Haruki Murakami

Murakami’s newest release, a paired binding of his novellas Hear the Wind Sing and Pinball, is actually not new at all. In fact, these two stories are the first that Murakami ever published in Japan, kick-starting his writing career. Together they make up the first two parts of the legend of an unnamed narrator and his friend, known only as “The Rat,” which is completed in Murakami’s later novel, A Wild Sheep Chase. They comprise a somewhat belated coming-of-age tale about two men in their late youth coming to terms with issues of love, loneliness, and mortality. In true Murakami form, they also delve further than most authors would dare into the depths of human emotion in a way that is at times uncomfortable but enlightening throughout. Unpublished in English heretofore, these are an absolute must-read for Murakami fans.  – Noble Williamson