Book Blog: Never Let Me Go - Kazuo Ishiguro

I just finished this book last night and I'm not really sure what I think about it. It was one of those that I just impulsively grabbed off the shelf at the bookstore because the cover caught my eye. The back said nothing about the story, yet for some reason I felt drawn to it. It was a first person narrative that was composed mainly of memories so there was not really much of a cohesive plot line. Since I didn't know what it was about it took me a while to figure out what was going on. The story is about these children that were created as human clones to provide organ donations to "normal" humans with cancer and other diseases. They were raised in a sheltered boarding school environment, taught to do artwork, and eventually became carers and then donors. However, despite their sheltered upbringing, they still experienced relatively normal childhoods and adolescence, it was more just shrouded by a sense of mystery and unanswered questions.

I had a hard time with the seemingly lack of plot throughout the book, there was some but it was slight and slow moving. You have to read through the end to really get completely what was going on, and to really be able to step back and think about the depth of the point of the story. It's not really about the plot, it's more about the character's perceptions of reality and destiny. And also about how they and the project they were involved in was perceived by the regular world and their guardians that raised them. Now that I've finished the book I can appreciate it, but I wouldn't say I enjoyed it. More in a sense that I appreciate strange art because I know it's creative and thought-provoking, not because it's pleasing to my eye.

When I bought the book I knew there was a movie coming out, and I am proud of myself for waiting until tonight to watch the trailer. Carey Mulligan and Kiera Knightly star in it. I think this might actually be one that I like the movie better than the book because it will add a visual element. Here is the trailer if you're interested.