After Dark by Haruki Murakami tells the story of what happens to a few people in Tokyo between 11.56 P.M. and 6.52 A.M. on a particular night.
I find the premise of this novel intriguing. It brings together all sorts of people doing all sorts of odd things during ungodly hours while others sleep. There is this girl, Mari Asai, who parks herself at a restaurant, reading a thick book and waiting for dawn. She dreads being at home.
A lanky young man—about her age—then comes into the restaurant, and he chooses to sit with her. We don’t learn his name until much later, in the wee hours of the same night. He recognises Mari from an outing some time ago where he met her and her sister, Eri.
Even though Eri is beautiful and she models, she is a troubled young woman. The two sisters don’t get along. Mari has a secret about her sister that she hasn’t disclosed yet. The unnamed young man leaves the restaurant after finishing his meal to go to his all-night band practice.
At a nearby love hotel, a Chinese prostitute is badly beaten by a customer. He takes off with all of the poor girl’s possessions, including her clothes. Coincidentally, the young man from the restaurant is a friend of Kaoru, an ex-female wrestler who runs the love hotel, and he tells Kaoru she can find a girl named Mari who speaks Chinese to help the prostitute. Kaoru tracks her down at the restaurant.
What is amazing about this story is how people’s paths cross in a single night. Things happen while the rest of the world lies asleep, dreaming in their beds. This is a gripping, psychological novel. I think the clock illustration that marks the time at the start of each chapter adds an interesting feel and dimension.
This is my first Haruki Murakami book, and I definitely want to read more of his work. I enjoyed reading After Dark, and it kept me interested until the end. I recommend it!
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