“But remember — this is the year 1Q84. A strange world where anything can happen.”
— 1Q84: Book 3, by Haruki Murakami
If you haven’t read my articles on/reviews of 1Q84: Book 1 or Book 2 then;
a) Shame on you and,
b) You should know that these posts talk about plot points that have occurred up to the end of the book being discussed.
Aside from everything else that’s great about Murakami, I think unpredictability ranks pretty high. Since Book 3 is the conclusion of 1Q84, only click on the Read More link if you’re finished or if you’re the kind of wild, devil may care type that just doesn’t mind knowing things about a story before experiencing it firsthand (the type who will never be asked to watch my cat while I’m on vacation).
The first thing worth noting is that 1Q84: Book 3 has the lousiest pacing of the entire story. After praising how beautifully the story unfolded in the initial two thirds it was disappointing to end the book on such a low note. Despite the fresh energy provided by the addition of a third character to the alternating perspective changes (the unfortunate lawyer cum private eye, Ushikawa), Murakami spends much of Book 3 in almost complete inertia.
The perspective shifts from one dull event to another. Aomame remains in a safe house, Tengo shuffles back and forth between a coastal sanitorium and his apartment and Ushikawa retraces every plot point, carefully explaining what the reader already knows. It’s really strange. The characters are just as interesting as ever and the time spent in their heads certainly helps to develop them further but, with the plot’s momentum grinding to such a halt, it’s difficult to press on toward the end. There’s a sense that, maybe, Murakami had planned a three book structure and agreed to the format with his publishers before something changed in the writing process and it became too late to back out of the arrangement.
That’s the only explanation that seems to make any sense to me considering how strong Book 1 and 2 are.
The English translation also switches from the wonderful Jay Rubin to the slightly-less-wonderful Philip Gabriel with this book as well. While his prose can be a bit awkward from time to time, his take on the original text is great at the climatic moments of the book, making it difficult to let the blame rest on his shoulders (he also did an excellent job translating Kafka on the Shore). It ultimately boils down to a plot that has been stretched far too thin in one place.
The actual conclusion is stunning, though, and the last 50ish pages pack in an extremely rewarding pay off to the seemingly endless chapters preceeding them. Whether or not I properly interpreted the last moments the characters spend in the world of 1Q84 seems (as it always does with Murakami’s work) to be somewhat besides the point when the emotions and thoughts evoked are so powerful. Book 3 isn’t quite the ending that such a fantastic novel deserves but, despite its faults, 1Q84 is still a staggering accomplishment that deserves recognition.
— Reid
Would you have preferred a not so happy ending for Tengo and Aomame? I liked the ending though it would have been more exciting to have something happen to prevent it.Maybe something did happen…did they enter yet another alternate world and not the one they started out from?