1Q84

Haruki Murakami's exciting, expansive novel, 1Q84, takes elements from science fiction, literary thrillers, and neo-realism to create a narrative that's reminiscent of magical realism yet remains something quintessentially Murakami-esque. Told in alternating chapters, the epic story takes place in the year 1984 and shifts between two characters who are—unbeknownst to them—slowly working their way toward each other. Aomame is a personal trainer who moonlights as a skillful assassin of abusive men, and Tengo is a math teacher and aspiring novelist who is given the assignment to rewrite a novella telling the true story of dyslexic seventeen-year-old Fuka-Eri's upbringing in the terrifying Sakigake cult. Fuka-Eri ultimately serves as the conduit that draws Aomame and Tengo into each other's lives over the course of the book, yet in Murakami's hands, the connections they share are mysterious and unconventional, as they find themselves immersed in a quasi-alternate universe—a reality Aomame calls 1Q84 (the q is for question)—where the laws of logic have been distorted and two moons appear over Tokyo. By recording Aomame and Tengo's observations of unusual details while they carry on with their daily routines, Murakami skillfully marries the alternating realities that exist within the same world. Murakami also avoids tying together many of 1Q84's loose narrative threads, allowing the reader to contemplate the mysterious connections between the characters, as well as the implications of the world he has crafted, a place which ends up reflecting how a need for ambiguity is often greater than the need for answers.