Boy in the Basement

Haruki Murakami has achieved international recognition never before accorded to a Japanese writer. His 1987 novel, Norwegian Wood, alone has sold more than 10 million copies in Japanese and 37 other languages worldwide. To say he is prolific is to understate matters. So far he has produced 14 book-length works of fiction, 15 anthologies of short stories, 20 collections of essays, and an astounding 23 volumes of translations of novels and short stories by Raymond Carver, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Truman Capote, Raymond Chandler, J.D. Salinger and about a dozen other lesser known American writers. Murakami also writes children’s stories, publishes collections of his own photographs, contributes to newspapers and magazines, runs marathons in far-flung cities such as New York, Athens and Honolulu, and writes essays about running and travel.

He also finds time to connect personally with...