1Q84

By: Haruki Murakami, Jay Rubin - translator, Philip Gabriel - translator

Narrated by: Allison Hiroto, Marc Vietor, Mark Boyett

Length: 46 hrs and 45 mins

Publisher's summary

Earphones Award Winner (AudioFile Magazine)

The year is 1984 and the city is Tokyo.

A young woman named Aomame follows a taxi driver's enigmatic suggestion and begins to notice puzzling discrepancies in the world around her. She has entered, she realizes, a parallel existence, which she calls 1Q84 - "Q" is for "question mark". A world that bears a question.

Meanwhile, an aspiring writer named Tengo takes on a suspect ghostwriting project. He becomes so wrapped up with the work and its unusual author that, soon, his previously placid life begins to come unraveled.

As Aomame's and Tengo's narratives converge over the course of this single year, we learn of the profound and tangled connections that bind them ever closer: a beautiful, dyslexic teenage girl with a unique vision; a mysterious religious cult that instigated a shoot-out with the metropolitan police; a reclusive, wealthy dowager who runs a shelter for abused women; a hideously ugly private investigator; a mild-mannered yet ruthlessly efficient bodyguard; and a peculiarly insistent television-fee collector.

A love story, a mystery, a fantasy, a novel of self-discovery, a dystopia to rival George Orwell's, 1Q84 is Haruki Murakami's most ambitious undertaking yet: an instant best seller in his native Japan, and a tremendous feat of imagination from one of our most revered contemporary writers.

BONUS AUDIO: Audible interviews the translators of 1Q84, Jay Rubin and Philip Gabriel.

©2011 Haruki Murakami (P)2011 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"This imaginative, lengthy novel satisfies as a mystery, fantasy, and humorous coming-of-age tale—all blended with the vagaries of love and loss in a dystopia mired in strange cults and mathematical/musical dreamscapes. One surmises that it's no accident that the book's enigmatic title relates to George Orwell's 1984." (AudioFile)

“Profound . . . A multilayered narrative of loyalty and loss . . . A fully articulated vision of a not-quite-nightmare world . . . A big sprawling novel [that] achieves what is perhaps the primary function of literature: to reimagine, to reframe, the world . . . At the center of [1Q84’s] reality . . . is the question of love, of how we find it and how we hold it, and the small fragile connections that sustain us, even (or especially) despite the odds . . . This is a major development in Murakami’s writing . . . A vision, and an act of the imagination.” (David L. Ulin, Los Angeles Times)

“1Q84 is one of those books that disappear in your hands, pulling you into its mysteries with such speed and skill that you don’t even notice as the hours tick by and the mountain of pages quietly shrinks . . . I finished 1Q84 one fall evening, and when I set it down, baffled and in awe, I couldn’t help looking out the window to see if just the usual moon hung there or if a second orb had somehow joined it. It turned out that this magical novel did not actually alter reality. Even so, its enigmatic glow makes the world seem a little strange long after you turn the last page. Grade: A.” (Rob Brunner, Entertainment Weekly)

not bad

I started a drinking game... when taciturn or conjecture is spoken I drink. I have died of alcohol poisoning.

Narrators Were Awesome

The story was great, but I really appreciated the multiple narrators reading chapters about their respective characters. They did a great job with dialogue too. Made listening really interesting.

Long and beautiful journey

It's a long book but beautiful story. Everything from the characters, setting and delivery is well done.

Definitely worth the listen!

I purchased this book in English, all three volumes. It took me a year to read volume 1. I then decided to purchase volume 1 audible in French. It was amazing, so I decided to purchase the whole volume1-3 English version audible and thoroughly enjoyed the novel. If you’ve never read one of his books before I’d recommend a shorter one to make sure you like his style. It’s very much about mood and character which I truly enjoyed. The performances are top notch as well! I now buy other works with these performers in them.

The premise was intriguing but…

Where does 1Q84 rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

It was an interesting book but this ranks in the middle, I've read better and worse.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

The most interesting aspect was the idea of parallel worlds. The least interesting was the idea of the world inhabited by "little people", a bit to fairy tale.

What does the narrators bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Great reading and acting. Very well done.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The very beginning where an alternate world is hinted at and revealed.

Any additional comments?

This was an "adequate" listen overall. The story fell a bit short. Glad I listened anyway.

Gripping story

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Female voice is a little irritating -- very pedantic especially when it comes to the dowager. Dialogue is sometimes repetitive and a little unimaginative, but the story is gripping.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Tengo - realistic and swept up by the events.

Subtly chilling and wholly enthralling

I liked the characters. At one point, I got so infuriated that they couldn't be together (towards the middle-end) that I put this down for several months. You know, this book is immersive and magical, but it's excruciatingly slow at times. Like, "Yes! Something exciting is at hand! Time to describe the character washing up and preparing food in detail. " But the benefit of this medium is that you can speed things up if need be.

Overall, though, this is a shining story, well worth your Audible credit. There's a creepiness about it at times that is never outright creepy. Aomame is super cool and sweet. Tengo also exists. I was pretty happy with the character deaths, when they happened. Oddly enough, only the female deaths were particularly tragic. The world was exceedingly complex - detailed, rather - in a way that almost bogs the reader down with mundane details instead of expositional ones. I think this will mean that I'll remember the tale in several different levels of specificity as time passes. This was my first time reading something by Murakami and I think this has convinced me to check out Kafka on the Shore next. All in all, 1Q84 was a unique and worthwhile read and could probably serve you especially well on a couple of sixteen hour flights.

Wow!

Murakami creates this hauntingly strange world with sticky characters that capture the imagination, both the plot and each character is a mixture of light and shadows, enough of a plot to keep me intrigued.

I have only read the WindUp Girl and that book was only ok for me, so I did not understand they hype about Murakami, now I am so glad I took another chance and read this!

Excellent!

Murakami is by far my favorite modern writer. This book was excellent, from captivating characters, story developement to outstanding narration. Everything made for another great Murakami book and listen.

Mixed feelings on this one

This book would have been much better had it been MUCH shorter. It was just sooooo long! After investing hour upon hour into the book, I really wanted to make it to the end, so I kept listening...and listening....and listening.....

Postives: Interesting premise for a story, a women being transported to a similar parallel type universe she calls 1Q84. The characters were interesting and well developed. The telling of the story was simple, yet effective.

Negatives: Long, long stretches with nothing, and I mean nothing, really happening. The ending left many unanswered questions. Just not a well wrapped up book at all.

Bottom line: If you have alot of time on your hands and want an unusual listening experience, maybe go for this one. If I had it to do over again, I would not have bought this book, personally it just wasn't worth the time investment.