1Q84 by Haruki Murakami

I'm a sucker for enormous novels. Even though I shouldn't be giving permission to these authors for typing out such bloated stories, I always find myself intrigued by the fact that that they did write such enormous works. I wonder if what they have to say is worth the pages. That's why I read The Pale King by David Foster Wallace and why I'd like to conquer Infinite Jest. I'd just as soon read Animal Farm than listen to Cate Blanchett read Marcel Proust's seven volume novel In Search of Lost Time on board the Belefonte in The Life Aquatic.

Speaking of sprawling epics and George Orwell, last year when Haruki Murakami published 1Q84 my interest was instantly piqued. It was a hulking tome of more than a thousand pages and it had a strange yet iconic title that referenced one of my most favored books. I wanted to read it but wasn't training for any endurance strength tests so I downloaded it on my Nook instead. Recently when I went to go peruse my local book shop, I found that the brand new softcover edition on display.

This is a handsome presentation for such a interesting work. Separated into three novels, the books fit into a clear plastic slipcase. The artwork has been redone to include the moon motif that is in the novel. It's so colorful and the three books makes reading it even more attractive.

The story involves two intertwined narratives. One tells of Anomame, a woman desperate to get to a meeting on time, she jumps out of her cab and takes a ladder off the freeway. The other tells of Tengo and of a book by a young and mysterious writer, a book who his publisher wants him to rewrite in order for it to win a prize.

This new edition makes transporting it easier, and the writing and story seem to earn the number of pages that it is written on. If you are interested, check out Murakami's 1Q84 here.