1Q84: Books 1 and 2 [Kindle Edition]

This book is absolutely wonderful. I have read reviews saying that this book is not a good place to start for those, like me, who have not read any of Murakami's earlier work. Then i was given this as a Christmas present - and what a present!

Since starting this 4 days ago I have found myself thinking about it whilst doing something else, rushing home from work to read more, staying up late to find to find out what would happen next...and now it's finished and I am going straight into starting book 3. I feel sympathy for the Japanese readers who had to wait a year for that.

But this is not a page turning thriller which hurtles along through the pace of events. It is much more like a beautiful water color painting, starting in its creation with light colors, then the darker colors going on, then the little highlights, as the picture emerges in all its mesmerising and distinctive beauty. Murakami waves a magic which draws you in and holds onto you.

There is a fascinating plot line, following the lives of the main characters Aomame and Tengo, in alternate chapters. At first their lives seem utterly separate, but gradually the links between them become clearer and ever more compelling, whilst the nature of their work becomes a little stranger.

Judging by some other reviews i have read, this book is not for everyone, but if you like Ian McEwan or Kazuo Ishiguro you will probably love this - but it is unique, and all the better for that.

Highly recommended

1Q84 is a novel by Haruki Murakami, split over three volumes. Books 1 and 2 were first published in Japan in 2009, with the third volume appearing the following year. All three volumes were published in English in 2011 - Books 1 and 2, translated by Jay Rubin, were published as a single volume, with the third - translated by Philip Gabriel - following a couple of weeks later. The title is nod to George Orwell's 1984; the letter in Japanese is (I'm told) pronounced the same way as the number 9.

1Q84 opens in April 1984, and features two lead characters - Aomame and Tengo; chapter by chapter, the focus alternates between them. We meet Aomame, a 30 year old fitness instructor and part-time assassin, first. As the book opens, she's in the back of a taxi on her way to a very important 'appointment' - though, unfortunately, stuck in traffic. Her helpful taxi driver suggests she hops out onto the freeway, climbs down an emergency stairway and catches the metro instead. Aomame does as he suggest, but she doesn't leave the cab without receiving a few cryptic words of advice. After climbing down the stairs, these words come back to her when she starts noticing how the world around her has changed. At first, it's a subtle change to the police uniform that catches her attention - but not all the changes she notices are so minor.

Tengo, meanwhile, teaches Maths in a cram school, and writes fiction part-time. When he first appears, he's discussing a story called "Air Chrysalis" with Komatsu, his editor. "Air Chrysalis", written by seventeen year old girl called Fuka-Eri, has been entered in a competition organised by Komatsu's magazine - and Tengo is keen for it to be included on the shortlist. Komatsu was also impressed with it, but has slightly different ideas : he sees the story's potential, but wants Tengo to provide a little extra finesse and re-write the book. Although Fuka-Eri agrees, they'll have to keep their involvement very quiet; the level of Komatsu's and Tengo's involvement would cause a huge scandal in the literary world. (Fuka-Eri herself is stunningly beautiful, though a little...odd).

It's a little difficult, initially, to see how the Tengo and Aomame could have any connection. However, not only are they both playing with fire, it's practically the same flame.

I'd really been looking forward to 1Q84, but Volumes 1 and 2 seemed a little aimless - in fact, some sections were really unconvincing. At times, though, the writing and the characters were weak. Aomame's lousy opinion of men, especially early in the book, was practically clichéd. (The fact she had a self-defence class where she taught women how to kick men in the balls *did* make me laugh, though). However, Tengo was a little more difficult to take seriously. Despite his many talents - a maths whizz-kid at school, a noted judo fighter, a natural gift for music and now a budding author - he came across as just being gormless. (His conversational skills weren't great - as the book progresses, he spends more and more time simply repeating what the other person just said. His constant perving over Fuka-Eri's chest was also very cringeworthy - but his sudden realisation that he loved Aomame was frankly ridiculous. She hadn't crossed his mind in twenty years, and all of a sudden he swoons ?) However, at no point did I ever consider throwing it aside. Overall, it was very readable, enjoyable despite its flaws (and length) and I'd no hesitation about launching straight into Volume 3.

1Q84 is a long story, but I never felt the storyline was coming to a halt or becoming boring. The plot flows naturally, and every little part of the story carries meaning. Some people have said that too many questions are left unanswered, but I wouldn't agree with that. Rather, leaving some open ends might be a conscious strategy to leave a certain impression on the reader. The world of 1Q84 cannot be fully understood - but maybe that's a quality inherent to the fantastical world that 1Q84 is.

Murakami creates a rich world with detailed characters. Sometimes I felt the characters were a little too smart or too good at what they were doing, but that doesn't impact the work negatively. This story is not intended to be realistic, even though many elements of it certainly are real. At times I wondered if it was really necessary to describe the darker parts of the story so completely, almost ruthlessly. A decent amount of research must have been made in order to make this work come alive. Parts of this research, I guess, might not have been pleasant to carry out.

1Q84 is abundant with references to classical literature and music - maybe too much so. If you like learning about that kind of thing, however, it's a good thing. It may sound exaggerated, but I do think I learnt a lot from reading this work. It explores a variety of themes, and although the answers are rarely clear it helps one to gain a better perspective on many issues. As surrealistic as 1Q84 is, it treats real issues at length. Be it loneliness, revenge or belief.

As a reader, I haven't read much fiction lately, and that probably affects how I relate this work to other works.