(Frequent Murakami translator Jay Rubin—Wind Up Bird Chronicle, Norwegian Wood, and half of Murakami's newest, 1Q84—reads at Elliott Bay Book Company tonight. It should be crowded, so you might want to show up early.)

In the opening chapter of Haruki Murakami's new novel, 1Q84, he clearly warns the reader that this story will be nothing less than extraordinary. When young Aomame steps out of a taxi in a miniskirt and heels during a traffic jam on Tokyo Metropolitan Expressway Number 3, her driver tells her, "Things are not what they seem... But don't let appearances fool you. There is always only one reality." The (truly Murakamian) plot explores questions of reality versus fantasy, truth versus lies, and chance encounters versus fate. How are people inextricably linked when they haven't seen each other in 20 years? How do people become irretrievably lost? How reliable are memories? The world he creates may be bizarre, but for Murakami fans, it's also frighteningly familiar.

1Q84 is composed of three books (the first two were published together in Japan, with the release of the third a year later) and follows the parallel narratives of Aomame, a fitness instructor with a murderous vendetta, and Tengo, the ghostwriter of an award-winning story. Both are typical Murakami characters—they have troubled pasts and like to be alone. Separately, they embark on an adventure that draws them together into a parallel world in which the year 1984 becomes 1Q84. ("That's what I'll call this new world," Aomame decides, explaining, "Q is for question mark.") The book is 925 pages—almost three pounds—but you won't be able to put it down, because the year 1Q84 is a "world that bears a question," and we all like answers...

(Keep reading.)