Haruki Murakami

Nineteen-year-old Mari is waiting out the night in an anonymous Denny’s when she meets a young man who insists he knows her older sister, thus setting her on an odyssey through the sleeping city. In the space of a single night, the lives of a diverse cast of Tokyo residents—models, prostitutes, mobsters, and musicians—collide in a world suspended between fantasy and reality. Utterly enchanting and infused with surrealism, After Dark is a thrilling account of the magical hours separating midnight from dawn.


After Dark

アフターダーク

Laura

Here, room a brand-new day is beginning. It could be a day like all the others, or it could be a day remarkable enough in many ways to remain in the memory. In either case, for now, for most people, it is a blank sheet of paper.

The crescent moon takes the form of a silent white monolith, a long-lost message floating in the western sky.

It's not as if our lives are divided simply into light and dark. There's a shadowy middle ground. Recognising and understanding the shadows is what a healthy intelligence does. And to acquire a healthy intelligence takes a certain amount of time and effort.

Around us, cause and effect join hands, and synthesis and division maintain their equilibrium. Everything, finally, unfolded in a place resembling a deep, inaccessible fissure. Such places open secret entries into darkness in the interval between midnight and the time the sky glows light. None of our principles has any effort there. No one can predict when or where such abysses will swallow people, or where they will spit them out.

You know what I think? That people's memories are maybe the fuel they burn to stay alive.

In this world, there are things you can only do alone, and things you can only do with somebody else. It's important to combine the two in just the right amount.

"Well, I think there has to be something like reincarnation. Or maybe I should say I'm scared to think there isn't. I can't understand nothingness. I can't understand it and I can't imagine it."

"Nothingness means there's absolutely nothing, so maybe there's no need to understand it or imagine it."

The ground we stand on looks solid enough, but if something happens it can drop right out from under you. And once that happens, you've had it: things'll never be the same. All you can do is go on living alone down there in the darkness.

Is action merely the incidental product of thought, or is thought the consequential product of action?

He's got that baby-boomer toughness. Like Mick Jagger being called 'Sir' now—it's that generation, just hangin' in there. He doesn't do a lot of soul searching, but he learns his lesson.

ani jedno z toho nerobím a mala by som začať 

It's my motto for life. 'Walk slowly; drink lots of water.'

She's carrying around so many problems all by herself she can't make any headway, and she's searching for help. She expresses those feelings by hurting herself.

I'm just stumbling around all the time in my own narrow little world.

"Looks like a totally ordinary guy," says Komugi.

"The ordinary-looking ones are the most dangerous," says Kaoru, rubbing her chin. "They carry around a shitload of stress."

It's just the way I'm made: I can't stand by and let a son-of-a-bitch like that pull shit like that.

Our viewpoint camera lingers in here for a while observing the restroom. Mari is no longer here. Neither is anyone else. Music continues to play from the ceiling speaker. A Hall and Oates song now: " I Can't Go for That." A closer look reveals that Maris image is still reflected in the mirror over the sink. The Mari in the mirror is looking from her side into this side. Her sombre gaze seems to be expecting some kind of occurrence. But there is no one on this side. Only her image is left in the Skylark's restroom mirror.

The rooms begins to darken . In the deepening darkness, "I Can't Go for That" continues to play.

The sound of the needle tracing the record groove. The languorous, sensual music of Duke Ellington. Music for the middle of the night.

He is one of those unidentifiable people who inhabit the city at night.

Between the time the last train leaves and the first train arrives, the place changes and it's not the same as in daytime.

Our point of view, as an imaginary camera, picks up and lingers over things like this in the room. We are invisible, anonymous intruders. We look. We listen. We note odours. But we are not physically present in the place, and we leave behind no traces. We follow the same rules, so to speak, as orthodox time travellers. We observe but we do not intervene.

The trombone and me: it was a meeting arranged by destiny.

Of what value is a civilisation that can't toast a piece of bread as ordered?

It was alright, I don't think I would have finished this book if I didn't listen to the audiobook.
I am just confused about what I just listened to, I feel like it was several short stories, but all connected somehow? I don't really understand this book...

Kendall McClain

I love books that take place entirely in one day / night!! So good and funny. Reading conversations between interesting people is always so entrancing to me and Murakami does this very well

A short, sleek novel of encounters set in the witching hours of Tokyo between midnight and dawn, and every bit as gripping as Haruki Murakami’s masterworks The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle and Kafka on the Shore. At its center are two sisters: Yuri, a fashion model sleeping her way into oblivion; and Mari, a young student soon led from solitary reading at an anonymous Denny’s into lives radically alien to her own: those of a jazz trombonist who claims they’ve met before; a burly female “love hotel” manager and her maidstaff; and a Chinese prostitute savagely brutalized by a businessman. These “night people” are haunted by secrets and needs that draw them together more powerfully than the differing circumstances that might keep them apart, and it soon becomes clear that Yuri’s slumber–mysteriously tied to the businessman plagued by the mark of his crime – will either restore or annihilate her. After Dark moves from mesmerizing drama to metaphysical speculation, interweaving time and space as well as memory and perspective into a seamless exploration of human agency – the interplay between self-expression and understanding, between the power of observation and the scope of compassion and love. Murakami’s trademark humor, psychological insight, and grasp of spirit and morality are here distilled with an extraordinary, harmonious mastery. “Eyes mark the shape of the city. Through the eyes of a high-flying night bird, we take in the scene from midair. In our broad sweep, the city looks like a single gigantic creature–or more, like a single collective entity created by many intertwining organisms. Countless arteries stretch to the ends of its elusive body, circulating a continuous supply of fresh blood cells, sending out new data and collecting the old, sending out new consumables and collecting the old, sending out new contradictions and collecting the old. To the rhythm of its pulsing, all parts of the body flicker and flare up and squirm. Midnight is approaching, and while the peak of activity has indeed passed, the basal metabolism that maintains life continues undiminished, producing the basso continuo of the city’s moan, a monotonous sound that neither rises nor falls but is pregnant with foreboding.” —from After Dark

Ryan 

★★★★★ // my favorite murakami. he makes the night—the witching hour—seem like a character of its own, as if it is an entity existing with everyone else. almost romantic, just the right kind of mysterious. mari is by far my favorite murakami heroine.

In both style and story, this feels like Murakami on autopilot.

Frederik De Bosschere

The midnight hour approaches in an almost empty all-night diner. Mari sips her coffee and glances up from a book as a young man, a musician, intrudes on her solitude. Both have missed the last train home. The musician has plans to rehearse with his jazz band all night, Mari is equally unconcerned and content to read, smoke and drink coffee until dawn. They realise they've been acquainted through Eri, Mari's beautiful sister. The musician soon leaves with a promise to return before dawn. Shortly afterwards Mari will be interrupted a second time by a girl from the Alphaville Hotel; a Chinese prostitute has been hurt by a client, the girl has heard Mari speaks fluent Chinese and requests her help. Meanwhile Eri is at home and sleeps a deep, heavy sleep that is 'too perfect, too pure' to be normal; pulse and respiration at the lowest required level. She has been in this soporfic state for two months; Eri has become the classic myth - a sleeping beauty. But tonight as the digital clock displays 00:00 a faint electrical crackle is perceptible, a hint of life flickers across the TV screen, though the television's plug has been pulled. Murakami, acclaimed master of the surreal, returns with a stunning new novel, where the familiar can become unfamiliar after midnight, even to those that thrive in small hours. With After Dark we journey beyond the twilight. Strange nocturnal happenings, or a trick of the night?

Xiang

y✦

easily a comfort read for an insomniac like me

Haritlak Thawikasikam

Five spot after dark - Curtis Fuller -- is the best backing soundtrack when you read this book at night.

Aamna

Something about it makes you very conscious of yourself and surroundings as you read it. Sometimes your hair stand on end. You could say it's the kind of mindfuck you gift yourself, happily.

Jehan Chawla

It might be the perfect first Murakami book one should read. Saying that I found this a weak entry in the already amazing Murakami Books I've read. Murakami shines the best in his world building and magical realism and those are the shining parts of this novel. I feel like the plot and character building had to take a little side step because of the novelty idea of making the plot revolve around a series of adventures contained in a Single night. Credit where the credit is due; The writing is beautiful. The proses are poetic. 
I know I'll come to love this book even more after re-reading. It reads like a book that should be savoured not rushed.
"Is action merely the incidental product of thought, or is thought the consequential product of action?"

jess larry

I lost my love for reading years ago, and I think this book just bring it back to life. It was really beautifully written and easy to read. 

Felt like I was enveloped in an eerie atmosphere when reading it and it was definitely an amazing experience. 

I definitely recommend it to people like me, who are seeking to get back in touch with reading.

i had a nightmare about this book last night

Loved it! Love Murakami, and this particular one had a lot of parts that really spoke to my own life. I love the vignette style of telling a story based on very small interactions and how they all connect, this book was so interesting, very slice of life, and extremely atmospheric.

The half a star missing for a full 5 is because I would have loved to see the businessman actually get punished for what he did in the hotel, his story felt like it ended very abruptly compared to every other character

Emma Lechner

Loved it! Love Murakami, and this particular one had a lot of parts that really spoke to my own life. I love the vignette style of telling a story based on very small interactions and how they all connect, this book was so interesting, very slice of life, and extremely atmospheric.

The half a star missing for a full 5 is because I would have loved to see the businessman actually get punished for what he did in the hotel, his story felt like it ended very abruptly compared to every other character

Eyes mark the shape of the city The midnight hour approaches in an almost-empty diner. Mari sips her coffee and reads a book, but soon her solitude is disturbed: a girl has been beaten up at the Alphaville hotel, and needs Mari's help. Meanwhile Mari's beautiful sister Eri lies in a deep, heavy sleep that is 'too perfect, too pure' to be normal; it has lasted for two months. But tonight as the digital clock displays 00:00, a hint of life flickers across the television screen in her room, even though it's plug has been pulled out. Strange nocturnal happenings, or a trick of the night?

altlovesbooks

"Wherever the intention of each might lie, we are together being carried along at the same speed down the same river of time."

I thought this was a good, tight representation of what Murakami is. Mari, sitting alone late at night reading at a family restaurant, is interrupted by someone sitting down with her to talk. Over the course of the night we get to know Mari a little bit, visit her sister Eri, and experience a bit of a surreal look into these two sisters' lives. The sun rises, and the story ends.

I loved the late night aesthetic, and think Murakami really nailed it setting-wise. I also really liked the incorporation of timestamps, essentially, for each chapter. It really made everything feel more real and alive, in a weird way.

I had lots of questions when I finished the book, but that's par for the course with Murakami stories. Lots of references go over my head, but I love the scenes he paints too much to be bothered by that.

charisa

3.5 - introspective, haunting, and in a lot ways, a near-perfect visual translation of edward hopper’s nighthawks! (if you, you know, swapped out the all-americanness for distinct tokyo qualities, especially the grit of its nightlife). i used to be somewhat obsessed with that painting in high school, so it was exciting to read something that exuded the same hazy, delirious undercurrents of a late-night city. definitely on the slower side, and sometimes a bit boring oOps, hence the half star.

a book, or should I say a collection of conversations throughout the night, about the struggles of sisterhood

Ioana Kardos

If you don't want to miss something important, grab a cup of tea and enjoy Murakami's gloomy book. Mari is spending the night in the town and interacts with various people while reading her book with great concentration. It got me there, as people engrossed in reading books are my next of kin. While reading, you slowly let it take reins of your mind and guide you to the bizarre events that follow during the night. 
Read full review on: https://booknerdik.wordpress.com/2018...

sgcjm

i am on started readin this book likely one day before i am heading off to seoul and spend a whole month there. so then as i am recalled and have a deep nostalgic sense after i am landed and back to my land it occurred to me about what murakami tryna to conveyed within this book. after dark. it is the first time bein i am havin his short story book. before that i am used to go with his long novel words. but this. maybe universe had it ways on me. these feels real. like what i am been witnessing on my sight eyes of every scenes he delivered in each scenes here. like i told in. i am goin out to seoul for a whole month and then just tryna bein a likely new person and observing how life works there. morning rised up. people rushin back and forth. life seems alluringly goin that fast in the daylight. but then moon up. night welcomin by and then life still had it sense even in those solitude silence midnight. i am mostly back on to my hotel in the hours near like 3.00 am so thats why every scenes that murakamis writin up on that book resonates to me cause i did saw that. diversity kind of peoples. some gettin wasted and walkin stumble in the near of the bridge. and some just happened to get off from work sitting alone like drowning in theirs own mind on the benches. some also just smoke and then head up lookin to the clouds night full of stars. theres them. with many kind background of life but within this silence light of night theirs soul seems like bond in one kind. tryna reachin and seekin somethin to makes them feelin safe and solace. thats why it takes long enough for me to ending up this book cause when i am in seoul i liked to observing and saw how others human there doin on its own life. and in the end of conclusions seems like same as it should. we as a humankind turned up such a diverse in many ways. how we life. how we love. how we got a perception on things. and etc. but in many moments theres also one things we got in common. when night knocked out in our eyes. somehow we found other side of our soul. night brings those feeling where we feels like we became a different person and tryna just resolved all the mumbles sound voice in our head. life its hard. but when night comes. at least we could pretended for a while that life bein kind someway to us.

Prashanth Srivatsa

Probably the most engrossing of Murakami's books and also, at a glance, the most aimless. There are snippets of life sprayed across conversations that is typical of him and there's the surreal, timeless metafiction that attempts to explore the mystery of sleep, again signature Murakami but with lazy execution. After Dark is written in the quiet hours between night and day, for those readers who wish to know what troubled strangers confide in one another that they can't share with their loved ones.

Stef

Steph Zymowski

Classic Murakami! Interesting, fast paced and beautiful!

Maria Otero

Murakami (Haruki)

Als een meisje in een grote Japanse stad de nacht lezend doorbrengt in een kroeg, ontmoet ze een student die haar zus kent.

riwāya

Mābaʻd al-ẓalām

Nabeel Nizam

قصة بطول الليل
أبناء الليل يحملون في جيوب ساعاتهم الكثير من الأخبار والأحداث، والأهم من ذلك الكثير من الأفكار
يصور الكاتب التفاصيل كالكاميرا، وعلى الرغم من أن ذلك يضيف طابعاً للمكان ويرفد الشخصيات إلا أنه ممل أحيانا أخرى. 
بالنهاية "امش وئيداً واشرب ماءً كثيراً".

After Dark

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