*THE JAPANESE CRIME CLASSIC - ONE MILLION COPIES SOLD*
''One of the great masterpieces of Japanese crime fiction and one of the must-read books of this or any year'' David Peace
Tokyo, 1995. Five men meet at the racetrack every Sunday to bet on horses. They have little in common except a deep disaffection with their lives, but together they represent the social struggles and griefs of post-War Japan: a poorly socialized genius stuck working as a welder; a demoted detective with a chip on his shoulder; a Zainichi Korean banker sick of being ostracized for his ethnicity; a struggling single dad of a teenage girl with Down''s syndrome. The fifth man bringing them all together is an elderly drugstore owner grieving his grandson, who has died in suspicious circumstances.
Intent on revenge against a society that values corporate behemoths more than human life, the five conspirators decide to carry out a heist:
