After Dark by Haruki Murakami, 2007

In preparation for my pending trip to Japan, I wanted to read something by a Japanese author, and one of the most well-known is Haruki Murakami.

After Dark's pages are filled with his short, lyrical prose about intersecting vignettes surrounding a girl's desire to escape for the night and spend it in Tokyo.

The novel begins a few minutes before midnight with Mari Asai reading at a Denny's in Tokyo.

An acquaintance recognizes her and kicks off her night of unexpected events that include a love hotel where rooms are typically rented by the hour, Chinese gangs, troubled women, a company man who works late into the night to avoid seeing his family, and a sister trapped in sleep (and a TV).

Each character seems to be running away and hiding from something, which makes the late night and early morning a fitting backdrop.

The majority of the stories are filled with meaningful human interactions and insight into people's loneliness, fears and search for sometimes something as simple as safely. 

Across the street from our hotel in Ginza.

As these human emotions unfold, there is a parallel surrealist story surrounding Mari's sister, who Murakami always refers to by her full name: Eri Asai.

Adding to the surreal element is the narrator perspectives that are outside the bounds of the standard first, second or third perspectives.

A trademark Murakami talent, he is able to combine fantastical elements into a very real, human story without any disconnect while the reader moves from one element to the other.

When in Japan, there happened to be a Denny's across the street from our hotel in Ginza.  Of course, having read After Dark, I had to make a pilgrimage and stop by for a lovely American-style breakfast of eggs, bacon, toast and coffee.