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sarabookshelf's review against another edition
3.5
Moderate: Death, Forced institutionalization, and Medical trauma
wyabook234's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro examines the value of human life and mind through the perspective of a character who isn't regarded as human, as she is a clone. Reading about how these "clones" grow up at Hailsham reveals how they adapt to idealisms of love and creativity that become a part of their lives and daily regimes. You've also learned through a portrayal of how society takes advantage of these clones and how we take our lives for granted. We also learned from the heartache of having Ruth, Kathy, and Tommy go through with what they were prepared for, with no control and further disappointments of what they can't do because their purpose has already been forced upon them.
While there is a love triangle, the disputes between all three teenagers aren't as bothersome because they do what they do to grasp onto their lives and any need for attachment as "clones." By the novel's end, you could feel empty of how much of a soul you can envision these clones having when they discover the truth about their existence.
I couldn't feel enough of a connection to these characters to bawl, and sometimes the plot meanders in the middle regarding how the kids act outside of Hailsham, except when it comes to looking for a music tape but that is just me.
Graphic: Death, Medical content, and Medical trauma
Moderate: Bullying and Infertility
Minor: Cancer
kjordan96's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
Graphic: Death and Medical trauma
emilywemily6's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Moderate: Bullying, Death, Sexual content, Medical content, Medical trauma, Toxic friendship, and Classism
Minor: Homophobia and Infertility
gladosisreading's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Graphic: Death, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Gaslighting
Minor: Child abuse
kourtjohnstone's review against another edition
5.0
Never Let Me Go is a quietly powerful novel that explores deep questions about humanity and ethics. Kazuo Ishiguro tells the story of Kathy, Ruth, and Tommy, students at a mysterious boarding school, as they gradually uncover the disturbing truth about their lives.
Graphic: Medical trauma
Minor: Bullying and Cancer
sabrina118's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Bullying, Death, Medical content, and Medical trauma
kennahgracie's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
I had high expectations for Never Let Me Go, but unfortunately, it did not deliver. While I enjoy novels with reflective, almost melancholy storylines, this one seemed to drag me to its conclusion. I didn't feel connected to the characters, their plight, or the novel's premise. It felt as though Ishiguro had great potential with this story but squandered it, resulting in a meandering prose.
One would think that students who create and hold passion for things like art, literature, philosophy, and the world around them would fight to explore their right to live as they please. But no, the characters felt like puppets or dogs on a leash being yanked by what their guardians called “fate.” Was there no ambition to escape or defect? To investigate or question? Every time it felt like Kathy was exiting the foggy projection of her, Ruth, and Tommy’s life, she would immediately catapult herself back in.
There were also many plot holes. I understand Ishiguro's intention in writing this novel, but many elements of the novel felt unnecessary. It seemed as if Ishiguro wanted to communicate the blurry and sometimes messy conditions of human life: how friendships and relationships build and crumble, how ambitions and connections wither without clear cause, commentary on social classes, and the mechanisms we abide by in hope to form a place in society. But with the layering of sci-fi elements like cloning, carers, and donors without fleshing out their systems (how they came to be, how they work, the legal and political constraints), the book's contents feel like a half-formed dream.
Sterile characterization (passive, unmotivated, uninspired characters)
Lack of climax, creating a predictable plot line
Lack of expansion on sci-fi elements, making the characters' existence as clones more of a backdrop for a slow-paced coming-of-age/romance setting
Surface-level observation of the negative effects of society’s social classes and the isolation caused by such
An overall repetitiveness due to Kathy using her memories as a means to explore the plot
Graphic: Bullying, Death, and Medical trauma
Moderate: Toxic relationship and Toxic friendship
Minor: Homophobia
eveningreverie's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Another reviewer writes that “Kath was way too passive.” Funny how that works. I wonder if we could find some clues in this story as to why that might be the case. Guess we’ll never know!
Moderate: Death, Medical trauma, and Gaslighting
kers_tin's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Graphic: Infertility, Forced institutionalization, and Medical trauma