"Kafka on the Shore" is the latest novel by Japan's leading literary novelist, who developed a world-wide cult reputation with "Norwegian Wood". In "Kafka on the Shore", Murakami continues with his remarkable combination of profound insight into humankind, with a totally credible touch of the fantastical - a unique tour de force. The teenager Kafka Tamura goes on the run, and holes up in a strange library in a small country town. Concurrently, Nakata, a finder of lost cats, goes on a puzzling odyssey across Japan. Only gradually do we find how these stories interweave. An engaging but moving novel.