1Q84

by Haruki Murakami, Philip Gabriel (Translator)

Genres: Fiction, Japanese Literature

Hardcover

Published January 1, 2011

About the author

Haruki Murakami (村上春樹) is a Japanese writer. His novels, essays, and short stories have been best-sellers in Japan and internationally, with his work translated into 50 languages and having sold millions of copies outside Japan. He has received numerous awards for his work, including the Gunzo Prize for New Writers, the World Fantasy Award, the Tanizaki Prize, Yomiuri Prize for Literature, the Frank O'Connor International Short Story Award, the Noma Literary Prize, the Franz Kafka Prize, the Kiriyama Prize for Fiction, the Goodreads Choice Awards for Best Fiction, the Jerusalem Prize, and the Princess of Asturias Awards.
Growing up in Ashiya, near Kobe before moving to Tokyo to attend Waseda University, he published his first novel Hear the Wind Sing (1979) after working as the owner of a small jazz bar for seven years. His notable works include the novels Norwegian Wood (1987), The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle (1994–95), Kafka on the Shore (2002) and 1Q84 (2009–10); the last was ranked as the best work of Japan's Heisei era (1989–2019) by the national newspaper Asahi Shimbun's survey of literary experts. His work spans genres including science fiction, fantasy, and crime fiction, and has become known for his use of magical realist elements. His official website cites Raymond Chandler, Kurt Vonnegut and Richard Brautigan as key inspirations to his work, while Murakami himself has named Kazuo Ishiguro, Cormac McCarthy and Dag Solstad as his favourite currently active writers. Murakami has also published five short story collections, including First Person Singular (2020), and non-fiction works including Underground (1997), an oral history of the Tokyo subway sarin attack, and What I Talk About When I Talk About Running (2007), a memoir about his experience as a long distance runner.
His fiction has polarized literary critics and the reading public. He has sometimes been criticised by Japan's literary establishment as un-Japanese, leading to Murakami's recalling that he was a "black sheep in the Japanese literary world". Meanwhile, Murakami has been described by Gary Fisketjon, the editor of Murakami's collection The Elephant Vanishes (1993), as a "truly extraordinary writer", while Steven Poole of The Guardian praised Murakami as "among the world's greatest living novelists" for his oeuvre.

Reviews

[Chana · Rating 3 out of 5]

I kept waiting for a big reveal, a reason for the book to be over 1,100 pages long. Okay, something happens at the end but what exactly? Disappointed and confused.

[Judi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Three stars because it's Murakami but there was no reason for this book to be 1000 pages. Over-writing, repetition, etc all became tedious. Love Murakami but not crazy about this one

[Sevim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in 1984 Tokyo, the story follows two characters whose lives become intertwined in a surreal, parallel reality they call "1Q84." Magical realism, romance, and suspense are blended together as the characters search for each other and the truth. The theme merges fiction, reality, memory, and fate all into one.

Although extremely lengthy and repetitive at times, the narrative carries some good takeaways: embracing the unknown and being open to unusual possibilities; acting with courage despite fear in order to reclaim what one wants; love is a quiet yet powerful resistance; and finally, loneliness is a choice, not a given.

The ending, after 1200 pages, felt rushed and didn't reward the time spent reading it. It didn't feel as good as the other Murakami books I've read so far.

[Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting, excellent read. Not for the faint of heart. There are a number of trigger warnings that somehow don't seem as bad? (Sexual violence, predominately)

Mostly this is about an alternate reality.

[Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

grappig