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Never Let Me Go

Kazuo Ishiguro

Start date: September 1, 2014

Finish date: September 30, 2014

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What Members Thought

Mar 27, 2012 Books_the_Magical_Fruit rated it it was ok

Shelves: science-fiction

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

3 likes · Like · see review

Mar 20, 2016 Izzie rated it liked it

Shelves: adult, reviewed, fiction, three-star

All my reviews can be found at The Tiny Reader's Reference! Come on over and say hello!

Short & Sweet: Never Let Me Go is a novel of many facets, all of which will inspire discussion between whomever may read it. Where it lacks in action and engagement, it makes up for in emotion, all the way up to its heartbreaking end. This is not a happy book.

I originally planned, while sketching out this review in my mind, to sit down and state plainly that Never Let Me Go is weird. "How it won awards is bey All my reviews can be found at The Tiny Reader's Reference! Come on over and say hello!

Short & Sweet: Never Let Me Go is a novel of many facets, all of which will inspire discussion between whomever may read it. Where it lacks in action and engagement, it makes up for in emotion, all the way up to its heartbreaking end. This is not a happy book.

I originally planned, while sketching out this review in my mind, to sit down and state plainly that Never Let Me Go is weird. "How it won awards is beyond my understanding" and "I didn't quite know what the heck I was reading half the time".
But as I mulled it over, I realized my flaw was going into this novel with expectations. I expected a traditional novel structure. I expected overt action. I expected a 'movement' based story that engaged me from page 1. Never Let Me Go is none of these, and it doesn't pretend to be, either. The beauty in this story is not action, or movement, or the way the story is presented to you. It is in the subtleties, the mundane over darkness, a normal veneer over something sinister.

In replacement of action, we get trickle truth to keep us reading - just enough information for our 'this is weird' sensors to perk up a little bit, to metaphorically smell a rot under a beautiful bouquet of flowers. And you keep reading for snatches of information, while a small voice in the back of your mind is saying, what the hell is going on here? Even after the answers are given and the book closes on the last page, so many questions are left unanswered.

The writing itself is very basic and conversational. I wrote in my notes that it is "very much a 'hanging out with a childhood friend and reminiscing about old times' type of story", and I still stick by that. In fact, that is the whole setup, where we meet Kathy, a 'Carer', who is taking care of her childhood friend, Ruth. They wile away the days talking about their time at Hailsham, and we are teleported into Kathy's memories.

Is this novel engaging? Not in the slightest. I can put this book down and it'll drift to the far back of my mind - it doesn't stand out in that regard. A lot of other reviewers have struggled to finish it, or rated it poorly - those reviews are absolutely valid. But if you're looking for a very quick story that is not among the norm, something different, pick this up. Just make sure to also leave your expectations at the door. ...more

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