Emma Loffhagen “Haruki Murakami to publish first novel to feature woman as lead character” https://www.theguardian.com/books/2026/apr/24/haruki-murakami-first-novel-to-feature-woman-sole-protagonist-the-tale-of-kaho
村上春樹*1は７月３日に、長編小説『夏帆 The Tale of KAHO』を刊行する。これは彼にとって、女性を主人公とした初めての長編小説になる。
The 352-page novel centres on Kaho, a 26-year-old picture book author, and is based on a four-part series by the author originally published in the literary magazine Shincho between June 2024 and March 2026. The novel is a revised and expanded version. The first instalment, which was translated into English by Philip Gabriel, appeared in the New Yorker in 2024. The story begins with Kaho going on a blind date with a man who tells her: “I’ve dated all kinds of women in my life, but I have to say I’ve never seen one as ugly as you.”
See also
The 77-year-old Murakami has faced consistent criticism for his portrayal of women*2, often accused of reducing female characters to sexualised or one-dimensional objects. In a widely cited 2004 interview in the Paris Review, he said of the female characters in his novels: “In my stories, women are mediums – harbingers of the coming world. That’s why they always come to my protagonist; he doesn’t go to them.”In an interview with the New York Times in February, Murakami described writing from a woman’s perspective as unfamiliar but natural. “I became her,” he said. He also said the novel felt more optimistic than his previous work.
Yugaming「村上春樹、16作目の長編小説を刊行 3年ぶりの新作は初の女性単独主人公」https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/91a5c410820cbe3d3494e894b26bcb3a1e22391e
*1:See also http://d.hatena.ne.jp/sumita-m/20060313/1142223339 http://d.hatena.ne.jp/sumita-m/20060410/1144639519 http://d.hatena.ne.jp/sumita-m/20060509/1147140135 http://d.hatena.ne.jp/sumita-m/20060521/1148175252 http://d.hatena.ne.jp/sumita-m/20060724/1153751219 http://d.hatena.ne.jp/sumita-m/20060913/1158115201 http://d.hatena.ne.jp/sumita-m/20070321/1174443344 http://d.hatena.ne.jp/sumita-m/20070710/1184081348 http://d.hatena.ne.jp/sumita-m/20070817/1187321781 http://d.hatena.ne.jp/sumita-m/20071012/1192169273 http://d.hatena.ne.jp/sumita-m/20071017/1192639890 http://d.hatena.ne.jp/sumita-m/20071024/1193237687 http://d.hatena.ne.jp/sumita-m/20080414/1208109160 http://d.hatena.ne.jp/sumita-m/20080724/1216900400 http://d.hatena.ne.jp/sumita-m/20080916/1221532070 http://d.hatena.ne.jp/sumita-m/20081030/1225335368 http://d.hatena.ne.jp/sumita-m/20090217/1234840899 http://d.hatena.ne.jp/sumita-m/20090219/1235062130 http://d.hatena.ne.jp/sumita-m/20090308/1236521261 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https://sumita-m.hatenadiary.com/entry/2025/11/24/135904
*2:リンクされているのはDavid McNeill "Mieko Kawakami: 'Women are no longer content to shut up'" https://www.theguardian.com/books/2020/aug/18/mieko-kawakami-interview-breasts-and-eggs-haruki-murakami 川上未映子へのインタヴューである。
