1Q84 by Haruki Murakami - A Discussion

[Dr. Drib]

My copy of 1Q84 just arrived to my Kindle. It's now on my nook and I've just started reading it.

Why don't we use this discussion thread to probe any aspects of Murakami's new novel that we care to discuss.

If this novel is as great as it's hyped-up to be, then it may be the pivotal work that wins him the Nobel Prize in Literature next year.



Don

[Traye]

I'm really interested in this book, so will be watching this thread closely.

[astrangerhere]

Will be joining your shortly Don. My preorder of this hit my Nook yesterday. As soon as I finish my currently reading, I'll be getting right into it.

I always enjoy Murakami, my favorites being Hard Boiled Wonderland... and After Dark. While we're waiting to get into the 1000+ page leviathan, what other Murakami have you read and enjoyed?

[BenG]

I've only read Wind-Up Bird and Kafka on the Shore but want to read more.

Apparently 1Q84 was published in 3 parts in Japan. Is this the complete series or just the first book.

[elemenoP]

I believe I saw on Amazon that this is all three parts. The book is 944 pages.

I am #3 on the waitlist for the library ebook. I want to pick up the hardcover at B&N and if it calls out to me, I will buy it anyway.

eP

[bevdeforges]

On Kobo (at least for those of us in Europe) 1Q84 is available in two volumes - the first is volumes 1 and 2 as published in Japan. The second is volume 3.

[HomeInMyShoes]

I'm still finishing up The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle which I am enjoying. I think I'll wait until some reviews come in before delving into 1Q84, which might not be until late next year.

Murakami is definitely an author I want to read a bit more from. I'm thinking of checking out After the Quake and Sputnick Sweetheart as some less daunting in size works.

[Dr. Drib]

Originally Posted by astrangerhere

Will be joining your shortly Don. My preorder of this hit my Nook yesterday. As soon as I finish my currently reading, I'll be getting right into it.

I always enjoy Murakami, my favorites being Hard Boiled Wonderland... and After Dark. While we're waiting to get into the 1000+ page leviathan, what other Murakami have you read and enjoyed?

I'm not only a reader, but also a collector of his works in American First Edition.

I've read all the titles listed below. The ones with asterisks, I own.

Here's the list:

I’ve read:

1) *After Dark
2) *Blind Willow, Sleeping woman
3) Dance Dance Dance
4) The Elephant Vanishes (Not the entire book yet)
5) *Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World
6) *Kafka on the Shore
7) *South of the Border, West of the Sun
8) *Sputnik Sweetheart
9) *A Wild Sheep Chase
10) *The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle


*(First American Edition w/Dust Jacket that I own)

I've enjoyed everything I've read by him, even the (relatively) weak "After Dark."



Don

[astrangerhere]

Originally Posted by Dr. Drib

I'm not only a reader, but also a collector of his works in American First Edition.

I've read all the titles listed below. The ones with asterisks, I own.

Here's the list:

I’ve read:

1) *After Dark
2) *Blind Willow, Sleeping woman
3) Dance Dance Dance
4) The Elephant Vanishes (Not the entire book yet)
5) *Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World
6) *Kafka on the Shore
7) *South of the Border, West of the Sun
8) *Sputnik Sweetheart
9) *A Wild Sheep Chase
10) *The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle


*(First American Edition w/Dust Jacket that I own)

I've enjoyed everything I've read by him, even the (relatively) weak "After Dark."



Don

You should also try the non-fiction Underground. It was fascinating.

[stonetools]

Originally Posted by Dr. Drib

I'm not only a reader, but also a collector of his works in American First Edition.

I've read all the titles listed below. The ones with asterisks, I own.

Here's the list:

I’ve read:

1) *After Dark
2) *Blind Willow, Sleeping woman
3) Dance Dance Dance
4) The Elephant Vanishes (Not the entire book yet)
5) *Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World
6) *Kafka on the Shore
7) *South of the Border, West of the Sun
8) *Sputnik Sweetheart
9) *A Wild Sheep Chase
10) *The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle


*(First American Edition w/Dust Jacket that I own)

I've enjoyed everything I've read by him, even the (relatively) weak "After Dark."



Don

I dont have any background on this writer at all. What is it about him that you like? Also, which of his novels would you recommend I read first?

[Quexos]

I got this book and it seems I can't properly display a recurring word, the name of an author: Janáček

It shows as Janá?ek ...
Anyone knows how to fix this ?

[kennyc]

Well here's the thread and here I am......

[Dr. Drib]

Originally Posted by Quexos

I got this book and it seems I can't properly display a recurring word, the name of an author: Janáček

It shows as Janá?ek ...
Anyone knows how to fix this ?

Interestingly, when I ran it through calibre and checked to see what it looked like, using calibre's reader, I had the same thing happen.

When I copy/pasted it to my desktop and used Sony's Reader Library application to view, there was no problem at all. There's also no problem on my nook.


Don

[Dr. Drib]

Originally Posted by stonetools

I dont have any background on this writer at all. What is it about him that you like? Also, which of his novels would you recommend I read first?

Well, I think I like him for the unsettling sense of "otherness" he creates in his works, as if there is another reality lurking somewhere around the corner, one that is only waiting to be discovered, but never quite reached.

Also, I enjoy the obsessions he writes about (LP records, writing, jazz, longing, aloneness). His characters attempt to communicate something that seems to be inarticulate, as if (again), this "otherness" in their lives has somehow attached itself to the very psyche of his characters.

These are novels of quests (as I mentioned a moment ago), with characters who seek to define who they are and how they fit in with their confining universe. There are no easy solutions, so don't look for something that gives easy answers. There are no answers; there are only questions. And more questions.

The first novel I read by him was "Dance Dance Dance," probably not the best start for someone who has never read him but, for me, it opened up a whole new world of discovery. That's what his novels do for me.



Don

[elemenoP]

Quexos, the standard font that Sony uses is missing that character (along with a lot of others). If you use PRS+ on your reader, you can change to another font. (I believe the PRS+ software was originally developed by Russians specifically to solve this problem?) If you don't use PRS+, but you use Calibre, and you are a little bit handy with HTML, you can add some CSS to refer to another font, and copy that font onto your reader. There are some threads about how to do this.

I would recommend The Wind-up Bird Chronicle for someone who has never read Murakami.

eP