Reality bends all the more acutely with lack of sleep in this stunning new novel from the master of the surreal. Murakami's previous collection of short stories "Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman" has sold over 40,000 copies in hardback and trade paperback, and won the Frank O'Connor International Short Story Award. For his many acclaimed and wonderful novels, which include "Norwegian Wood", "The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle" and "Kafka On The Shore", Murakami was recently awarded the Franz Kafka Award for 'exceptional literary criticism'. 'Cool, fluent and addictive' "Daily Telegraph"

The midnight hour approaches in an almost-empty diner. Mari sips her coffee and reads a book, but soon her solitude is disturbed: a girl has been beaten up at the Alphaville hotel, and needs Mari's help. Meanwhile Mari's beautiful sister Eri lies in a deep, heavy sleep that is 'too perfect, too pure' to be normal; it has lasted for two months.