This is a fascinating Japanese noir thriller, exploring fate and free will as well as giving the reader insightful views on Japan's culture and personality. Nishimura is a supremely gifted pickpocket who has a conscience but is detached from society, lifting wallets from people he sees as begin able to afford it. Asked to help out in a seemingly straightforward crime leads him into a dangerous set-up. The short book (210 pages) is a refreshingly intense read.
Nishimura is a seasoned pickpocket, weaving through Tokyo's crowded streets, in search of potential targets. He has no family, no friends, no connections . . . But he does have a past, which finally catches up with him when his old partner-in-crime reappears and offers him a job he can't refuse. Suddenly, Nishimura finds himself caught in a web so tangled and intricate that even he might not be able to escape.
Taut, atmospheric and cool, The Thief will steal your breath away.
