"Reading a Murakami book is like diving into the ocean only to discover that you have always been a fish. Things suddenly start making sense"

Begone, ye overblown romance: to the M's with ye, and there ye shall stay. No more will I be forced to read about the "ample breasts" of mysterious, mute women; never again will I be witness to "sexual encounters" that are just a "concept," not the actual bumping of uglies that occurs when a man puts his penis inside of a woman's vagina.Banished will be the sporty assassinatrix who winds down by having one-night stands with bald-headed men; the stocky writer who oscillates between mathematics an...

いちきゅうはちよん = Ichi-kyū-hachi-yon = 1Q84, Haruki MurakamiThe title is a play on the Japanese pronunciation of the year 1984 and a reference to George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four. The letter Q and the Japanese number 9 (typically romanized as "kyū", but as "kew" on the book's Japanese cover) are homophones, which are often used in Japanese wordplay.The events of 1Q84 take place in Tokyo during a fictionalized year of 1984, with the first volume set between April and June, the second between July a...

Another wonderful immersion into Haruki Murakami's 1Q84 (second reading)! Besides Aomame's 1Q84 alternate reality, I also focused on Tengo's Cat Town. Are these realities mutually exclusive from 1984? The ending suggests we all have a choice about what reality we create and inhabit. Thoroughly enjoyed this second read! _____You never know where you'll find yourself when you pick up one of Haruki Murakami's novels. I've come to believe that's exactly the way it should be. 1Q84 is no exception. Th...

1Q84 is undoubtedly the biggest literary let-down I have ever come across. The synopsis and plot outline sound fascinating, the reviews have been glowing - am I (trying to) read a different 1Q84 than everyone else? Apparently not, judging by the far-too-few reviews that sum up my feelings towards this nothing of a book. One of my favourite lines from one of my favourite of these few reviews is as follows, from theatlantic.com: "It's hard to believe that some of the critics praising 1Q84 didn't r...

I just finished 1Q84 and already I've begun to notice strange peculiarities in the world around me. As I closed the book and stood up, I looked around my shabby apartment. Same walls, same badly painted walls, same James Dean poster, but something seemed off. Something infinitesimal. The walls seemed closer or were they further away? And James, wasn't there a cigarette clasped between your lips before? Now you're just staring off into space with that amazing, casual air of indifference. I shut m...

I guess I can now write this review since I've settled down from doing a victory lap around my house as a result of completing this steaming pile of hot garbage. Maybe before I totally slam the book, I should say what I did like but to be honest there was very little to like. The plot wasn't bad. The love story & connection between Tengo & Aomame was somewhat cute. I could roll with all this. What blows my mind is that Murakami felt he needed 900+ pages to drag this whole shebang out. The prose

A mere 29 days have passed since its release, but I have conquered the behemoth. I believe mp owes me 20 dollars for finishing first. Well, since no monetary guidelines were stipulated, I will also accept 3 cats and 2 metaphors that don't make any sense. BeforeAs I eagerly await to tackle this tomeI am utterly afraid for the books that I ownEspecially the texts populating my deskMy patience for "Brit-Lit" will be put to the testBut my grades will be of little concernWhen these 900 pages will beg...

If you aren't already enamored with Murakami's writing, I recommend not reading 1Q84 - unless what you want is a treasure hunt for some simple Japanese recipes. 1Q84 is actually a test to see how much Murakami fans are willing to put up with. And the test is a tough one. The first part of the book is nothing short of what you expect from Murakami. But towards the middle it really begins to sag with tedious, mundane descriptions. One reviewer called it memory-insultingly repetitive and that's not...

Long-distance runners know that the best way to race to a personal best is to maintain an even pace from start to finish; they also understand that the longer the race, the slower the pace. Murakami has been a marathon runner his whole life, and 1Q84 was probably composed with this in mind. It is indeed a superb novel that spans across three volumes and is best appreciated unhurriedly.Going with the flow, I have enjoyed this novel immensely — yet, putting my impressions into words, I realise I’m...

Tengo did as he was told. He began pumping slowly.These two sentences, on the second to last page of this 924 page novel, are a neat summary of Murakami’s methods in 1Q84. Tengo has spent the novel longing for Aomame and they have just been reunited after twenty years. ‘Pumping’ refers to the action of Tengo’s penis in Aomame’s vagina. Underlying Murakami’s general approach to writing is an element of dictation, of simply transcribing the spontaneously generating narrative coursing through his h...

i'm 100 pages from the end but i won't finish this. i've been assaulted enough. oh why why why do we let books assault us so? because they show themselves to us in sheep's clothing, and we trust them. this fuzzy, sweet muzzled sheep cannot possibly brutalize me -- can it? can it? this book is relentlessly brutal. the narrative is stretched to its stretchable maximum. there is no good reason for this. i suppose that, if you are a murakami fan and like to hear the sound of his voice, there will be...

This book is possibly the best book I have read of all times. It has everything that anyone would want in a book because it is composed of a little of every genre. The book has so many symbolisms and imageries that no one can figure it all out in the first read. The book is like all of Haruki Murakami's past books where it is about self discovery of the main character. This time it is about how two long lost lovers find each others to the point that they were meant for each other. The book is ab...

My Sunken Book ReviewMy real review, my Sunken Book Review, complete with unreliable Maps and Legends (not to mention Narrators), is here:http://www.goodreads.com/story/show/2...Only go there if you are a child who likes to be spoiled.It's like a treasure hunt in a secret room.Or a pirate ship laden with booty.The Little People have tried unsuccessfully to sink it without trace.They managed to sink it, but I have traced it again.My Superficial Book ReviewHave you ever been intoxicated by a book?...