Review: Never Let Me Go
I’ve been wanting to read “Never Let Me Go” by Kazuo Ishiguro for years now, and I finally picked up a copy one night when I was feeling lonely over the summer. I didn’t read it. I can’t remember why.
Anyway, the other day I stumbled across the following, which pretty much propelled me back toward the book (not too many spoilers, but should give you a rough idea):
Obviously, I prefer to read the book before I see a movie, because… well, I am a sane, rational being. So, I picked it up and vowed to get through it, despite my rather busy schedule. Luckily, I had a night a few nights ago where my body decided that 3 hours of sleep would be quite enough, and I was able to read through the night. I continued, over the last few days, during my breaks at school. I suppose, due to the cover which looks similar to a typical romance novel, my classmates and people on the buses assumed I was reading some sort of love story. I quite enjoyed when someone would inquire as to what the book was about, and I was able to answer “clones.”
Warning: From here on in there may be spoilers. However, the book IS good that if you find yourself interested, it is still worth a read, even if you know bits of the plot.
At first, I found it incredibly difficult to get into. I suppose the main reason for this was that it is in first person, which is fine normally, and not exactly told in a linear fashion. Sure, there are 3 parts, and each part sticks roughly to the time frame it is meant to be describing, but inside the 3 parts the story often jumps around. The first part actually seems to cover the most time, which is why it was a bit difficult to get into. The second and third parts are a lot more linear, and, of course, by then, you’re quite used to being inside the narrator’s head. After a while, I found it easy to get lost inside the character. I wonder if it would be a bit more difficult to become as engaged if the reader were male.
“Never Let Me Go” is the story of the students at a rather picturesque boarding school in an Alternate Universe version of England, in the 1990s. As the reader, you are quickly introduced to the lingo these students use which describe the basic premise of the story. Guardians are the teachers who constantly remind them that they are special. Carers are like nurses, and are what many of them know they will be before they commence the role they were meant to fill. The students are what they call the clones… created to provide vital organ donations as donors once they’ve reached their mid-20s. The school, which focuses largely on the arts, is established in an attempt to find out if the clones have souls. It’s interesting to read about how they perceive being creative, having possessions and the meaning behind sex when one is unable to reproduce.
I think one of the things that kept me entranced with the book was wondering “are they going to do something?” Human nature is so strange in that we want so much to take action and be in charge of our own fates, but how often do we actually fight for that control? Is it wrong to wish for something more than what you’re “supposed” to do, or to be somewhere other than where you’re “supposed” to be?
At times the lives of the students seem pointless, and at the same time the pointlessness seemed mirrored in several examples of human existence– the idea of living a life, only to have it end before truly understanding it, just on a condensed time line.
Ishiguro’s style in this novel is so subtle, it borders on bland, since everything is so matter-of-fact, like a diary, but that really does help the novel in making it feel incredibly real, and believable.
Overall, I believe that “Never Let Me Go,” is definitely worth the struggle of the first few chapters to get to the poignant and thought-provoking centre and ending.
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When I’m not making the Internet pretty & functional at my day job, I can be found snapping photographs, having dinner with friends, listening to kickass music, fiddling with one of my many Apple products or shopping for new & exciting sweaters. 
Oooh, I somehow stumbled upon the trailer a few days or so ago! It seems really interesting and from reading your entry about it made me even more interested in it… but I’m one of those people who prefer movies over books because I’m lazy >_< but may read the book since it could be a while before it comes out~
I think I read this book a year and a half ago and just picked it out of my bookshelf today to lend it to a friend, I love it. I’m a sucker for dystopian sci-fi. Not sure I’ll bother with the movie, though. Reaaaaally not a movie person and usually hate adaptations of books.
This sounds really interesting! I am going to add it to my list of books.
So far all the books I’ve read that you’ve recommended have been excellent, so I trust your judgment here.
I read this book a few years ago, and was in tears by the time I finished it. I also prefer to read a book before seeing the film, but I think there is something in books and films that make them wholly different media, which is why I don’t think they are meant to be made comparable all the time.
I was happy to read your mentioning of the cover, as it does look like your run-of-the-mill romance story. That must have been a fun experience seeing the expressions of people trying to wrap their heads around the clone-oriented synopsis with such a cover design.
I cannot wait to see the movie. I have a feeling I have to prepare for a waterworks situation when watching it, too.
[...] This is just a quick one because I’ve had a long day and I am beyond ready to become unconscious for a few hours, but I just got back from seeing the film adaptation of a book I recently read, Never Let Me Go. [...]