Haruki Murakami releases first novel with female protagonist, "The Tale of Kaho"
Haruki Murakami's new book, titled "The Tale of Kaho," went on sale in Japan on Friday. It is his first full‑length novel featuring a female protagonist, and fans marked the release with a midnight countdown event at a major Tokyo bookstore.
Haruki Murakami's new book went on sale in Japan on Friday. The novel, titled "The Tale of Kaho," features a female protagonist and is Murakami's first full‑length novel with a female lead.
Fans marked the release at a countdown event at a major Tokyo bookstore at midnight. According to *mainichi.jp*, the countdown event was held at the Kinokuniya bookstore in Tokyo on July 2, 2026.
Murakami posted a brief message on the publisher's campaign website stating he wrote the novel as he put himself in the protagonist's shoes, *mainichi.jp* reported.
*Mainichi.jp* also reported that the protagonist is named Kaho, a picture book author and an average young woman, and that bizarre things start happening around Kaho in the novel. The outlet noted that most of Murakami's protagonists are young or middle‑aged men.
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