Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #85498 in Books
• Published on: 2007-06-07
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 208 pages

Evening Standard
`...a slight, charming story...'

Evening Standard - Rev'd David Sexton
'This novella is a captivating mood piece, delicate and wistful.'

Times - Rev'd Ruth Scurr
`After Dark reminds us of the risks, innovation and disquiet that
underpin his success'

Customer Reviews

Among Haruki Murakami's Best Novels in Recent Memory: A Sublime, Lyrical Ode to the Night
Ten years have passed since I encountered for the very first time, the enigmatic, but fascinating, psychological and cultural landscapes conjured by Haruki Murakami in such spellbinding works as "Dance Dance Dance", "A Wild Sheep Chase", and "Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World". At first, I thought he was a Japanese version of J. G. Ballard and Angela Carter, drawing upon both contemporary realities and classic fairy tales to render vivid, surreal versions of the present, in a literary style that I thought was so reminiscent of modern science fiction and fantasy. But soon I realized that he was such an astute, and elegant, observer of the real world too, in novels like "Norwegian Wood", "Sputnik Sweetheart", and especially, "The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle" (The latter a most treasured part of my personal library, blessed with his autographed signature in both English and Japanese, that I still feel quite lucky to have acquired while meeting him in person at a New York City literary festival book signing a few years ago.). Here, in "After Dark", Murakami has written among his best novels in recent memory (Quite possibly among the very best published this year too.), emphasizing a realistic, quasi-documentary film exploration of the hours between midnight and dawn, set in a recognizable, if slightly surreal, Tokyo landscape of American diners ("Denny's") and prostitution dens ("love hotels").

This tersely-worded novel on nocturnal encounters features the intertwining tales of two sisters; Eri, a fashion model who appears occasionally as an ever-present sleeper - and whose appearances seem most pregnant with meaning - and Mari, a young college student, who is drawn inexplicably into a series of chance encounters with a brutally beaten Chinese prostitute and a Japanese jazz trombonist. These chance encounters move inexorably from mere happenstance to elaborate excursions into empathy, compassion, and love. Mari becomes not simply a casual voyeur into this nocturnal realm, but rather, an active participant, whose very presence determines the "fates" of those she has met. Throughout, Murakami's keen sense of mordant humor and crisp, snappy dialogue remains quite acute, demonstrating that he is still a literary master in depicting the human condition. A literary master who has rendered such a captivating, almost universal, tale that is so rich in scope, even if it is so terse in its length; one which ought to be well-received by his legion of fans across the globe.

Quick and Fun, but not as good as Kafka
Murakami's latest contribution to the area of fiction and translated by Harvard's Jay Rubin (who translates much of Murakami's work). This book takes place over one night in Japan and involves four main characters: Mari and Eri, two sisters the one of which is in a deep, powerful and perplexing sleep. This book interrogates what constitutes being confident and strong in yourself in a subtle manner, as well as taking a quirky poke at coincidence.

The book is a really quick read and takes place over a very short period of time. It is not as good as some of Murakami's other novels (it's a 3 star Murakami), but is still a cut-above your run of the mill novel (hence 4 stars overall). For me it was a decent addition to the list of Murakami novels, but not really as good a follow up to Kafka on the Shore as one would hope.

Therefore, don't let this be your first Murakami, read Kafka on the Shore, or Norwegian Wood, or Dance, Dance, Dance first.

Don't pass judgment until you've read it for yourself
There seems to have been a largely negative response to Murakami's most recent publication, "After Dark". I will agree that it is not in keeping with Murakami's usual style, but there again each of his works has its own distinct flavour. That is afterall what makes his literature so liberating - far from remaining in the same shape and style, each one evolves to become yet more elusive and fantastical. This is such an example of the genius that becomes Murakami, exploring a new medium previously untapped - that of the night, as the title implies. Think about it: most of his previous works almost always take place in the daytime. This can be seen as an experimental work, and as such won't be to everyone's taste, but can still give that satisfying buzz of philosophy, contemporary Japanese culture and realism, with a healthy jolt of the sublime. Bravo Murakami.