Twenty-two year-old Sumire is in love for the first time - with a woman seventeen years her senior. But whereas Miu is a glamorous and successful older woman with a taste for classical music and fine wine, Sumire is an aspiring writer who dresses in an oversized second-hand coat and heavy boots like a character in a Jack Kerouac novel. Surprised that she might, after all, be a lesbian, Sumire spends hours on the phone talking to her best friend K. about the big questions in life: what is sexual desire and should she ever tell Miu how she feels about her? K., a primary school teacher, is used to answering questions, but what he most wants to say to Sumire is, "I love you." He consoles himself by having an affair with the mother of one of his pupils. But when a desperate Miu calls him out of the blue from a sunny Greek island and asks for his help, he soon discovers that all is not as it seems and something very strange has happened to Sumire.

Industry Reviews

Sputnik Sweetheart has touched me deeper and pushed me further than anything I've read in a long time -- Julie Myerson * Guardian *
How does Murakami manage to make poetry while writing of contemporary life and emotions? I am weak-kneed with admiration * Independent on Sunday *
A beautiful novel, as light as a feather, and yet enduringly sad... a captivating book from one of the world's most interesting authors * Sunday Herald *
Murakami has been compared to everyone from Raymond Carver to Raymond Chandler - which should tell you only one thing: he's unique * Independent *
Confirms Murakami as a master of his craft... Out of this world * Time Out *