At the End of the Matinee, Keiichiro Hirano
At the End of the Matinee, Keiichiro Hirano
List: $42.99 | Sale: $30.10
Club: $21.49

At the End of the Matinee

Author: Keiichiro Hirano, Juliet Winters Carpenter

Narrator: Brian Nishii

Unabridged: 10 hr 50 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 04/15/2021

Synopsis

Bestselling author Keiichiro Hirano offers a timeless ode to love’s fragility and its resilience in this delicate, award-winning novel.Classical guitarist Satoshi Makino has toured the world and is at the height of his career when he first lays eyes on journalist Yoko Komine. Their bond forms instantly.Upon their first meeting, after Makino’s concert in Tokyo, they begin a conversation that will go on for years, with long spells of silence broken by powerful moments of connection. She’s drawn by Makino’s tender music and his sensitivity, and he is intrigued by Yoko’s refinement and intellect. But neither knows enough about love to see it blooming nor has the confidence to make the first move. Will their connection endure, weaving them back together like instruments in a symphony, or will fate lead them apart?Blending the harmonies of Kazuo Ishiguro’s Nocturnes and the sensuality of Ian McEwan’s Enduring Love, At the End of the Matinee is an enchanting and thought-provoking love story.

About Keiichiro Hirano

Keiichiro Hirano is an award-winning and bestselling novelist whose debut novel, The Eclipse, won the prestigious Akutagawa Prize in 1998, when he was a twenty-three-year-old university student. A cultural envoy to Paris appointed by Japan’s Ministry of Cultural Affairs, Hirano has lectured throughout Europe. Widely read in France, China, Korea, Taiwan, Italy, and Egypt, Hirano’s novels include the Watanabe Junichi Literary Prize–winning novel At the End of the Matinee—a runaway bestseller in Japan—and the critically acclaimed and Yomiuri Prize for Literature–winning A Man. His short fiction has appeared in the Columbia Anthology of Modern Japanese Literature. For more information, visit http://en.k-hirano.com and follow Hirano on Twitter at @hiranok_en.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Jesse (JesseTheReader) on December 30, 2022

I felt super indifferent about this one. I loved the individual journeys that our two main characters went on, but when their stories threaded together, I could never find myself getting on board with it. I don't think it's bad to have infidelity woven into books, because it's a real thing that happ......more

Goodreads review by Jessica on April 26, 2021

At the End of the Matinee is a unique story about two people that instantly fall in love but then don’t see each other for years. I loved how music was such an important part of the story with Satoshi Makino being a famous guitarist. When he meets Yoko Komino they instantly form a bond but they go y......more

Goodreads review by luce (cry bebè's back from hiatus) on August 27, 2021

| | blog | tumblr | ko-fi | | Although At the End of the Matinee shares stylistic and thematic similarities with Keiichirō Hirano's A Man, it makes for a far less intriguing read. At the End of the Matinee lacks the psychological edge that made A Man into such a compelling read. The story and chara......more

Goodreads review by Ms.pegasus on June 13, 2021

To paraphrase Yo-Yo Ma, Economics is about the creation of value; culture is about the value of creation. It sums up how he continues to find meaning in his life. Besides being a brilliant cellist, he is also a celebrated humanitarian. Having thought deeply about issues of purpose and connection, h......more

Goodreads review by Andrea on April 28, 2021

I could not put this book down. It’s heartbreaking and somehow healing at the same time? Beautiful. Makes me so upset and somehow provides just enough satisfaction to prevent me throwing it across the room. I wouldn’t say this is about lost love but rather love that has changed, shifted, and mutated......more

Quotes

“A love story with a classic trajectory: Boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy finds girl…At the End of the Matinee, though, is distinguished by the toniness of its particular boy and girl.” —The New York Times“A major bestseller in Japan already turned into a feature film, this is Hirano’s second anglophoned export, greatly benefiting from Carpenter’s impeccable translation that ensures a leisurely, against-so-many-odds romance for globally aware audiences.” —Booklist“At the End of the Matinee, Japanese author Keiichiro Hirano’s new novel, depicts a torturous and suspenseful journey of two people in love whose lives bisect at the exact moment they are prepared to unite. It’s like two trains passing, each going in opposite directions.” —Authorlink

Add to Cart
Add to Wish List