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)

To much sex

What did you like best about 1Q84? What did you like least?

Alternate universe was my favorite. The concept of the cult and creatures inside.

I didn't like all the sex involved in it.

Did the narrators do a good job differentiating all the characters? How?

To monotone. Wish the voices were more emotional.

Very unique and entertaining

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

Yes, the strong characters and bizarre twists are great for the intellectual and analytical mind.

What did you like best about this story?

The culture and navigating the country was so interesting to me. The characters had depth and the story line was logical given the surreal circumstances.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No

Fantastic performance. Classic Murakami.

A little longer than it needed to be but still very enjoyable. The performance was top notch and I thoroughly enjoyed the audible bonus material.

A little underwhelmed

I can't say this story is bad or good, I'm lukewarm to it. I don't really know how to feel about it. Perhaps I just feel nothing, which is sad after spending over 46 hours with it.

The Pros:
It was very well paced, neither too fast or too slow.
Characters were well thought out
Very interesting storyline

The Cons:
The few sex scenes or body part references were just awkward or weird.
Very big disparity in the representation of Ushikawa's voice between Marc & Mark.
Marc V's rendition of Ushikawa was great but made him seem dumb
Mark B's rendition of Ushikawa was annoying
Allison H's narration was good but way too slow, with a lot of hard "g" sounds
I liked Marc V's narration for the most part.

It unfolds.

Would you listen to 1Q84 again? Why?

The first time through you listen to it in a rush because you want to know where it's going to go next. I'd listen to it for a second time to pick up on the finer interweaving of the story.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

I was both surprised (which is good, I don't like predictable) but also I felt like that's where it had to end. I like how the author didn't tie up all the details. He left the reader/listener to think on these and come up with their own ideas.

Have you listened to any of the narrators’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I've never listened to these narrators but I think they did a wonderful job.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No. It was an easy book to listen too but long.

Weird

It seems that some people rave about this author and others are less enthused. I fall into the last category. This was like a weird Alice in Wonderland story. The characters were interesting, but the pace was slow, the book was looooong, and the plot was bizarre.

I did manage to finish the book, but I also used the book for those nights when I had trouble falling asleep as the combination of the narratos' voices and the plodding pace were perfect for putting me to sleep.

I don't think this is an author I want to stick with.

Surreal, excellent book

I read this book because it screamed surreal to me, and I am left pondering it. Murakami is surreal. There are loose ends. I smile when I find the one star "I don't get it" and "huh??" ratings along with the copious five star ratings. So, if you like to understand everything about a book and have all loose ends tied up in a pretty package, you should probably pass on this book. But if you like to sink your teeth into something big that you will turn over in your mind for days and weeks on end, this is your book. Go for it!

Murakami pays homage to Kafka, Jung, Doystoevsky, Orwell and Tolstoy. Brilliantly even, he weaves them into the story like old friends. I'm not a spoilers person, so let me just say that the way he weaves Jung in is simply brilliant. And to do that in the same scene that he borrows the first line of Anna Karenina from Tolstoy - well, the characters and the scene deserved no less.

Murakami also quietly painted a picture of the 1980's. I was amazed at how Murakami did this with so little reference to popular music. Classical music played a large role in story, as did the noticeable absence of modern conveniences. 1Q84 is a world populated by word processors, floppy disks, pay phones and telephones with cords.

This was my first Murakami book, and now I can't decide between listening to Kafka on the Shore and The Windup Bird Chronicles next. I do plan to start working my way through his works now.

Great book! Could've been shorter.

I really enjoyed this story. It is well crafted and carries through the epic length. However, I found some of the characters conversations could have been shorter. The author really went on sometimes which made the book seem a tad too long. Could've used one more fat-trim on the final edit. Otherwise a great listen.

1Q84 and Town of Cats

1Q84 is a slightly surreal novel by Haruki Murakami, but in my opinion a bit tedious and far to long. Especially heavy on repetition, which made it at times tiresome to read. I guess several of the somewhat superfluous sex scenes were necessary in order to sell copies…

Anyway, what I will remember best is the well written short story “Town of Cats”.

46 hours and 50 minutes of complete absorption

What did you love best about 1Q84?

The story was incredibly engrossing. It made my commute go by so quickly during the weeks that I was listening to it. I usually save my audiobooks for my commute, but I was so caught up in the story of 1Q84 that I found myself listening to it while doing dishes, while organizing my closet, etc....you get the idea...I couldn't put it down!

What other book might you compare 1Q84 to and why?

This was my first Murakami book. I'm now listening to The Wind Up Bird Chronicle. I can see similar themes in these two books - somewhat directionless young men, strong/opinionated young women - but so far, I would rank 1Q84 above The Wind Up Bird Chronicle (I'm about 2/3rds of the way through TWUBC).

Have you listened to any of the narrators’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

This was my first exposure to each narrator.

If you could rename 1Q84, what would you call it?

Two Moons and a Moral Dilemma

Any additional comments?

I liked this book so much that I have now started to work my way through other Murakami novels. This was a gripping and satisfying book.