Welcome to the 1Q84 Book 3 後編 thread!
This thread is for discussing the content of the second half of volume 3 of Murakami’s 1Q84. Volume 6 of the 文庫版.
Refer to the Home Thread for links to threads for the other books.
Content Warnings
This story contains themes of an adult and/or sensitive nature, including cults, sex, murder, and sexual abuse of children, both mentioned, and graphic (though not until Book 2, in the latter case).
Discussion Rules
- Please use spoiler tags for major events in the current chapter(s) and any content in future chapters.
- When asking for help, please mention the chapter and page number. Also mention what version of the book you are reading.
- Don’t be afraid of asking questions, even if they seem embarrassing at first. All of us are here to learn.
- To you lurkers out there: Join the conversation, it’s fun!
Previous: Book Three 前編
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I just finished chapter 19, and huh. (Spoilers for up to and including that chapter.)
牛河’s parts in this book always felt quite stark(?) up to now, maybe because for all that he was involved with shady organisations, his world view was quite intact. Now he’s seen the green moon, and somehow easily reached the same conclusion 青豆 did: The world has changed and this isn’t originally his world. These characters have a really strong sense of self and how the world operates. If I suddenly saw a second moon- well, another astral body having moved into the earth’s orbit would seem a likelier reason than being in a parallel dimension? Een more likely that I’d inhaled something weird or was really stressed out and was seeing things. 
Maybe, what do I know, haha.
牛河’s chapters are always a bit creepy and interesting that way. I liked his interactions with
ふかえり as well.
Now that everyone is acting in such close quarters, there’s a lot of repetition in what’s being told, but we get to see a lot of new aspects of things with the repetition, so it’s not too bad.
On the other hand, 小松’s tale of his abduction in chapter 18 felt quite long-winded to me, and that was completely new information.
Before that, in chapter 17, getting so much ‘omniscient narrator information’ in 青豆’s chapter was weird too. ‘If 青豆 had gone out to the balcony earlier, xyz would have happened. Alas’. I didn’t really get the point if that. It kind of threw me off a bit while reading, since I’ve gotten pretty used to getting that character’s point of view only.
Chapter 21, 頭には脳味噌のかわりに、冷凍されたレタスが収まっているみたいだ。レタスを冷凍してはいけないということを知らない人間がどこかにいるのど。一度冷凍されて解凍されたレタスは、ぱりぱりとした食感を失ってしまう。それこそがおそらくはレタスにとっての最良の資質であるというのに。
Love the metaphor, and the fact that it comes up again. 