Author Haruki Murakami to publish new book after 6 years

Murakami’s works have been translated into approximately 50 languages.

Tokyo:

Renowned Japanese author Haruki Murakami will release his first new novel in six years this April, publisher Shinkosha announced Wednesday.

Few details were given about the new work, which will be Murakami’s first novel since “Killing Commendatore” was published in February 2017.

In a brief statement in Japanese, Shinkosha said the new work would be published on April 13, but gave neither its title nor plot details.

The book is expected to be initially published in Japanese, which will be translated later.

Shinchosha told AFP he could not confirm when the translation of the book would be released or when the book’s name would be announced.

The publisher stated that the title would be 1,200 Japanese manuscript pages, but the exact number of book pages has yet to be confirmed.

Murakami is an internationally renowned author, a perennial nominee for the Nobel Literature Prize.

The 74-year-old has a cult following in pop culture thanks to his original works, which have been translated into nearly 50 languages.

Readers are drawn into the so-called “Murakami world” where giant frogs challenge mercenaries to battle and mackerel rain from the skies.

Murakami is known to be a reclusive figure, but the author has delighted fans in recent years by moonlighting as a radio DJ.

And in 2021, a new library filled with his novels, scrapbooks and vinyl will open at Waseda University in Tokyo – which features a replica of the author’s minimalist workspace, a cafe and a radio studio.

For the 2017 release of “Killing Commendatore,” major bookstores in Tokyo stayed open well past midnight so eager fans could get the book right away.

Shinkosha stated at the time that plot details were kept under wraps to respect Murakami’s wish for “readers to discover it without knowing anything beforehand”.

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