End of the World and Hard-Boiled Wonderland

“Murakami’s bold willingness to go straight over the top [is] a signal indication of his genius . . . a world-class writer who has both eyes open and takes big risks.” –The Washington Post Book World “He has become the foremost representative of a new style of Japanese writing: hip, cynical, highly stylized, set at the juncture of cyberpunk, postmodernism, and hard-boiled detective fiction. . . . Murakami [is] adept at deadpan wit, outrageous style.” –Los Angeles Times Magazine “Fantastical, mysterious, and funny . . . a fantasy world that might have been penned by Franz Kafka.” –Philadelphia Inquirer “Rich in action, suspense, odd characters and unexpected trifles . . . [a] provocative work.” –The Atlantic “Murakami’s gift is for ironic observations that hint at something graver. . . . He is wry, absurd, and desolate.” –Los Angeles Times Book Review “[A] mix of American fun and Japanese dread.” –Esquire “An intertwining DNA model of seemingly contrary elements . . . a combination of Kafka’s castle, Borges’s library, and the Prisoner’s TV village.” –Village Voice Literary Supplement “Off the wall . . . hilariously bizarre . . . splendid . . . a remarkable book . . . Alfred Birnbaum . . . has captured the crazed, surreal feel of Murakami’s Japanese.” –The Times (London) “His novels . . . are set on fast-forward: raucous, slangy, irreverent.” –Details