The Thief

Plying his pick-pocketing trade in the crowded streets of Tokyo, the Thief deftly separates strangers from their wallets. Pick-pocketing is now second nature to him, so much so that occasionally he finds wallets that he's forgotten he lifted. Narrator Charlie Thurston is well matched to the first-person point of view of this story. Her matter-of-fact delivery is ideal for this the mix of intrigue and introspection. Thurston allows the story to gently unfold, and with a playing time of just four hours, it's perfect for listening to in one session. K.I.P. © AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine

January 9, 2012
Nakamura makes his English-language debut with this compelling look at a Tokyo pickpocket’s life. The thief, eventually identified as Nishimura, leads an anonymous existence dependent on his ability to become as physically close as possible to others without drawing the slightest attention. Crime fans won’t be surprised when outside entanglements compromise the peerlessly expert and solo Nishimura. While taking a protective interest in a prostitute’s young son, a budding thief in his own right, Nishimura also becomes involved, at his former partner Ishiwaka’s behest, with a home invasion. After the raid leaves an elderly politician dead, Nishimura finds himself under the thumb of its planner, the mysterious criminal mastermind Kizaki. Nakamura’s memorable antihero, at once as believably efficient as Donald Westlake’s Parker and as disaffected as a Camus protagonist, will impress genre and literary readers alike.