Title: After Dark
Publication Year: 2004
Plot: The book follows the interconnected lives of various characters over the course of a single night in Tokyo. The story primarily revolves around two sisters, Mari and Eri Asai, as well as several other individuals they encounter throughout the night. Mari, a college student, finds herself alone in a diner late at night, where she meets Takahashi, a jazz trombonist. Meanwhile, her sister Eri remains in a deep sleep at home, seemingly trapped in a mysterious coma-like state. As the night progresses, the characters navigate the surreal landscape of Tokyo, delving into themes of isolation, connection, and the unconscious mind, ultimately culminating in a series of interconnected events that blur the lines between reality and dreams.
Trivia: Like other Murakami novels, After Dark features a dual narrative. About half of the book focuses on Mari Asai and half focuses on her sister, Eri. There is a third narrative involving Shirakawa, but this is woven into Mari's half of the tale. Like his other novels, Murakami brings the two story threads together.
When the readers showed up, it was fun to hear what words they used to describe After Dark. “Trippy.” “Weird.” “Left turn after left turn.” All of which meant they really enjoyed it! One reader read the entire book in one afternoon. Many of them really liked the journey this book took them on, even if there are unanswered questions and mysterious elements to the novel.
In one section of the novel, a character notices their shadow follows them around. Or a shadow, rather. And he couldn’t help but think of his past and the reason he is in prison. “We all have shadows that follow us around, whether we like it or not. This scene reminded me of that.”
We also talked for a while about the unplugged television that still worked. We could not crack the code: what does it mean? What does it symbolize? Is it supernatural? There were a few other elements like this that had the readers scratching their head. There were loose ends, scenes that left us wondering what was going on. But no mind, the scenes were so surreal and engaging, nobody seemed to mind. “I have never read a book like this,” one reader mentioned. And that is why book clubs are important, to read things you wouldn’t otherwise read.
Murakami makes some great moves as a writer here. The POV he utilizes was fascinating to our group. He describes things as a movie camera would see them, using “we” a lot, inviting the reader to participate. One reader pointed out that it’s not like we have a choice when Murakami writes, “We descend below and go into the house.” Another reader said he liked it because it laid out that the author is the god of a story—they control what we see. By using “we” narratively, the readers were more interested and felt like they were moving through the story in a different way.
Lastly, the readers talked about the “backpages” that any city has. After Dark takes place in one night, from midnight to just before 7:00 AM. And they read things that would not fit well in novels that take place in the light of day. They were drawn to the dreamlike nature of the story, and thought Tokyo, like any city, has some darker aspects of the city that are hidden most of the time.
Overall, the readers were a big fan of this one, which makes me happy, as Murakami is one of my favorite authors.
That’s it for this week. Next week, we’re reading some non-fiction in the form of Francisco Cantu’s The Line Becomes a River. We hope you’re reading something good.
Until next time,
E.
If you would like to read After Dark, here are some links:
I can think of no other writer than Murakami that does magic realism quite as good. Thanks for this write up, it reminded me I should probably dust off my Murakami books!