Haruki Murakami

Haruki Murakami is a globally renowned Japanese novelist recognized for his surreal storytelling, emotional subtlety, and philosophical exploration of memory, identity, and consciousness. Before becoming a writer, he owned and operated a jazz bar in Tokyo, a lifestyle that eventually led him to adopt running as a means of maintaining health and structure. After selling the bar to pursue writing full-time, he built a routine incorporating daily running, which has supported his literary productivity for decades. Murakami has completed numerous marathons, ultramarathons, and triathlons. His best-known works include Norwegian Wood, Kafka on the Shore, The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, and 1Q84. Through this memoir, he provides rare insight into the personal discipline and internal world behind his fiction, revealing how running has shaped not only his body but the essence of his creative life.