“

For a very long time after that, [I] continued to regret [my] actions—or, more precisely, [my] lack of action. Now, finally, [I] could think of the words that [I] should have spoken to [him]. Inside [me] at last were the things that [I] wanted to tell [him], the things [I] should have told [him]. It would not have been so hard. [I] should have stopped [him] on the street and said something. If only [I] had found a good opportunity and whipped up a tiny bit of courage! But that had been impossible for [me]. And now the chance was lost forever.

”

— Haruki Murakami, 1Q84

I like Murakami's 1Q84, but it's just honestly taking too long. I get that the repetition helps the reader realize where the stories are overlapping and remembering their place, but this is a bit much. The first third of the book involves a novel that is ghostfixed for a strange girl with an equally weird background that becomes a national sensation, which is interesting considering that J.K. Rowling has recently been outed as the person behind the Robert Galbraith pen name. I have a looming forty-eight chapters left to read, but I think I'll be putting this down for a little while to flip through The Cuckoo's Calling. Crime fiction isn't necessarily my thing, and a review from my mother would probably hold much more standing, but eventually once it's mass published and shipped someone's bound to ask me about it at work.

Labels: 1Q84, haruki murakami, quotes