I received a copy of "The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle" (ねじまき鳥クロニクル) by Haruki Murakami (村上 春樹). This book received world-wide acclaim when it was published and then translated in the mid to late 1990s. I previously read this book as a high school student after reading Kafka on the Shore. I had to take a moment to pause when I unwrapped the gift to reflect on how this book was familiar to me, and after a few moments, I remembered. Needless to say, with a recollection like that, the book is as good as an unread book to me. As part of my efforts to improve myself in 2015, I have endeavored to read a book a month, and this one is going straight into the queue. I will also be able to repay my 'book borrow credit' to my coworker, who recently let me read his copy of Michael Crichton's Rising Sun. As a Tokyo resident and Japanese linguist, I will enjoy reading this book again and appreciating some of the nuances that I probably missed as a naive high schooler. It is an impressive selection to receive as part of the Secret Santa Gift Exchange!