At the End of the Matinee
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- Create Date：2021-05-03 11:51:19
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Keiichirō Hirano
- ISBN：1542005183
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Summary
Bestselling author Keiichiro Hirano offers a timeless ode to love’s fragility and its resilience in this delicate， award-winning novel。
Classical guitarist Satoshi Makino has toured the world and is at the height of his career when he first lays eyes on journalist Yoko Komine。 Their bond forms instantly。
Upon their first meeting， after Makino’s concert in Tokyo， they begin a conversation that will go on for years， with long spells of silence broken by powerful moments of connection。 She’s drawn by Makino’s tender music and his sensitivity， and he is intrigued by Yoko’s refinement and intellect。 But neither knows enough about love to see it blooming nor has the confidence to make the first move。 Will their connection endure， weaving them back together like instruments in a symphony， or will fate lead them apart？
Blending the harmonies of Kazuo Ishiguro’s Nocturnes and the sensuality of Ian McEwan’s Enduring Love， At the End of the Matinee is an enchanting and thought-provoking love story。
Classical guitarist Satoshi Makino has toured the world and is at the height of his career when he first lays eyes on journalist Yoko Komine。 Their bond forms instantly。
Upon their first meeting， after Makino’s concert in Tokyo， they begin a conversation that will go on for years， with long spells of silence broken by powerful moments of connection。 She’s drawn by Makino’s tender music and his sensitivity， and he is intrigued by Yoko’s refinement and intellect。 But neither knows enough about love to see it blooming nor has the confidence to make the first move。 Will their connection endure， weaving them back together like instruments in a symphony， or will fate lead them apart？
Blending the harmonies of Kazuo Ishiguro’s Nocturnes and the sensuality of Ian McEwan’s Enduring Love， At the End of the Matinee is an enchanting and thought-provoking love story。
Reviews
Linda
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Star crossed LoversThis romance is like a breath of fresh air。 Japanese classical guitarist Makino meets Yoko， a journalist in Iraq。 Their relationship consists of three face to face conversations during which they fall in love。 Their careers keep them on different continents and necessitates conversing via Skype。 They hint at marriage during Yoko’s trip to Japan when circumstances prevent them from getting together。 In order to avoid spoiling the ending， I will leave it there with high praise。
lw
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DNF at 20%I'm sure this is a great book for someone but it's not for me。 I found it incredibly dull and meandering， it kept wandering in all the spaces around the plot using the most monotonous voice possible。 I just truly do not want to continue DNF at 20%I'm sure this is a great book for someone but it's not for me。 I found it incredibly dull and meandering， it kept wandering in all the spaces around the plot using the most monotonous voice possible。 I just truly do not want to continue 。。。more
oren ellis
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I am amazed by the beautiful writing and the tenderness of the story exhibiting life's hope and life's realities。 life's hopes and it's realities。 There was a tension within me as I read this brilliant story and it took a while for it to subside。 I am amazed by the beautiful writing and the tenderness of the story exhibiting life's hope and life's realities。 life's hopes and it's realities。 There was a tension within me as I read this brilliant story and it took a while for it to subside。 。。。more
Marsha Raasch
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I really debated a 3 or 4 rating because the book bored me a bit in the beginning and I was mentally saying to both main characters "Overthinking much？"The entire story is largely of the interior ruminations and inner workings of the characters， through which the outer events of the world in general， and their small worlds in particular， are given shape。 But。。。the writing is so delicately beautiful。 Ranging from modern topics such as the Middle East， the financial crash in 2007， refugee crisis i I really debated a 3 or 4 rating because the book bored me a bit in the beginning and I was mentally saying to both main characters "Overthinking much？"The entire story is largely of the interior ruminations and inner workings of the characters， through which the outer events of the world in general， and their small worlds in particular， are given shape。 But。。。the writing is so delicately beautiful。 Ranging from modern topics such as the Middle East， the financial crash in 2007， refugee crisis in numerous countries， harking back to WWII and the atom bomb， multiple viewpoints and considerations are heard from both the characters and their respective countries viewpoints。 Music， literature， geography， languages and philosophy are also woven into this story about two people in midlife finding love， discovering different types of love （familial， gratitude， etc vs the transcendent soul mate type） ， losing and possibly revisiting that love， and how soulmate love changes one's soul， no matter the physical outcome。 。。。more
Ong Thiam
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Terribly Disappointed I bought this novel after reading The Man， which I felt it was a very well crafted story and it is still one of my favourite books。 But At the End of the Matinee turned out to be a sore disappointment。 I can't comment on the entire book because I couldn't finish beyond the first 100 pages。 The characters and plot are so contrived。 A famous musician fell in love with a war correspondent who happened to be some well known Yugoslavian film director。 Throughout the pages that I Terribly Disappointed I bought this novel after reading The Man， which I felt it was a very well crafted story and it is still one of my favourite books。 But At the End of the Matinee turned out to be a sore disappointment。 I can't comment on the entire book because I couldn't finish beyond the first 100 pages。 The characters and plot are so contrived。 A famous musician fell in love with a war correspondent who happened to be some well known Yugoslavian film director。 Throughout the pages that I read， the story was peppered with lots of unfamiliar names and references to distant historical events， fictional characters that were mentioned but not seen and so forth。 Names like Vsevolod Garshin， Duino Elegies， Mario Castelnuovo Tedesco， just to name a few really put me off。 It even included history and events of the Iraq War which I felt was totally unnecessary and killed any joy of reading this book。 Characters were outright pretentious， wallowing in self-pity and shallow to the extent it made the book unreadable。 Absolute waste of time and money。 。。。more
Bob
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This is a love story， not the kind of story i often read。 It was written by a japanese author。 It's two protagonists， the lovers， are a field journalist and a classical guitarist。 They meet in early adulthood， share one night of conversation and are both smitten， but each has their job and they are forced to go their separate ways。 Years pass。 They meet again and solidify their love， each hoping for a shared future， but once again they must part。 They have one other meeting and just when things This is a love story， not the kind of story i often read。 It was written by a japanese author。 It's two protagonists， the lovers， are a field journalist and a classical guitarist。 They meet in early adulthood， share one night of conversation and are both smitten， but each has their job and they are forced to go their separate ways。 Years pass。 They meet again and solidify their love， each hoping for a shared future， but once again they must part。 They have one other meeting and just when things look like they will have a happily ever after， fate intervenes and a misunderstanding rips them apart。 Each goes their separate way and they carry on with life。 They each get married， have children， etc。 but always still yearn for the love that could have been。 There's not a lot of action in this book。 Lots of description。 Lots of inner thoughts。 All of it wonderfully written。 The ending i at first thought was a disappointment， but ending any other way would have appeared cheesy or heavy handed。 。。。more
Archana Nair
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A love story where the couple keeps missing each other at different points in life。 Really liked the second half of the book， which is action-packed。 There were a lot of elements in the book where the author mused about art， music， tragedy， and life。 Felt like those elements took away the romance and diluted the love story。
Heaton Wilson
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A symphonyThis is one of the best stories I have ever read。 Its theme is music and it has the power of a symphony。 It is a classic and deserves a standing ovation！I only discovered it by chance but I will never forget it。 I defy anyone not to be absorbed and moved by this beautifully observed love story。
Masooma
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At first I was hesitant， I don't do deep moving books。 But as I continued， I couldn't put it down。 I'm not going to lie， I did skip the middle because I couldn't bare the pain that was described so beautifully。 The conflict was a conflict for me。 But I would go back and read it， because， I know the ending now。 I feel calm。 It wasn't the ending I wanted because Hirano gave me very little， but gave me enough to stop me from being left deflated。 I'm glad I read this book。 It opened me up emotionall At first I was hesitant， I don't do deep moving books。 But as I continued， I couldn't put it down。 I'm not going to lie， I did skip the middle because I couldn't bare the pain that was described so beautifully。 The conflict was a conflict for me。 But I would go back and read it， because， I know the ending now。 I feel calm。 It wasn't the ending I wanted because Hirano gave me very little， but gave me enough to stop me from being left deflated。 I'm glad I read this book。 It opened me up emotionally in a way I never saw in myself。 And if it really is a work of fiction with non fiction than whoever's lives I read about， I salute you for what you have gone through， all because of one misunderstanding。 All because of pride and pain that stopped you from finding out the whys， the reasons behind the messages。 I hope you are happy now， I hope that the life that had to be created in order for you to find eachother again， is the way you always imagined it to be。 。。。more
Grace McGinn
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GrippingAt the beginning of this novel it seemed stilted and verbose。 As you continue through this tragic love story it grips your desire to write a happy ending， and you are compelled to read straight through。
Grace Edwards
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Cut with conflict， infernal and external， it’s a slow burn of a read watching these highly intrinsic characters have more conversations with themselves than each other。 I enjoyed the musical aspect and the idea that how we look at the past is ever-changing。 I just wish we had more showing and less telling in regards to the characters stories， especially with such beautiful writing。 Thank you Amazon Crossing and NG for an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review。
Andrea
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I could not put this book down。 It’s heartbreaking and somehow healing at the same time？ Beautiful。 Makes me so upset and somehow provides just enough satisfaction to prevent me throwing it across the room。 I wouldn’t say this is about lost love but rather love that has changed， shifted， and mutated form。 I think the perspective on memory and the arguments about destiny and self-determination were the most powerful。 I’m not sure what to conclude except that I need to remedy my lack of classical I could not put this book down。 It’s heartbreaking and somehow healing at the same time？ Beautiful。 Makes me so upset and somehow provides just enough satisfaction to prevent me throwing it across the room。 I wouldn’t say this is about lost love but rather love that has changed， shifted， and mutated form。 I think the perspective on memory and the arguments about destiny and self-determination were the most powerful。 I’m not sure what to conclude except that I need to remedy my lack of classical music knowledge。 。。。more
Arun
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An absolutely exquisite mediation on art， free will， destiny， and love with a rich soundtrack of classical guitar pieces。 One of the finest pieces of contemporary fiction from Japan I’ve ever read！
WeLoveBigBooksAndWeCannotLie
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Do you love a love story？💞At the End of the Matinee by Keiichirō Hirano was a poetic love story with a melancholy undertone。Makino is a world famous classical guitarist and after one of his concerts he meets the fascinating journalist Yoko Komine。They are both into their middle ages and neither has ever been married， however Yoko is recently engaged。 She is intrigued and admires Makino for this unique talent and slightly strange personality。They attempt to keep in touch and a slow love story beg Do you love a love story？💞At the End of the Matinee by Keiichirō Hirano was a poetic love story with a melancholy undertone。Makino is a world famous classical guitarist and after one of his concerts he meets the fascinating journalist Yoko Komine。They are both into their middle ages and neither has ever been married， however Yoko is recently engaged。 She is intrigued and admires Makino for this unique talent and slightly strange personality。They attempt to keep in touch and a slow love story begins to grow。 I enjoyed reading this book， the translation was beautiful， but I was left feeling unsure of how I felt。 This was a compelling read with heavy subjects like PTSD， I didn’t want to put it down once I picked it up。In celebration of World Book Day， Amazon Publishing is giving away 10 Kindle books from around the globe！ ANYONE can download these titles through the end of today， including At the End of the Matinee！Thank you @tlcbooktours and @amazonpublishing for gifting us this copy！ You can also find this book on our Amazon Storefront！ 。。。more
Jessica | JustReadingJess
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At the End of the Matinee is a unique story about two people that instantly fall in love but then don’t see each other for years。 I loved how music was such an important part of the story with Satoshi Makino being a famous guitarist。 When he meets Yoko Komino they instantly form a bond but they go years without seeing or talking to each other。 The story takes place over years with multiple reunions。 Their lives keep drifting apart and coming back together。 Can they figure out how to make their l At the End of the Matinee is a unique story about two people that instantly fall in love but then don’t see each other for years。 I loved how music was such an important part of the story with Satoshi Makino being a famous guitarist。 When he meets Yoko Komino they instantly form a bond but they go years without seeing or talking to each other。 The story takes place over years with multiple reunions。 Their lives keep drifting apart and coming back together。 Can they figure out how to make their love last？ Both characters have interesting lives and I enjoyed seeing how their lives progressed throughout the years。 At the End of the Matinee is a beautiful story that I definitely recommend。I listened to the audiobook narrated by Brian Nishii and enjoyed his narration。 He was the perfect voice for Makino。Thank you Megan Beatie Communications， Amazon Crossing and Brilliance Audio for At the End of the Matinee。Full Review: https://justreadingjess。wordpress。com。。。 。。。more
Anthony H。
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Rather than responding to anything posted here by others， or reviewing the novel directly， I'd like to offer some thoughts drawn from my knowledge of the author。 First， 'Matinee' and 'A Man' are utterly different from Mr。 Hirano's scholarly， neoclassical， early novels 'Eclipse' and 'One Month，' both of which are in the process of being translated into English （they've long been available in French and several other languages--we in the English-language world are years behind！）。 When published in Rather than responding to anything posted here by others， or reviewing the novel directly， I'd like to offer some thoughts drawn from my knowledge of the author。 First， 'Matinee' and 'A Man' are utterly different from Mr。 Hirano's scholarly， neoclassical， early novels 'Eclipse' and 'One Month，' both of which are in the process of being translated into English （they've long been available in French and several other languages--we in the English-language world are years behind！）。 When published in English， they'll present readers with new perspectives on Mr。 Hirano's work。 Second， "Matinee" reflects his philosophy of "bunjin" 分人， which holds that we're somewhat different people depending on what we're doing--working in the office vs。 reading a favorite book， for example--or whom we're interacting with， and that one's "true self，" if it exists at all， is the amalgamation of one's various personas in one's own mind。 The same theme is prominent in 'A Man。' Third， as I think someone has already mentioned， Mr。 Hirano is concerned with relationships among the past， the present， and the future。 This is rather explicit in the 'Matinee。' Finally， the ending of 'Matinee' （no spoiler here） reminds me of the endings of some well-known 20th-century Japanese masterpieces， such as 'Kokoro' （by Natsume Soseki） and 'Some Prefer Nettles' （by Tanizaki）， works with which it has little else in common。 。。。more
Andy Bintoro
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Real life storyI read this because of world book day on Kindle。 I just don't want to skip a free book 🤣 what make this romance book interesting was the claim that this is a real life story， just the name being changed。 Thus made this book half biography。 Real life storyI read this because of world book day on Kindle。 I just don't want to skip a free book 🤣 what make this romance book interesting was the claim that this is a real life story， just the name being changed。 Thus made this book half biography。 。。。more
Cheryl
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i own this on kindle because free for world book day
Diane Zwang
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Amazon World Book Day 2021 Japan
Yuko
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Overall it was okay， meticulously written， but I simply couldn't like it so much。 The main characters' actions were neither rational nor relatable。 Although it is often described as a sensitive love story for adults， I personally felt it's a little more childish。 Still， the underlying message， "the future is continually changing the past" was inspiring throughout the story。 Overall it was okay， meticulously written， but I simply couldn't like it so much。 The main characters' actions were neither rational nor relatable。 Although it is often described as a sensitive love story for adults， I personally felt it's a little more childish。 Still， the underlying message， "the future is continually changing the past" was inspiring throughout the story。 。。。more
Trona
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WedTh uni uh oh but I bet m！I com in I I I I I I g k I John。
Uk2795
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Vggfar received f d d。 F f d d d d d d d d d d d g g f
Roxana Chirilă
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Whether you like or dislike "At the End of the Matinee" is probably going to depend on your expectations coming into it， and on your stance on destiny。It starts like a romance: after one of the concerts given when he's 38 and celebrating 20 years of professional musical activity， Satoshi Makino， an exceptional classical guitarist， is introduced to Yoko Komine， a highly educated half-Japanese， half-Croatian journalist。 They find a deep， life-changing connection right away。But this isn't， really， Whether you like or dislike "At the End of the Matinee" is probably going to depend on your expectations coming into it， and on your stance on destiny。It starts like a romance: after one of the concerts given when he's 38 and celebrating 20 years of professional musical activity， Satoshi Makino， an exceptional classical guitarist， is introduced to Yoko Komine， a highly educated half-Japanese， half-Croatian journalist。 They find a deep， life-changing connection right away。But this isn't， really， a romance。 It's a book pondering on the ripple effect of small events， on coincidences， on how the future rewrites our perception of the past， on destiny versus choice。 It's mostly a thoughtful book， filled with longing and overt questions of how to handle those small， nagging "what ifs" in life， as well as subtextual questions regarding what it means to be "mature"。 A couple of events are on the edge of believability and one really wishes that the main characters would just。。。 talk。 And be more clear with each other， avoiding consequences。 But then again， perhaps they cannot be more clear， and their circumstances and personalities have set them up for just that situation they're in。 In a way almost akin to a Greek tragedy， you cannot help but wish things played out differently and be frustrated that they don't （for the want of a detail）， while watching them unfold in perhaps the only way they can。As the book is about a classical guitarist， I didn't expect to understand many musical references， but Keiichirō Hirano is quite adept at describing music in such a way as to make readers feel it and understand the charm of concerts and the work of a performer。It's a charming novel， though perhaps not everyone's cup of tea。Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for offering a free copy in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
JDK1962
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Hard to describe。 Things happen， characters react and their lives change， but often without the full （or any） story， and they end up re-interpreting their past when the truth emerges。 These are very introspective characters。。。 The act of betrayal （the cell phone incident） almost made me stop reading， because it was such an incredibly cruel and selfish thing to do， but I'm glad I continued on。It was also nice to see a book with a working classical artist as a main character。 As someone working on Hard to describe。 Things happen， characters react and their lives change， but often without the full （or any） story， and they end up re-interpreting their past when the truth emerges。 These are very introspective characters。。。 The act of betrayal （the cell phone incident） almost made me stop reading， because it was such an incredibly cruel and selfish thing to do， but I'm glad I continued on。It was also nice to see a book with a working classical artist as a main character。 As someone working on my guitar skills， I always enjoy books that don't gloss over the role that practice plays in building and keeping skills。A thanks to Amazon for the free copy as a promo for World Book Day。 I don't think I would have encountered this otherwise。 。。。more
Jennifer Redmond
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Brilliant and poetic and realHow to summarize or recommend such a novel as this？ I can only say that the characters were incredibly real。 They lived and breathed in my mind and my heart。 I was profoundly moved by the writing; I must give a nod to the translator， since the book seemed at once to be crafted in another language and completely fluent。
Alex
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A professional guitar player and a reporter meet after a concert， and this account follows them for a period of several years as they love their lives。Okay， my summary isn’t the best， but this is a beautiful book。 If you’re looking for a fast-paced book， this isn’t for you; even though the book covers several years， it moves very slowly， which is part of the reason I took so long to finish。 However， if you’re willing to take a chance on a dialogue-driven book， this novel is totally worth it。Ther A professional guitar player and a reporter meet after a concert， and this account follows them for a period of several years as they love their lives。Okay， my summary isn’t the best， but this is a beautiful book。 If you’re looking for a fast-paced book， this isn’t for you; even though the book covers several years， it moves very slowly， which is part of the reason I took so long to finish。 However， if you’re willing to take a chance on a dialogue-driven book， this novel is totally worth it。There are a couple of descriptions that bothered me， like one character， though not maliciously， saying another character was a “half-breed”。 The main male character appears to be too obsessive at the beginning。 I have no problem with love-at-first sight tropes， but his behavior comes off very stalker-y or something at first。 And there’s another character that’s very frustrating that I can’t mention because it would spoil a whole lot。The writing， however， is wonderful。 Dialogue-focused novels are not really my thing， but this book made me forget that for a minute。 I hope you decide to give it a chance， too; I definitely don’t regret it。Thank you so much to NetGalleyand Amazon Crossing for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Mandy
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I wasn’t at all convinced by this romance novel， and in fact became increasingly irritated as the narrative progressed。 It tells of the ill-fated relationship between a classical guitarist and a journalist， who， when they meet for the first time， connect immediately and profoundly – and for ever。 So far so saccharine。 But it seems they are destined to be kept apart - with a bit of help from a jealous personal assistant， in a plot twist that is just so unlikely that I nearly gave up at that point I wasn’t at all convinced by this romance novel， and in fact became increasingly irritated as the narrative progressed。 It tells of the ill-fated relationship between a classical guitarist and a journalist， who， when they meet for the first time， connect immediately and profoundly – and for ever。 So far so saccharine。 But it seems they are destined to be kept apart - with a bit of help from a jealous personal assistant， in a plot twist that is just so unlikely that I nearly gave up at that point。 I just couldn’t understand why this mature experienced couple couldn't simply talk it all through and get it together – instead of sacrificing their lives to some implausible misunderstanding。 Platitudes and clichés abound in this book， not least in the descriptions of the women – I thought we had got past the fainting feeble woman longing to melt into their lover’s arms。 The characters lack depth， the dialogue is overwritten and the emotions verge on the melodramatic。 So anything to like？ A few things， to be fair。 The protagonist’s musical career is quite well handled， and the journalist’s experiences in Baghdad add some interest。 But overall this is not one I can recommend。 。。。more
Mary
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Unique read
John
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