Haruki Murakami - South of the Border, West of the Sun

I was touched by this one, and really cared about its characters - found myself almost holding my breath while reading the chapter in which Shimamoto first reappears at the bar but also felt the force of the novel's ending. Having lately been a bit enthused about getting back to writing myself (so to speak), I've been amazed anew by the way in which Murakami's fiction just makes sense.