Never Let Me Go
15 journalers for this copy...
A New York Times notable book.
From the back:
"From Booker-Prize-winning author Kazuo Isiguro comes a devastating new novel of innocence, knowledge and loss.
As children, Kathy, Ruth and Tommy were students at Hailsham, an exclusive boarding school secluded in the English countryside. It was a place of mercurial cliques and mysterious rules--and teachers were constantly reminding their charges of how special they were.
Now, years later, Kathy is a young woman, Ruth and Tommy have reentered her life, and for the first time she is beginning to look back at their shared past and understand just what it is that makes them so special--and how that gift will shape the rest of their time together. Suspenseful, moving, beautifully atmospheric, Never Let Me Go is another classic by the author of the Remains of the Day."
"Superbly unsettling, impeccably controlled....The book's irresistible power comes from Ishiguro's matchless abilithy to explose its dark heart in careful increments." -- Entertainment Weekly
Beautiful, haunting and enthralling. This is a quiet little book that sucks you in with its beautiful language and holds you with growing horror as you realize what it is all about. Highly recommend this book.
1. mellion108- US
2. pyrospiglet- Iraq
3. PatriciaLeao- Portugal
4. okyrhoe- Greece
5. hippoliein- Finland
5. Tubereader- UK
6. Afraberg- The Netherlands
7. Nicoleangela- Germany
8. Wandering-B Hong Kong
9. criminologeek - Hong Kong
10. Nagwan- Yemen
11. 1001-library *here*
The book is here. I need to finish my current read and then I'll start on this. Luckily, this is the only ring/ray that I have here at the moment (I'm sure that will soon change), so I should be able to get to it rather quickly and send it on its way again.
Trade paperback, 288 pages
I had heard the title of this book, but I had never heard anything about it. It's nearly impossible to write a journal entry without giving away substantial pieces of the plot, so I'll avoid that and just say that I really, really enjoyed this book. I am so glad I got the chance to read it, and now I understand why people rave about this author.
The story starts out a bit slow, and I have to admit that I was wondering what the heck was so interesting about the book. But Kathy's narrative won me over, and then I couldn't put the book aside.
This story brings up so many issues—conformity, individualism, free will, ethics, the good of the individual vs. the good of the group, etc. What a subtly written punch in the gut.
Anyway, I could go on. I have already talked 2 other people into getting this book to read (I'm a virus). I have pyrospiglet's address, and the book is packaged and ready to go. If I don't get it mailed tomorrow (May 23), it will have to wait until after the holiday weekend here in the U.S., but I should be able to have it on its way within a week at the most.
Thanks again for sharing, MarysGirl!
Released 15 yrs ago (8/3/2008 UTC) at By mail, A Bookring -- Controlled Releases
CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
Enjoy!
Incidentally, I just recently finished reading K. Ishiguro's The Remains of the Day.
In both cases the first-person narration highlights that the narrator's personality is composed almost entirely of memories. The past and present are intertwined in such a manner where the present is not quite tangible, it's merely a counterpoint to the more vivid memories. In this way the narrative devolves rather than evolves.
Although the premise of the story is a gripping one, and the sense of suspense is maintained throughout, I have to say it was very difficult to remain interested in Kathy. She is withdrawn from her real self and does not (cannot) share 'inside' information about who she essentially is and how she feels. She doesn't tell us her name until 100 pages into the book. Even the 'Never Let Me Go' incident she recounts is, it seems to me, part of her narrative only because she's troubled about how it affected 'Madame', rather than how significant the song was to her. When she does find the song again years later, she worries more about how Tommy is going to react, rather than allowing herself to fully sense what it is she's experiencing at that moment.
As I read closer to the book's ending, I realized that it would conclude more or less in the same manner as The Remains of the Day, in that the act of narrating the characters (Mr. Stevens, and here Kathy) haven't really achieved anything for themselves - they are just as, or even more so, detached from their soul as before.
Will be nice to read Ishiguro, have one other book on my mount TBR of the same writer.
thanks for making this a bookray Marysgirl and special thank to okyrhoe for sending it here!
Now it's my husband's, hippolein's turn to read the book.
Released 15 yrs ago (10/10/2008 UTC) at By mail, A Bookring -- Controlled Releases
CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
This wonderful book continues the trip now, all the way to Luxemburg.
Hope it gets there fast and safely!
Thanks hippolein for sending it (and for the postcard!) and also many thanks to MarysGirl for sharing it!
I have a couple of rings ahead of this one but hope to get to start reading it within the next two weeks.
I do no want to say much more here, so that I do not spoil the book for the next ones who read it, but I highly recommend it. I kind of agree with okyrhoe´s comments, although at the end I was thinking whether it is actually made on purpose: do the students really have a soul? Maybe it is exactly what he wants us to think about. The question is asked at some point in the book and maybe Kathy´s detachment towards herself (actually, everybody´s detachment towards themselves) could be a way of questioning whether students are really human...
I have Afraberg's address and hope to post the book to her tomorrow.
Thanks again to MarysGirl for sharing the book and to hippolein for posting it to me!
Released 15 yrs ago (12/9/2008 UTC) at Bookring/Bookray, -- By post or by hand/ in person -- Canada
CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
The book has been posted to Afraberg today. Sincere apologies for the delay.
Happy reading!
I will read the book somewhere at the end of decembber.
The book is on it's way to the next reader.
A really great story, very unusual, but I loved the way it is told.
Really enjoyed this one - very well written with a rather interesting premise. I enjoyed most of the characters' position on issues, but felt more than a little hopelessness at the end. Truly haunting book which will stay with you long after you have closed the cover for the last time. Passing along to the next reader.
Will mail it to the next reader very soon.
I would give this book one hundred points not just ten. The idea is new and the narration is great. Tubereader's contribution was very important, the characters *are* detached from themselves. I didn't understand why kath was not sad when Ruth died (or completed) and why the last time Kath and Tommy were together there was no show of strong emotions but what tubereader said explained it all. which is that the author might be implying that the students are not comletely human.
I didn't understand why the author was using the word "completed" when talking about the donors. Can anyone explain?
Thank you so much Marysgirl for sharing this book with us and thank you criminologeek for passing it on to me :)) (and thanks for the card)
I don't know what to do next. I will have to check the instructions to see how I'm gonna send the book to the 1001 library.
Thanks so much for your donation Nagwan !
This book is now part of the 1001-library. If you want to take this book from the library but don't know how to proceed, please refer to the 1001-library bookshelf.
This book is now back on the 1001 library bookshelf and can be borrowed by PMing svoight:)
If you want to take this book from the library but don't know how to proceed, please refer to the library bookshelf.
Released 13 yrs ago (6/4/2010 UTC) at Linda-a-Velha, Lisboa (distrito) Portugal
CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
Very interesting story and well written. It makes you think. I really liked this author. thanks for sharing
This book is now back on the 1001 library bookshelf and can be borrowed by PMing ArwenG:)
If you want to take this book from the library but don't know how to proceed, please refer to the library bookshelf.