The Thief

By: Fuminori Nakamura, Satoko Izumo - translator

Narrated by: Charlie Thurston

Length: 4 hrs and 1 min

Publisher's summary

The Thief is a seasoned pickpocket. Anonymous in his tailored suit, he weaves in and out of Tokyo crowds, stealing wallets from strangers so smoothly that sometimes he doesn't even remember the snatch. Most people are just a blur to him; nameless faces from whom he chooses his victims. He has no family, no friends, no connections....

But he does have a past, which finally catches up with him when Ishikawa, his first partner, reappears in his life and offers him a job he can't refuse. It's an easy job: tie up an old rich man and steal the contents of a safe. No one gets hurt.

Only the day after the job does he learn that the old man was a prominent politician, and that he was brutally killed after the robbery. And now the Thief is caught in a tangle even he might not be able to escape.

©2009 Fuminori Nakamura; 2012 Satoko Izumo (P)2012 BBC America

Critic reviews

“I was deeply impressed with The Thief. It is fresh.” (Kenzaburo Oe, Nobel Prize–winning author of A Personal Matter)

“Compulsively readable for its portrait of a dark, crumbling, graffiti-scarred Tokyo—and the desire to understand the mysterious thief.” ( Booklist)

“Disguised as fast-paced, shock-fueled crime fiction, Thief resonates even more as a treatise on contemporary disconnect and paralyzing isolation.... Mystery/crime aficionados with exacting literary standards, as well as readers familiar with already-established-in-translation Japanese writers Miyuki Miyabe ( Shadow Family), Natsuo Kirino ( Out, Grotesque), and Keigo Higashino ( Naoko, The Devotion of Suspect X), will especially enjoy discovering Nakamura.” ( Library Journal)

That was great!

This is really good! Well written, and I really enjoyed the narrator. So glad I got a chance to discover and listen to this on Audible Plus before it’s removal from the program. Who knows, maybe it will be offered as a “Daily Deal” at some point and I will be able to listen to it again…..☺️

I enjoyed every line

If you could sum up The Thief in three words, what would they be?

This is my first book by this author and I enjoyed it. The narration created vivid images of the characters and scenes in my mind. The story ends inconclusively. I guess there will be a sequel.

Great short story

This is a phenomenal short story. Starts off exciting and never stops. The narrator was perfect for the book and the author did a great job developing the characters.

Eh . . . Too Japanese for me?

This was not my favorite story. It wasn't bad, but neither was it particularly good. The narrator's voice wasn't particularly great, either.

Perhaps I would have enjoyed it more if it spoke to me culturally. It's hard to say.

I bought this b/c it was on sale from Audible, and sounded interesting.

not bad.

Would you try another book from Fuminori Nakamura and Satoko Izumo (translator) and/or Charlie Thurston?

author has writing and storytelling potential. it was not fully realized here, but it was still a decent story. would read another of his books.

The Thief

The Thief in question is a talented pickpocket who takes pleasure in stealing from the rich and prides himself on the skill with which he can separate any man from his wallet. He's got the whole process down to a science, isn't wanting for anything and enjoys his freedom and independence. Things start changing for him when he encounters a young boy who is forced by his mother to steal groceries. The boy is needing some tips on how to become a more accomplished thief and our man is only too glad to share his knowledge on that score. Then an old thieving partner reappears in his life and gets him involved in an assignment he can't refuse; participating in an armed robbery for the Yakuza. The plan is meticulously worked out and the reap seems too good to be true. The Thief has misgivings about the robbery and his suspicions are about to prove to be well founded. This is a good story which is sure to appeal to many, but which for some reason failed to grab me, so I was all the more happy that this was a short affair.

Didn't click

I suspect it is a cultural thing: all I can say is that I did not connect with the main character (or any character for that matter) and the story did not make sense for me.

Good Story.Narration is intresting.

Where does The Thief rank among all the audiobooks you???ve listened to so far?

may be among first 3 among this will be one.

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

yeah.it is nice. v e r y g o o d.

succinct, but full

I usually go for stories that go on for days, but I needed something and love Nakamura, so I went for it. This story of a thief was very rich if you looked at all that was offered in the narrative. He found a lot that he wasn't even looking for...and got what he never thought would happen. Well, maybe he didn't realize it all, but we who listened do.

Gritty Japanese Noir

Great Story. Easy to follow even though it's translated from Japanese. Gritty, hard edged story. Well told and a good reader for the most part. Story is short put packs a wallop. The main bad guy is really evil and spooky.... and someone that will always keep you thinking about what lies in the shadows of the underworld. If you like dark thrillers then this one is for you. Note it is a bit short but it packs more into a little than much larger novels that are just trying to fill pages.