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I haven't read it yet but I did watch the film adaption with Kira Knightly and since I love stories with a dystopian theme decided to order this in a hardback format. Arrived in great condition and such a better price than buying a hardback book from a shop first hand.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
Its been a while since I read this one. I remembered it being a subtle yet powerful piece of story telling. I was right. Its a rarity, a science fiction novel (of sorts) from one of the recognized greats of modern literature. It has a quiet pace, rarely getting overexcited but creeping inexorably towards the conclusion that you kind of know is coming, but you don't want to accept, the early part of the book leaves clues as to the purpose of the group of protagonists , it sort of became clear to me, but i thought "no , that cant be right". But slowly and surely, it becomes clear that it is. Its a tale of a certain kind of society, a certain kind of mindset that is seen in elitist circles/govt , and the willful denial that is seen in the subjects of these rulers, probably prevalent in prewar Germany. We can ignore what is happening as long as we survive/prosper, but turned on its head,, well maybe not turned on its head but "skewed" Its also a story of friendship and growing up, discovery and weirdly, acceptance. But what I love most about this book, is not the story in itself, though it is pretty damn good, or the characterization, again, very well done. But the overall easy, relaxed and seductive pace of the piece. The incredibly well crafted structure and the nuances of Ishiguro´s use of language. Its beautiful, a readers book. Not easy to describe to others, at least not without giving the plot away but well worth the time, and will leave you wanting others to read it. I was reminded of it by the appearance of the movie, which I still haven't watched, as I don't want to tarnish the books image in my head. Saying that, I have heard the films not too shabby, so I may give it a try one day, Its been sat on my shelf for a good while now waiting to be watched.Read full review
An interesting take about a dystopian world.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
NLMG is basically the story of the lives of three childhood friends, Tommy, Ruth and Kathy, told by the latter. They were raised together in something that looks like an english high class private school, with something a little off: the teachers are called "guardians", there are no parents visiting the "students", who are imprisoned in the mansion, given a very good education, but nothing that will prepare them for the life outside the school, Heilsham. Because as a matter of fact they aren't supposed to have a real life and real jobs at the end: all the kids are clones grown for the sole reason to "donate" their organs to the humans. The cloning theme is pretty common in sci-fi, and we can consider this book a sort of unorthodox sci-fi opera that takes places in an alternative past that diverge from ours since the 50s, when some special and never really explained "cure for cancer" was developed: the author doesn't give the details, but the kids are indeed the cure. Of course, since the story has been told from the perspective of one of the children, there is almost no mention to the "large picture" until the end of the story, when they confront the ex headmistress of Heilsham who reveals that all their hopes have been pre-fabricated by them and the teachers didn't want to delude the children at such a young age. For those who watched the good movie, in the book they will find a more articulated answer of the closure of the school and the political changes that caused the failure of that sort of "civil right movement" that created Heilsham and other two institutes. Besides the "large sci-fi picture" that is reduced to few pages, the book mainly deals with the everyday life of the three children, then youth, and the complex triangle formed by the two girls and the boy, so for this perspective I would consider it a sort of love story. The potential reader should be informed that the book is very nicely written, it really gives the impression that it's a sort of diary written by a naive girl with little understanding of the world, but it's also a little slow and not for everybody: if you're looking for action, find something else. Personally I enjoyed very much although the depressing tone cannot be ignored. In the end, like Blade Runner, the main question is the definition of humanity and the egoism of humans who create and kill (retire in Scott's movie,completed for Ishiguro) near human being just for spare parts. So, if you like these kind of ethic challenges and you aren't afraid of "heavy reading" this book might be for you, as well as the movie.Read full review
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