Bookstore Purchase Bonus! Haruki Murakami's First Novel in Three Years, 'Kaho: The Tale of KAHO,' to Include Limited-Edition Sticker as Initial Release Bonus!

Shinchosha Publishing Co., Ltd. will simultaneously release Haruki Murakami's latest full-length novel, 'Kaho: The Tale of KAHO,' in hardcover and digital formats on Friday, July 3, 2026. The hardcover edition spans 352 pages across one volume, equivalent to approximately 650 manuscript pages. Pre-orders are already available at bookstores and online retailers nationwide.

To commemorate the release, customers who purchase the book at physical bookstores will receive a special first-print bonus: a set of stickers inspired by the novel.

※ Image is a sample

The novel features two animals: the 'anteater' and the 'jaguar.' The bonus includes one sticker each of these two animals, mounted on a backing sheet measuring 90 mm in height and 125 mm in width.

The stickers are designed with a 'perforated' format, allowing each sticker to be cleanly detached from the backing sheet. In addition to using them as regular adhesive stickers, customers can cut out the individual stickers and insert them into smartphone cases or use them in other creative ways.
By incorporating these stickers into daily life, readers can feel more connected to the world of the novel.

The 'anteater' and 'jaguar' designs are based on artworks exhibited at the 'Indigenous Brazilian Chairs' exhibition held in Tokyo and Saitama between 2018 and 2019. ※ Image is a sample

ANTEATER　Author: Uruhu Mehinako　Photo: Rafael Costa © Coleção BEĨ

JAGUAR　Author: Unknown　Photo: Rafael Costa © Coleção BEĨ

The stickers will be distributed at approximately 3,000 bookstores nationwide. As this is a first-print bonus, supplies are limited and distribution will end once stocks are depleted.

※ 'Kaho' will be released simultaneously nationwide on Friday, July 3 (excluding Okinawa and remote islands). Sticker distribution will also begin on July 3.
※ One sticker sheet (containing one anteater and one jaguar sticker) will be provided per book purchased at participating bookstores (while supplies last).
※ Some bookstores may not offer the bonus stickers.
※ The number of stickers received and distribution methods may vary by store.
※ Bonus stickers will not be available through online or internet bookstores.

■ Poster visual to be displayed at bookstores is now unveiled!

※ Some bookstores may not display the poster.

Posters are scheduled to appear around the book's release date, July 3. Enjoy the world of 'Kaho: The Tale of KAHO' through in-store displays.

■ Story Overview

"Honestly, you're the ugliest person I've ever faced."

Twenty-six-year-old picture book illustrator Kaho is suddenly told this by a man she's just met.

Not particularly beautiful or intelligent, but simply curious, she feels pure surprise rather than anger or shock.
—What on earth is this man trying to say?
Yet after this encounter, a series of strange and wondrous events begin unfolding around her.

Chapter One: Kaho and the Motorcyclist
Chapter Two: The Anteater of Musashino-Sakai

Chapter Three: Kaho and the Termite Queen

Chapter Four: Guardian Angel, Elephant's Egg, and Scarlett Johansson

ANTEATER　Author: Uruhu Mehinako　Photo: Rafael Costa © Coleção BEĨ

■ Author Biography

Haruki Murakami (born 1949 in Kyoto City) graduated from the First Faculty of Humanities at Waseda University. He made his literary debut in 1979 with 'Hear the Wind Sing' (winner of the Gunzou Literary Award for New Writers). His major novels include 'A Wild Sheep Chase' (Noma Literary Prize for New Writers), 'Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World' (Yoshikawa Eiji Prize), 'Norwegian Wood,' 'The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle' (Yomiuri Literary Award), 'Sputnik Sweetheart,' 'Kafka on the Shore,' 'After Dark,' '1Q84' (Mainichi Publishing Culture Award), 'Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage,' 'Killing Commendatore,' and 'The City and Its Uncertain Walls.' He has also published numerous short story collections such as 'Firefly, Burning the Barn, and Other Stories,' 'After the Quake,' and 'Tokyo Tales,' as well as essays and translations. He has received numerous international awards, including the Franz Kafka Prize (2006), the Frank O'Connor International Short Story Award (2006), the Jerusalem Prize (2009), the Catalonia International Prize (2011), the Hans Christian Andersen Literature Award (2016), the Premio Mondello (2022), and the Princess of Asturias Award for Literature (2023).

Special Website: https://www.shinchosha.co.jp/special/kaho/
Haruki Murakami Official Site (Shinchosha): https://www.shinchosha.co.jp/harukimurakami/

■ Book Details

[Title] Kaho: The Tale of KAHO

[Author] Haruki Murakami

[Release Date] July 3, 2026

[Binding] Hardcover with rounded spine and dust jacket

[Price] ¥2,860 (tax included)

[ISBN] 978-4-10-353440-2

[URL] https://www.shinchosha.co.jp/special/kaho/