1Q84 Book 3 (1Q84 3) by Haruki Murakami

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At the close of Book Two of 1Q84, Aomame and Tengo found themselves in perilous situations, threatened and confused.As 1Q84 accelerates towards its conclusion, both are pursued by persons and forces they do not know and cannot understand. As they begin to decipher more about the strange world... read more

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Summary edit see section history

The events of the story take place in fictionalized 1984, with the first volume set between April and June, the second between July and September, and the third between October and December.

The narrative is composed of two storylines that alternate by chapter. The book opens with... read more (warning: may contain spoilers)

The events of the story take place in fictionalized 1984, with the first volume set between April and June, the second between July and September, and the third between October and December.

The narrative is composed of two storylines that alternate by chapter. The book opens with Aomame's perspective as she catches a taxi in Tokyo on her way to a work assignment, noticing that Janáček's Sinfonietta is playing on the radio. When the taxi gets stuck in a traffic jam on the expressway, the driver suggests that she get out of the car and climb down an emergency escape in order to make her important meeting. Aomame makes her way to a hotel in Shibuya, where she poses as a hotel attendant in order to assassinate a hotel guest. She performs the murder with a tool that leaves almost no trace on its victim, leading investigators to conclude that he died a natural death.

As the story unfolds, Aomame has several bizarre experiences, including a string of memories that do not line up with the archives of major newspapers. One of them concerns a group of extremists who are engaged in a standoff with police in the mountains of Yamanashi Prefecture. Upon reading these articles, she concludes that she must be living in an alternate reality, and suspects that she entered it about the time she heard Sinfonietta on the radio.

The second chapter introduces Tengo, whose mentor Komatsu asks him to rewrite an awkwardly written but otherwise promising manuscript that had been entered in a literary contest. Komatsu wants to submit the novel to a prestigious literary agency and promote its author as a new literary prodigy. Tengo has reservations about rewriting another author's work, especially that of a high school student. He agrees to do so only upon meeting the original writer, who goes by the strange name "Fukaeri," and asking her permission. Fukaeri, however, seems to care very little what happens to the manuscript, telling Tengo to do as he likes with it.

Soon it becomes clear that Fukaeri, who is dyslexic, neither wrote the manuscript on her own nor submitted it to the contest herself. Tengo's discomfort with the project deepens upon finding out other people must be involved. To address his concerns, Fukaeri takes Tengo to meet her guardian, a man called Ebisuno-sensei (戎野先生), or simply sensei to Fukaeri. Here Tengo learns that Fukaeri's parents were members of a commune called Takashima (タカシマ). Her father, Tamotsu Fukada (深田保) was Ebisuno's friend and colleague, but they did not see eye-to-eye on this subject. Fukada thought of Takashima as a utopia; Ebisuno, however, describes the commune as a place where people were turned into unthinking robots, saying that it was like something out of the world of George Orwell's novel. Fukaeri, whom Ebisuno-sensei calls Eri (エリ), was only a small child at the time; she sits quietly through the discussion, noting only that Takashima was fun.

In 1974, Fukada and 30 members founded a new commune called Sakigake (さきがけ). The young members of the commune work hard under Fukada's leadership, but eventually disagreements split the commune into two factions, and the more radical form a new commune called Akebono (あけぼの), which eventually has a gunfight with police near Lake Motosu (本栖湖) in Yamanashi Prefecture.

One day, Fukaeri appears on Ebisuno-sensei's doorstep. She does not speak and will not explain what happened to her. When Ebisuno attempts to contact Fukada at Sakigake, he is told that he is unavailable. Ebisuno thereby becomes Fukaeri's guardian, and by the time of 1Q84's present, they have not heard from her parents for seven years, leading Ebisuno to fear the worst.

It is while living with Ebisuno that Fukaeri composes her story, Kūki Sanagi. Unable to write it herself, she tells it to Azami (アザミ), Ebisuno's daughter. The story is about a girl's life in a commune, where she met a group of dwarfs, whom Fukaeri refers to as "Little People (リトル・ピープル)".<13>

Aomame and Tengo's parallel world's begin to draw ever closer. Aomame is introduced to a 10 year old girl named Tsubasa through the dowager. It transpires that Tsubasa and her parents have been involved with Sakigake. Tsubasa herself has been forcefully abused by the cult leader named only as `The Leader.` As Tsubasa sleeps in the safe house owned by the Dowager the `Little People` which are mentioned in Air Chrysalis by Fuka Eri appear from Tsubasa's mouth and proceed to repair some sort of object which is hidden under Tsubasa's bed.

The reader discovers that the Dowager has decided that `The Leader`will in-fact be Aomame's next target. This proves to be an near impossible task as The Leader never ventures outside the walled enclosure which houses Sakigake.
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Characters/People edit see section history

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Aomame (青豆): one of the two point-of-view characters of the novel, Aomame is a thirty year old woman working as part of an enigmatic organization for which she commits carefully selected murders. Her name means "green bean". I thought it was "green pea."
Tengo Kawana (天吾): the second of the novel's point-of-view characters, he is an unpublished novelist who works as a math tutor at a prep school. His mother died when he was very young; his earliest memory is of his mother in bed with a man who was not Tengo's father. His father worked for NHK going door-to-door collecting the network's reception fee, and he used to make Tengo go with him every Sunday.
Komatsu (小松): A 45-year-old editor of a publishing company. He lives his daily life on his own schedule, seemingly oblivious to the rhythms of people around him, and often calls Tengo in the middle of the night. Although Komatsu enjoys a good professional reputation for his competence, he is not seen to be an amicable person. Little is known about his private life beyond rumors.
Eriko Fukada - Fukaeri (ふかえり): a slight but striking 17-year-old high school student whose manuscript, Kūki Sanagi (空気さなぎ, Air Chrysalis), is entered in a literary contest. She is extremely reticent, with an unusual, abrupt way of speaking, and what seems to be an apathetic view of life. She also suffers from dyslexia and struggles in school.
The dowager: A rich, elderly woman who devotes time and money to protecting women from abusive men.
Tsubasa: Add a description of this character.
Ebisuno: The legal tutor of Fukaeri
Tamotsu Fukada (深田保)
Kumi Adachi: A nurse
Mr. Ushikawa: A private detective
Tamura
Tamara
Ichikawa
Omura
Fulta-eri
Buzzeut
Masami Aomame: A mistic killer

Show all 17 characters

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Quotes edit see section history

“I’m not doing anything that is going to destroy me. Still, there is something quiet left behind. Like sediment in a bottle of wine.”
“If you can love someone with your whole heart, even one person, then there's salvation in life. Even if you can't get together with that person.”
Aomame

Setting & Locations edit see section history

Show all 18 settings

Organizations edit see section history

Sakigake: Add a description of this organization.

First Sentence edit see section history

"I wonder if you would mind not smoking, Mr. Ushikawa," the shorter man said.

Table of Contents edit see section history

Book 3: October - December

Chapter 1: Something Kicking at the Far Edges of Consciousness
Chapter 2: Alone, But Not Lonely
Chapter 3: The Animals All Wore Clothes
Chapter 4: Occam's Razor
Chapter 5: No Matter How Long You Keep Quiet
Chapter 6: By the Pricking of My Thumbs
Chapter 7: I'm Heading Your Way
Chapter 8: Not Such a Bad Door
Chapter 9: Before the Exit is Blocked
Chapter 10: Gathering Solid Leads
Chapter 11: A Serious Shortage of Both Logic and Kindness
Chapter 12: The Rules of the World Are Loosening Up
Chapter 13: Is This What They Mean by Back to Square One?
Chapter 14: This Little One of Mine
Chapter 15: Not Something He's Allowed to Talk About
Chapter 16: A Capable, Patient, Unfeeling Machine
Chapter 17: I Only Have One Pair of Eyes
Chapter 18: When You Prick a Person with a Needle, Red Blood Comes Out
Chapter 19: What He Can Do That Most People Can't
Chapter 20: One Aspect of My Transformation
Chapter 21: Somewhere Inside His Head
Chapter 22: Those Eyes Looked Rather Full of Pity
Chapter 23: The Light Was Definitely There
Chapter 24: Leaving the Cat Town
Chapter 25: Cold or Not, God is Present
Chapter 26: Very Romantic
Chapter 27: The Whole World May Not Be Enough
Chapter 28: And a Part of His Soul
Chapter 29: I'll Never Let Go of Your Hand Again
Chapter 30: If I'm Not Mistaken
Chapter 31: Like a Pea in a Pod

Series & Lists edit see section history

This is book 3 of 3 in 1Q84. (standard series)

Preceded by 1Q84 Book 2.

Authors & Contributors edit see section history

Haruki Murakami (Author)

First Edition edit see section history

Original Language: Japanese
Publisher: Shinchosha
Country: Japan
Publication Date: 2010
ISBN: Add the ISBN.
Page Count: 325

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Library of Congress: Add the Library of Congress Classification.
Dewey: 813

Subjects edit see section history

Books › Literature & Fiction › Genre Fiction

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1Q84 Book 3 (2010) (edit title/settings)

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