Published October 24, 2024

“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.”

Haruki Murakami – After Dark

In Murakami’s world, life becomes magical. 

Haruki Murakami’s After Dark, originally written in Japanese, takes place during the middle of the night in Tokyo and revolves around 19-year-old Mari Asai, her sister, Eri Asai, and a young man, Takahashi. Throughout the book, Murakami illustrates connections made during the night, a period when it’s unusual for this to occur. Taking us along on a journey where we are looking through the lens of a camera, the slow pace and intimate attention to detail explores the subtle, often unnoticed beauty of human interactions.

“Midnight is approaching, and while the peak of activity has 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” (Murakami 1).

Murakami had me amazed with the very first page of After Dark. It has a completely ordinary plot, yet the atmosphere set by Murakami’s simple, but eloquent sentences convert common and boring tasks into beautiful acts of humanity. Along with Murakami’s impeccable skill of narrating, he also has the ability to make perfect dialogue, which is extremely important in a book all about communication. The interactions shown aren’t awkward at all and feel completely natural. Some authors tend to try too hard to make the dialogue seem relatable and modern, sometimes making conversations more unrealistic than relatable. Murakami’s dialogue, on the other hand, makes the conversations feel raw and intimate, and every comment adds to the characterization of the individual.

It has a slow, contemplative pace, and the entire novel revolves around one night, making time almost feel frozen. Climactic moments don’t surprise us, but instead grow quietly, yet they do not leave the reader bored with the content. Murakami’s use of extended descriptions of the city and the quiet, late-night vibe helps reinforce this slow pace. It reflects the characters’ own sense of isolation and disconnection from the world, as we linger with them in scenes of atmospheric detail.

Eri Asai, Mari’s beloved and popular sister, remains in a deep sleep in her room throughout the entirety of the novel. While Eri is praised for her beauty and draws the most attention, Mari, who is the complete opposite of her, feels out of place in her life. This sense of otherness, along with Mari’s sleeping problem, drives her to purposely staying up “after dark.” 

As she navigates the strange encounters of the night, particularly through her conversations with Takahashi, she begins to gain a better understanding of her identity without constant comparisons to Eri. Without giving too much away, I’ll just say that this novel explores the complexities of identity in a way that somewhat resonated with me. As a teenager in California, I’m constantly surrounded by kids who seem to have their lives perfectly mapped out, so Mari’s journey towards self-acceptance made me feel less alone in my struggles with identity. 

My favorite detail of the book, the reader’s perspective, is quite unique as it is described through the eyes of a camera, meaning we can merely observe, not interact. Murakami made me feel as though I was intruding on someone’s life, in the least creepy way possible. It allowed me to imagine the scene as if I was present in real life. We can assume a lot based on observations and yet still know absolutely nothing for certain. This is especially true when it comes to seeing Eri in her room for the first time. Simply by looking at the details in her room, more so the lack of details, we first recognize that she is full of mystery as every trace of her personality is hidden. Just because there is a lack of personality shown, it does not mean she has a boring personality. Based on these observations, we can instead assume that she deliberately does not reveal traces of her personality. There is more to her than what people think and than what we, as viewers, see. This is exactly what makes her mysteriousness intriguing. Yes, we tend to be scared of the unknown, but we are also curious beings. This perspective illustrates how much of life is left a mystery and how much of it can be based on assumption. 

This is a book to be savored and not rushed through. I constantly found myself rereading an entire page out of enjoyment, rather than confusion. For a lonely book full of lonely people, this book felt so comforting and familiar. In my opinion, this is a five-star read and my standards are now set high as this is the first of many Murakami books I am to read.