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jen's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
3.75
1Q84 was a well written book from my perspective, seeing as the author wrote it without deliberate planning. It does span out just like a dream. It feels much like each character is in their own dream and these dreams connect, causing a bittersweet chaos. Tengo and Aomame are the two main characters who realize their love for one another and venture out to find each other. The story ends with them reuniting and falling in love after twenty years.
My issue with the ending, or should I say the entire third book was that it seemed to wrap around into a clean and tidy perfect ending for these two characters. Almost a little bit too tidy. Perhaps it really is the power of love that was able to prosper in the battle against the new world, the "little people," and the collective consciousness of the cult.
When Aomame made the decision to die for Tengo, to kill Leader rather than allow him to live and continue suffering, was that when the entrance back to the real world reopened? Didn't the Leader will Tengo to remember Aomame, as that was her wish, and therefore caused them to reunite? So were the feelings of love sincere?
It did mention how much work Aomame put in to the whole ordeal, while Tengos only real role was ghostwriting the novel that pissed off the "little people." It was vital to this operation, but Aomame intentionally made moves to get closer to Tengo, and even accepted her own death for this person she had barely spoken to and now knew nothing about. I mean, he did remember Aomame, and ventured off to see the moon, which allowed her to trace him. So he played major roles, without knowing, while Aomame put in the work.
This perceiver, receiver relationship seemed like a chore to follow, as well as any mention of the air chrysalis and the mahta and dohta. I didnt really understand it and it felt quite messy and entangled. Fuka Eri was entirely too random as a character to the point where it upset me. Afterall, Fuka Eri, having served her purpose of submitting her story just disappeared in the end? So was she a Dohta the entire time? Or is the world in the ending Aomame and Tengos world, where Fuka Eri has no role to play? Her character was just a cog in the machinery of Tengo and Aomames love for one another, quite literally, when she becomes a vessel for them to have sexual intercourse. She seemed entirely too much like an NPC.
So much is unanswered, but I suppose it was meant to be that way. I couldn't put this book down. As repetitive as it was, and as much of a tease I found it to be, I still thoroughly enjoyed it and found it was written very well, in a way that makes you want to see it through. From the start I enjoyed how the characters are described. In the third book I found Aomame and Tengos actions to not exactly fit their character, but there is a gradual chipping away at who they are for them to realize they need to find one another.
Aomame slowly changes with new experiences and information, and ends up super reliant on love, she does reveal very early on that she is grasping onto her love for Tengo, and as long as she has that she has faith, while she is still in 1984.
Kumi Adachi seemed a bit random, she mentions that she died once and remembers being strangled by a man, so it seems she is the spirit of Tengos mother? Or perhaps she is a symbol for what he is searching for in this cat town. His mind seems extremely fogged when it comes to his older girlfriend, Kumi, and his long lost mother. He mentions that the woman (his mother) in the photo looks strangely like his ex girlfriend. I found this entirely strange and it seemed like the author was trying to get the reader to see the connection between Kumi and Tengos mother instead. Why is everyone strangled to death in this book?
I would like to mention that this book was overly gratuitous. There is certainly an appeal in writing erotically, but I did not find it amusing how the Leader allows little girls to ride him, including his 10 year old daughter. Was this really necessary in conveying how weird the cult is, and how much he wanted to be put out of his misery? Aside from that I found it corny how Leader proved to Aomame that he had special powers by levitativlng an object. Just a minor annoying thing. Fuka Eri being a teen, and the brief mention of Tengo having sexual relationships with teenagers was really odd. I think I just find it really bothersome when stories require rape for the story to come together.
My issue with the ending, or should I say the entire third book was that it seemed to wrap around into a clean and tidy perfect ending for these two characters. Almost a little bit too tidy. Perhaps it really is the power of love that was able to prosper in the battle against the new world, the "little people," and the collective consciousness of the cult.
When Aomame made the decision to die for Tengo, to kill Leader rather than allow him to live and continue suffering, was that when the entrance back to the real world reopened? Didn't the Leader will Tengo to remember Aomame, as that was her wish, and therefore caused them to reunite? So were the feelings of love sincere?
It did mention how much work Aomame put in to the whole ordeal, while Tengos only real role was ghostwriting the novel that pissed off the "little people." It was vital to this operation, but Aomame intentionally made moves to get closer to Tengo, and even accepted her own death for this person she had barely spoken to and now knew nothing about. I mean, he did remember Aomame, and ventured off to see the moon, which allowed her to trace him. So he played major roles, without knowing, while Aomame put in the work.
This perceiver, receiver relationship seemed like a chore to follow, as well as any mention of the air chrysalis and the mahta and dohta. I didnt really understand it and it felt quite messy and entangled. Fuka Eri was entirely too random as a character to the point where it upset me. Afterall, Fuka Eri, having served her purpose of submitting her story just disappeared in the end? So was she a Dohta the entire time? Or is the world in the ending Aomame and Tengos world, where Fuka Eri has no role to play? Her character was just a cog in the machinery of Tengo and Aomames love for one another, quite literally, when she becomes a vessel for them to have sexual intercourse. She seemed entirely too much like an NPC.
So much is unanswered, but I suppose it was meant to be that way. I couldn't put this book down. As repetitive as it was, and as much of a tease I found it to be, I still thoroughly enjoyed it and found it was written very well, in a way that makes you want to see it through. From the start I enjoyed how the characters are described. In the third book I found Aomame and Tengos actions to not exactly fit their character, but there is a gradual chipping away at who they are for them to realize they need to find one another.
Aomame slowly changes with new experiences and information, and ends up super reliant on love, she does reveal very early on that she is grasping onto her love for Tengo, and as long as she has that she has faith, while she is still in 1984.
Kumi Adachi seemed a bit random, she mentions that she died once and remembers being strangled by a man, so it seems she is the spirit of Tengos mother? Or perhaps she is a symbol for what he is searching for in this cat town. His mind seems extremely fogged when it comes to his older girlfriend, Kumi, and his long lost mother. He mentions that the woman (his mother) in the photo looks strangely like his ex girlfriend. I found this entirely strange and it seemed like the author was trying to get the reader to see the connection between Kumi and Tengos mother instead. Why is everyone strangled to death in this book?
I would like to mention that this book was overly gratuitous. There is certainly an appeal in writing erotically, but I did not find it amusing how the Leader allows little girls to ride him, including his 10 year old daughter. Was this really necessary in conveying how weird the cult is, and how much he wanted to be put out of his misery? Aside from that I found it corny how Leader proved to Aomame that he had special powers by levitativlng an object. Just a minor annoying thing. Fuka Eri being a teen, and the brief mention of Tengo having sexual relationships with teenagers was really odd. I think I just find it really bothersome when stories require rape for the story to come together.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Incest, and Pedophilia
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