Almost Transparent Blue
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| Front cover of the 1st ed. English trade paperback (1981) | |
| Author | Ryu Murakami |
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| Original title (if not in English) | 限りなく透明に近いブルー |
| Translator | Nancy Andrew |
| Country | Japan |
| Language | Japanese |
| Genre(s) | Fiction |
| Publisher | Kodansha International (JPN) |
| Released | 1976 (1st edition) |
| Media Type | Print (Hardcover) |
| Pages | 126 (English 1st ed. hardcover 1977) |
| ISBN | ISBN 0-87011-305-4 (English 1st ed. hardcover 1977) |
Almost Transparent Blue (限りなく透明に近いブルー Kagirinaku tōmei ni chikai burū?) is a novel by Japanese author Ryū Murakami, published in 1976.
Contents |
[edit] Plot Introduction
Narrated by the main character Ryū (possibly Ryū Murakami himself,) the novel focuses on his small group of twenty-something friends in the mid-seventies. Living in a Japanese port town with an American military base, their lives revolve around sex, drugs and rock 'n roll. The near-plotless story weaves a vividly raw image intensive journey through the daily monotony of drug-induced hallucinations, vicious acts of violence, overdoses, suicide, and group sex.
[edit] Characters in "Almost Transparent Blue"
- Ryū – Narrator. 20 year-old bisexual substance abuser.
- Lilly – Ryū's prostitute friend and casual sex partner.
- Reiko – From Okinawa, sexually promiscuous friend of Ryū and girlfriend of Okinawa.
- Okinawa – From Okinawa, drug addicted friend of Ryū and boyfriend of Reiko.
- Yoshiyama – Unemployed junkie friend of Ryū and abusive boyfriend of Kei.
- Kei – Friend of Ryū and sexually promiscuous girlfriend of Yoshiyama.
- Kazuo – Male friend of Ryū.
- Moko – Sexually promiscuous substance abuser friend of Ryū.
[edit] Awards and nominations
Murakami submitted the novel to the literary magazine Gunzo's debutant contest, in which it won the first prize. It also won the prestigious Akutagawa Prize the same year.
[edit] Film, TV or theatrical adaptations
Murakami directed a film adaptation in 1979. [1]
[edit] English-language editions
- Ryū Murakami, Almost Transparent Blue (Kagirinaku tōmei ni chikai burū), translated by Nancy Andrew, 1st hardback ed., Tokyo ; New York : Kodansha International : Distributed by Kodansha International/USA through Harper & Row, 1977, 126 pages. Tokyo ; New York : Kodansha International : Distributed by Kodansha International/USA through Harper & Row, 1977, 126 p. ISBN 0-87011-305-4
- Ryū Murakami, Almost Transparent Blue, translated by Nancy Andrew, 1st paperback ed., Tokyo; New York : Kodansha International, 1981 (reissue, 1992), 126 p. ISBN 0-87011-469-7
- Ryū Murakami, Almost Transparent Blue, translated by Nancy Andrew, 1st trade paperback ed., New York : Kodansha America, 2003, 128 p. ISBN 4-7700-2904-7
[edit] Other
Almost Transparent Blue is the name of an Avant Jazz trio from Vancouver, Canada. Whose name and some song titles were inspired by the book.
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