A multi-award winning, 1.5 millon copy Japanese besteller about four friends pitted against each other in the drama of an international piano competition. Translated by Philip Gabriel, a translator of Murakami The tender and compelling drama of four young pianists as they compete in an international piano competition- Aya, a child prodigy who gave up performing after the death of her mother, and is trying for a comeback; Masaru, a childhood friend of Aya, now competing against her; Akashi, older and married, works in a music store and is the "old man" of the competition; Jin, a sixteen-year-old prodigy, the free spirit son of a beekeeper who has no formal training and doesn't even own a piano. A tense, drama-filled two-week competition unfolds. Who will win through? Can they confront their own demons? Deeply compelling and compassionate, HONEYBEES AND DISTANT THUNDER is the unflinching story of high-level competition, love, rivalry and friendship from a bestselling international voice.