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1Q84: Haruki Murakami's New Novel Sells Out Before it Arrives

by Jarrett Martineau | May 28, 2009 at 08:30 am

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Japan's most celebrated contemporary author, Haruki Murakami, has yet to release his highly secretive new novel — known only by its title 1Q84, but it has already begun selling out — before it has even hit the shelves.

1Q84's first-pressing has already been bumped up to an initial print run of 480,000 copies and the first few bookstores in Tokyo that began carrying it on Wednesday sold out within hours.

1Q84 is Murakami's first novel since the 2007 publication After Dark. Murakami had previous success with the hugely popular magic realist novel Kafka on the Shore.

There is no word yet on whether or not the new book will be translated into English.

"It is amazing. People are craving his latest novel," said Takashi Machii, spokesman for the book's publisher Shinchosha, which has raised its first printing to 480,000 copies, up from 380,000 after orders flooded in.

Little is known about Murakami's new book, although the pronounciation of its title 1Q84 — 'ichi kyū hachi yon' — reads as "1984" — alluding to George Orwell's dystopian classic.

In a clever marketing scheme, the contents of his new novel have been kept secret. Fans ordering the book know nothing but the title, "1Q84," which can be read as "1984" in Japanese.

Shinchosha began selling the 1,000-page, two-volume work at a handful of stores in Tokyo on Wednesday. One store sold 840 copies in just one day, it said.

One other thing that is known about the book, is its length. Staking out a Pynchon-sized page count, 1Q84 clocks in at a hefty, two-volume length of 1,055 pages.

Although the plot and the title's meaning remain a total mystery, Amazon.co.jp has put up a page count, and it's a whopping 1,055 pages. While size isn't everything, it seem to be working in the book's favor; published in two volumes, it currently occupies the top two spots on Amazon Japan's book rankings.

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jvdm (not verified)

at 23:27 on May 28th, 2009

though there is not a great deal of information availible yet, there apparently are already some people who have finished the novel, cover to cover. you can read the customer reviews on the japanese amazon. (if you read japanese).

http://www.amazon.co.jp/1Q84-1-%E6%9D%91%E4%B8%8A%E6%98%A5%E6%A8%B9/dp/4103534222/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1243581996&sr=8-1

http://www.amazon.co.jp/1Q84-2-%E6%9D%91%E4%B8%8A%E6%98%A5%E6%A8%B9/dp/4103534230/ref=pd_bxgy_b_img_b