TOKYO (AP) 鈥� Hours before new book was set to go on sale in Japan on Friday, dozens of fans gathered outside a major Tokyo bookstore for a special event to get their first copies as soon as the clock struck midnight.
鈥淭he Tale of KAHO鈥� is the Japanese author’s first full-length novel featuring a lone woman protagonist, according to Shinchosha Publishing Co.
鈥淜aho, a picture book author, is just an average young woman. But truly bizarre things start happening around her,鈥� Murakami said in a brief message posted on the publisher鈥檚 campaign website. 鈥淚 wrote this novel as I put myself in her shoes.鈥�
His statement surprised many fans, because most of Murakami’s protagonists are young or middle-aged men.
鈥淚’m excited about finding out how the story evolves around a female character,鈥� said Naoyuki Yamano, the first customer to buy the new Murakami novel.
Initially, the novel started as a short story titled which Murakami rehearsed at two years ago at Waseda University, his alma mater in Tokyo, with Mieko Kawakami, a renowned female author and fan of his work. The story was published in the June 2024 edition of the monthly Shincho magazine.
One day, 26-year-old Kaho goes on a blind date arranged by her book editor. Over dinner, her date tells her that, although he has dated a number of women, 鈥淚鈥檝e never seen one as ugly as you.鈥� Baffled rather than outraged, curious Kaho tries to uncover the meaning of his words. Soon, bizarre things begin happening to her.
Murakami has since released three subsequent 鈥淜aho鈥� stories in Shincho magazine, most recently in the March edition. He weaves the four stories into a 352-page new novel with four chapters: 鈥淜aho and the Motorcycle Man,鈥� 鈥淭he Anteater of Musashi-sakai,鈥� 鈥淜aho and the Termite Queen鈥� and 鈥淭he Guardian Angel, Elephant Egg and Scarlett Johansson.鈥�
The new book comes out three years after his previous novel, which follows a male protagonist navigating love, loss and the boundaries between real and subconscious worlds.
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