in 1985, and again by Ted Goossen in 2015.
Pinball, 1973 1973年のピンボール (Sen-Kyūhyaku-Nanajū-San-Nen no Pinbōru)
First published in Japanese in 1980.
Translated into English by Alfred Birnbaum in 1983 and again by Ted Goossen in 2015.
Apparently, Murakami wasn’t so hot on having the English translations of either of these books for sale because he felt these very early works of his weren’t well-formed enough and lacked polish. Most people would agree with this, but if you’re a Murakami fan, you’ll want to read them anyway. Our suggestion is that you read other novels of his first, then come back to these earlier two. With a new-found perspective, you’ll be glad you waited! Hint: These two novels are often sold as a set nowadays.
Cheapest
Amazon JP sells both Pinball and Hear the Wind Sing as a package on Kindle for 650 yen