Never Let Me Go in Pick-a-Shelf

Feb 15, 2010 Lyn (Readinghearts) rated it it was amazing

Shelves: contemporary, 2010-read, ccclib, ya

I have been wanting to read this book for a while for a number of reasons:

It is on the 2006 "1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die" List

It was a group read for the GR group with the same name (January 2010)

I have heard good thinks about it from friends who have read it.

I finally got to it as it was on the Dystopian shelf, which is the March 2010 shelf for the Goodreads Pick-a-Shelf group. It is a beautiful story, and one of the best books I've read recently. The only thing is, it is not real I have been wanting to read this book for a while for a number of reasons:

It is on the 2006 "1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die" List

It was a group read for the GR group with the same name (January 2010)

I have heard good thinks about it from friends who have read it.

I finally got to it as it was on the Dystopian shelf, which is the March 2010 shelf for the Goodreads Pick-a-Shelf group. It is a beautiful story, and one of the best books I've read recently. The only thing is, it is not really a dystopia book in my mind. Maybe I am missing something, because there is a slightly sci-fi background to the book, and I guess if you really think about it, the main characters in the book have a sad lot in life. Still I wouldn't consider their world dystopian. Dystopian to me indicates a world that is supposed to be utopian, but goes wrong, like the world in The Giver by Lois Lowry, or a world that is dominating and controlling, like the world in Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell. The world that the characters in this book live in does not quite fit either scenario. Although it is a world where the people in it have a set future that cannot be altered, so maybe it fits in that respect.

The central story in this book is a beautiful story about love and friendship, and I found myself enjoying the characters and anticipating what would happen next and where their lives were headed. Ishiguro has a writing style that is very easy to read, and he tells a story in a very beautiful voice. In addition, the characters seemed very real and alive. I especially liked the way that Ishiguro let out information in little pieces. There is one point in the book where one of the main characters says is speaking of a secret about their lives and she says, "The guardians told us without telling us" meaning they let information out in such a way that the characters were aware of what was going to happen without really realizing they were aware. Ishiguro told the story of Kathy, Ruth, and Tommy in the same way, and I found that a particularly clever and enjoyable way to tell this story.

I would class this book as a must read, and I am looking forward to reading more books by this author. ...more

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Dec 20, 2011 Mmars rated it really liked it

A really good and thought-provoking read. An interesting study of afterthought (something the movie was unable to incorporate) concerning the narrator's unusual childhood and coming-of-age. In a way, I would have enjoyed more surprise and less foreshadowing, but I commend Ishiguro for succeeding in revealing the secret of their childhoods then keeping the book compelling to the end. In the genre of Atwood's Handmaid's Tale, but not as dark. ...more

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