After Dark
- Downloads：3024
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-07-15 09:55:34
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Haruki Murakami
- ISBN：0099506246
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
- Download
Summary
Alternate cover edition here。
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。
Later， Mari is interrupted again by a girl from the Alphaville Hotel; a Chinese prostitute has been hurt by a client， and she needs Mari's help。
Meanwhile Mari's beautiful sister Eri sleeps a deep， heavy sleep that is 'too perfect， too pure' to be normal; she has lain asleep for two months。 But tonight as the digital clock displays 00:00， a hint of life flickers across the TV screen， though the television's plug has been pulled out。
Strange nocturnal happenings， or a trick of the night？
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。
Later， Mari is interrupted again by a girl from the Alphaville Hotel; a Chinese prostitute has been hurt by a client， and she needs Mari's help。
Meanwhile Mari's beautiful sister Eri sleeps a deep， heavy sleep that is 'too perfect， too pure' to be normal; she has lain asleep for two months。 But tonight as the digital clock displays 00:00， a hint of life flickers across the TV screen， though the television's plug has been pulled out。
Strange nocturnal happenings， or a trick of the night？
Reviews
Shravya M
，
While reading this book， I kept trying to ask myself what this story is about。 We're given a very vague premise - people， in a city after dark， doing different things。 Like five disparate pieces of a game， but you have no idea how or why they're connected。 And so I kept looking to find links that go deeper than the short strings that tie them together， and find out why， of every link out there that everyone has， am I looking at these specific ones？ The answer I came up with is that this book is While reading this book， I kept trying to ask myself what this story is about。 We're given a very vague premise - people， in a city after dark， doing different things。 Like five disparate pieces of a game， but you have no idea how or why they're connected。 And so I kept looking to find links that go deeper than the short strings that tie them together， and find out why， of every link out there that everyone has， am I looking at these specific ones？ The answer I came up with is that this book is just a study of what it means to be human。 What that shared experience that connects us all together is。 And the result of this study？ The character Takahashi says it best: "It's not as if our lives are divided simply into light and dark。 There's a shadowy middle ground。 Recognizing and understanding the shadows is what a healthy intelligence does。" Throughout this story， all the characters are running away from something: in particular， a darkness that might be guilt or fear or hesitation。 But ironically， that darkness is reflected in mirrors and TV screens， much closer than they realize。 I adore this motif - every time I saw a mirror or TV with an "other side" and a reflection that doesn't move， I couldn't help but be amazed。 Murakami has a fantastic way of showing how humans really feal through dialogue and subtle actions， and it makes you want to microanalyze everything - just as I did。 And even though it's such a deep， complex， personal， and almost unnerving look we take into the shared human experience， it's strangely comforting。 It's like， "yes， we all have that inner darkness， something that sticks with us like a second skin even as we try to run from it， but it's okay because it's all of us。" I felt less alone， reading about characters who all try to come together to feel less alone。 I also admire Murakami's depiction of the nighttime。 The pop culture references combined with how the characters slowly open up to one another create this beautiful atmosphere。 I loved piecing together each of the little bits of information to understand this full picture。 In the end， the end result is beautiful。 10/10 - would recommend！ With a healthy dose of patience and a critical eye， you can really enjoy this book。 。。。more
Giovanni Raucci
，
Intense and touching。 Would recommend。
Sujaya
，
I expected something entirely different when I chose this book。The experience reading this book can be summed up as a Soothing， laid back read。The story begins at midnight and ends at 6:52 am。 There are less than 10 characters through which the story is navigating。 This book depicts how a night can same yet different to different people。 A night can be scary， peaceful， busy。 relaxing， entertaining， monotonous from person to person。 The story introduces us to people leading different lives for ea I expected something entirely different when I chose this book。The experience reading this book can be summed up as a Soothing， laid back read。The story begins at midnight and ends at 6:52 am。 There are less than 10 characters through which the story is navigating。 This book depicts how a night can same yet different to different people。 A night can be scary， peaceful， busy。 relaxing， entertaining， monotonous from person to person。 The story introduces us to people leading different lives for each of whom the night means something unique， for Mari it is an escape， for Eri it is something supernatural， for Takahashi it is a time of his favorite pass-time， for Kaori， Komogi it is another busy night of hard work。 The night is even-though presents a different experience to each of them， it is a form of escape to everyone。 。。。more
Jai
，
This book was huge disappoint for me， not only is it nowhere close to some of other work by author like Norwegian Wood， 1Q84， Kafka on the shore but there is just nothing there。 There is a set up and then that's it。 There was very little aspect of magical realism， there were no resolved arcs this was like a pilot episode of a show trying to get on air。 One potentially intriguing thread that could have been developed。 But really first few pages has a set up and then banality associated with it。I This book was huge disappoint for me， not only is it nowhere close to some of other work by author like Norwegian Wood， 1Q84， Kafka on the shore but there is just nothing there。 There is a set up and then that's it。 There was very little aspect of magical realism， there were no resolved arcs this was like a pilot episode of a show trying to get on air。 One potentially intriguing thread that could have been developed。 But really first few pages has a set up and then banality associated with it。I refuse to believe any great literary work is present here。 。。。more
Claire
，
theres something special about this book i keep coming back for
Christopher Campagno
，
This is one of those books that you really need to read twice to fully appreciate。 There is so much going on beyond the flat text and simple narrative that even after multiple reads， you may still be discovering more。I know three stars seems low， but I will definitely revisit this again one day。
Adam
，
noc jako čas， kdy vzniká prostor pro upřímnost， kdy můžeme odložit své masky， ale kdy také na povrch vyplouvají naše temné stránky。 noc jako čas， kdy ne všechno je vidět， ne všechno je srozumitelné， ale my stejně musíme vybrat svoji cestuměsto jako alegorie lidské mysli s jejími sny， touhami i s jejím podvědomím
Donn Lee
，
I liked the journey it brought me on。 It felt like a walk in the middle of the night， the perfect book to read when you can't sleep and just want to stay up till dawn。 What I did hope for was a conclusion （wishful thinking I know -- don't remember a single Murakami book that had all ends nicely tied up）。It was also a little short， but like I said， it's the perfect "can't sleep" kind of book， so maybe it was better that way。 I liked the journey it brought me on。 It felt like a walk in the middle of the night， the perfect book to read when you can't sleep and just want to stay up till dawn。 What I did hope for was a conclusion （wishful thinking I know -- don't remember a single Murakami book that had all ends nicely tied up）。It was also a little short， but like I said， it's the perfect "can't sleep" kind of book， so maybe it was better that way。 。。。more
elise maria
，
Maybe the laziest book I’ve ever read。 It has beautiful prose， fast-paced dialogue， and some very profound emotional commentary， but that just wasn’t enough for me。The laziest part of the writing is the point of view used。 Murakami describes it as a “pure point of view”， in the form of an “invisible camera”。 This would be fine if we didn’t then get a glimpse into certain characters’ thoughts and feelings at random times。 It’s like he couldn’t be bothered to paint the picture all the time， so he Maybe the laziest book I’ve ever read。 It has beautiful prose， fast-paced dialogue， and some very profound emotional commentary， but that just wasn’t enough for me。The laziest part of the writing is the point of view used。 Murakami describes it as a “pure point of view”， in the form of an “invisible camera”。 This would be fine if we didn’t then get a glimpse into certain characters’ thoughts and feelings at random times。 It’s like he couldn’t be bothered to paint the picture all the time， so he decided to throw in information a camera could never gather when convenient。The characters are extremely one-dimensional。 Mari， who is the closest we have to a main character， is basically the “not like other girls” trope to a T。 She has a beautiful sister， so she always felt pressure to be the smart one。 She’s quiet and brooding and doesn’t really want to talk to anyone because she’d rather be reading a book。 That’s seriously pretty much all we learn about her， and the treatment of other characters is very similar。There is no resolution to any conflicts that occur。 I’m not opposed to a book that doesn’t follow the typical plot structure。 A moody， vibey book that follows some characters around for a night is exactly what I was expecting， and I guess that’s what I got。 The problem with that is that the little conflicts that do occur aren’t resolved at all。 And the author ends the book by saying （more or less） “it’s all a cycle and everything comes to an end how it was meant to”。 Okay？ But that doesn’t mean I don’t want an explanation。 There’s also a lot of surrealism in here like people going into TV screens and reflections in mirrors moving on their own， but the best explanation we get for that is “maybe that was an optical illusion”。 Murakami clearly has no trust in the reader。 I graduated high school， so it’s safe to say that I’ve had more than a few English discussions。 I don’t need to be told “this is foreshadowing”。 There are a bunch of examples of things being obvious， then being clearly stated like “Hey idiot！ You probably weren’t paying attention， but this thing happened a few chapters ago， remember？ Here it is again！” （the phone in 7/11 thing made me SO angry）。 This is especially annoying because every detail that’s included outside of imagery is brought up again。 There’s just no faith at all in the reader to use their own brain or to be observant， which is extra insulting when you can predict that something more will happen later based on the way things are introduced。This brings me to my main gripe: the book reads like something expressly written to be analyzed in an English class。 Again， foreshadowing， instead of being crafted by the author and felt by the reader， is just stated。 The lack of explanation for plot resolutions has “what does this symbolize” discussions written all over it。 I guess with all the hype around Murakami， I was expecting this to all feel more sophisticated and intelligent。 It felt condescending。 The writing was beautiful at times， but other than that， my only compliment is that it was over quickly。 。。。more
mariane
，
im unsure what to rate this one bc i am cOnfuSioN， i liked the conversations between the characters however it felt a bit slow for me
july
，
people’s memories are maybe the fuel they burn to stay alive。
fran ☾
，
My first Murakami - and I’m absolutely blown away by it！ The writing is so cinematic and vivid that it felt like watching a carefully crafted film。 This is one of my fav reading experiences I’ve had in a very long time。
Derek Mitchell
，
With “After Dark”， I’ve finished all 14 of Murakami’s novels。 This last entry is rather lackluster - a smidge of mystery， sure; a dash of philosophy， certainly; a an otherworldly quality， naturally。 But it doesn’t have the grand scale - in the micro or macro， in the natural world or other - that makes for a great Murakami novel。 There was one quote that stood out however: “You know what I think？" she says。 "That people's memories are maybe the fuel they burn to stay alive。 Whether those memories With “After Dark”， I’ve finished all 14 of Murakami’s novels。 This last entry is rather lackluster - a smidge of mystery， sure; a dash of philosophy， certainly; a an otherworldly quality， naturally。 But it doesn’t have the grand scale - in the micro or macro， in the natural world or other - that makes for a great Murakami novel。 There was one quote that stood out however: “You know what I think？" she says。 "That people's memories are maybe the fuel they burn to stay alive。 Whether those memories have any actual importance or not， it doesn't matter as far as the maintenance of life is concerned。 They're all just fuel。 Advertising fillers in the newspaper， philosophy books， dirty pictures in a magazine， a bundle of ten-thousand-yen bills: when you feed 'em to the fire， they're all just paper。 The fire isn't thinking 'Oh， this is Kant，' or 'Oh， this is the Yomiuri evening edition，' or 'Nice tits，' while it burns。 To the fire， they're nothing but scraps of paper。 It's the exact same thing。 Important memories， not-so-important memories， totally useless memories: there's no distinction--they're all just fuel。” 。。。more
bluecolour
，
i could have finished it much sooner。This is a simply beautiful composition。 Not much drama， not much about a physically perfect girl friend and a simp guy thinking about his girl。 This is one of the most relatable fictions of HM that I adore， it just feels so right。 Said that tho， there are few bizarre features here and there， and the open ending for the characters are worth noticing too， but what I can tolerate is all of the characters' existence link to one another: like， because of her/him， i could have finished it much sooner。This is a simply beautiful composition。 Not much drama， not much about a physically perfect girl friend and a simp guy thinking about his girl。 This is one of the most relatable fictions of HM that I adore， it just feels so right。 Said that tho， there are few bizarre features here and there， and the open ending for the characters are worth noticing too， but what I can tolerate is all of the characters' existence link to one another: like， because of her/him， I can get to know you。Like the title said: After dark， the ''darkness'' of the night is everywhere， night people， night love hotels， nightlife， night in people's mingled minds。 But all will pass and the morning will come。4。25*/5 。。。more
Kath Lau
，
I've said this before and I'll say it again。 I always have a hard time reviewing Murakami's books。 I just can't find the right words to express my thoughts。 After Dark is eerie， atmospheric， and surreal。 It's definitely a fast-read but I took my time with it。 I didn't mind the open ending because I had such a wonderful time reading this book。 I thought it was one of the best Murakami books。 I've said this before and I'll say it again。 I always have a hard time reviewing Murakami's books。 I just can't find the right words to express my thoughts。 After Dark is eerie， atmospheric， and surreal。 It's definitely a fast-read but I took my time with it。 I didn't mind the open ending because I had such a wonderful time reading this book。 I thought it was one of the best Murakami books。 。。。more
Sana Saud
，
Murakami really good in details。。 but still the ending is incomprehensible for me
Musharrat Zahin
，
Interesting one
Chai
，
I decided to pick up this book since it's one of the few Murakami works with a female lead。 Eerie and dreamlike， I can't help but get some Alice in Wonderland vibes off this book。 Picking a Murakami always transports me to this misty world in sepia tones。 I always get this vibe from his books be it contemporary or magical realism。Murakami successfully captures the quality at night where things don't seem to be real。 Without the brightness of the daylight， we see the blurred edges of reality。On I decided to pick up this book since it's one of the few Murakami works with a female lead。 Eerie and dreamlike， I can't help but get some Alice in Wonderland vibes off this book。 Picking a Murakami always transports me to this misty world in sepia tones。 I always get this vibe from his books be it contemporary or magical realism。Murakami successfully captures the quality at night where things don't seem to be real。 Without the brightness of the daylight， we see the blurred edges of reality。On another note， I still find the way he writes women extremely uncomfortable。"Eri touches her fingers over her face， touching every bit of skin。 Through her pajama top， she lays her hands on her breasts。 She verifies that she is her usual self: a beautiful face and well-shaped breasts。" Wtf。 Who does that？ 。。。more
Robby Tunick
，
Solid。 Very neo-noir？
Brayden Mckelvey
，
I really enjoyed reading this book， and honestly it felt like I was reading a Vonnegut novel w a Murakami plot。 Its hard to explain， I loved it
ThePeenut
，
Good
Noor Tareq
，
نحن جميعنا بحاجة الى الحب و الاهتمام، ندور و ندور و نبحث، نتظاهر بالقسوة و بعضنا الاخر باللين، بحثا عن شخص يفهمنا و يحبنا، اذا وجدنا كنا محظوظين جدا، و ان لم نجده يال تعاستنا。هذه حال الجميع، ماري، إيري أساي، تاكاهاشي و تلك الفتاة الصينية أيضا。كل منهم له طريقته، ماري كانت تتظاهر بالقسوة من كثرة ما نبذها هذا العالم، و قارنها بشقيقتها إيري اساي الفائقة الجمال。ايري اساي تلك الفتاة الجميلة، رغم ما غمرت به من حب زائف و اهتمام مبالغ، الا انها هربت من كل ذلك الزيف بنوم طويل، بحثا عن حب اختها التي احستها نحن جميعنا بحاجة الى الحب و الاهتمام، ندور و ندور و نبحث، نتظاهر بالقسوة و بعضنا الاخر باللين، بحثا عن شخص يفهمنا و يحبنا، اذا وجدنا كنا محظوظين جدا، و ان لم نجده يال تعاستنا。هذه حال الجميع، ماري، إيري أساي، تاكاهاشي و تلك الفتاة الصينية أيضا。كل منهم له طريقته، ماري كانت تتظاهر بالقسوة من كثرة ما نبذها هذا العالم، و قارنها بشقيقتها إيري اساي الفائقة الجمال。ايري اساي تلك الفتاة الجميلة، رغم ما غمرت به من حب زائف و اهتمام مبالغ، الا انها هربت من كل ذلك الزيف بنوم طويل، بحثا عن حب اختها التي احستها بعيدة جدا عنها。تاكاهاشي، عانى حياة قاسيه، بعد وفاة والدته و حبس ابيه، قاوم بكل ما له من قوه، و اكمل حياته، احس بميله الى ايري اساي، لجمالها كما هو حال الجميع، لكنه كان يدرك ان ماري هي من تمتلك الحقيقة و لا شيء غيره。كانت هذه الرواية بمجملها تتحدث عن الخوف و الامان، الاهتمام و التوق إلى حب شخص يفهمنا و يقدرنا。 و للحقيقة ابدع موراكامي في هذه الرواية، من افضل ما قرأت له حتى الان。 。。。more
Caleb Stallings
，
combines some of my favorite things: late night diners， stray cats， surrealist dread， and a Pauline harmartiology
facervel
，
this was really good。
crow
，
“There will be time until the next darkness arrives。”
Samhara Navarrete
，
The beginning was intriguing， it kept me wanting to read more and more。 It was towards the middle that I got a little bored but I wanted to keep reading。 Then end， omg I have a lot of questions， I want to know more。 It was such beautiful writing
Rachita Singh
，
insufferable
Aliflanya A。 Maghfirah
，
this might be a kind of novel that you might want to rush to finish but also take it slower。 You might wanna slow down a bit to understand what Murakami is about to say by unraveling his analogies。 I love how he describe a suicidal act in casual way。 Just to remind us to always be thoughtful to whoever we cared。This book is about unraveling of what happened in the middle of the night and after what happened after that in Tokyo。 Many sides of view in one book
Aakash Anandjiwala
，
something about it soothed my soul
Violet Young
，
村上春樹在《天黑以後》給我的印象，是擅於描繪平行時空的作家。從中籍妓女影射日本侵華，到偶然撿到白川手機的年輕人高橋，代表著不為人知的「惡」流淌到無辜的後代身上。村上的擔心不無道理，他展露了作為人盡皆有的羞恥心，指出此等竭力埋藏是讓人堪憂的。無論是深眠的逃避，還是不眠的逃避，何種態度都會導致年輕一代成為歷史陰影的受害者。何以人明知故犯呢？何以埋沒良心呢？也許人本惡，明眼人遭殃而已。
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=After Dark
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=After Dark&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,After Dark&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0