What would happen if a brain surgeon with modern medical knowledge time-traveled to the samurai era?
Through twist and turns, Dr. Jin Minakata found himself in the Edo period of Japan. By chance, he saves a samurai's life, and that becomes the start of his new life. He finds himself helping the ordinary people of Edo with diseases and injuries that were fatal at the time, using ordinary tools that he could find in the era. However, eventually he struggles with the fact that he may be affecting history by changing the destinies of people in the past.
Murakami's well crafted storyline received excellent reviews for his depiction of human drama through his character's eyes. The title won the grand prize of the prestigious Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize in 2011. The series has published a total of 8 million copies in Japan. It has also been adapated into TV series in Japan and South Korea.
