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erichaunn's review against another edition
5.0
I would say it was closer to 4.5 than 5 stars as I found the ending a teeny bit lackluster after all the threads were tied together, but I’ll round up because I love a good literary novel with themes and analytical essay potential. All in all, it reminded me of a mixture of the novels Brave New World and Tender is the Flesh along with the movie The Island. Great book that makes you think about the ethics of science and the meaning of the essence of humanity. This book will only become more and more relevant generations to come.
mollylovestoread's review against another edition
3.0
I really liked the first half, but it lost a bit of steam for me in the second half. Or maybe I was just looking for a different ending that involved a bit more free will. Which would have defeated the point of most of the book...
clanhay's review against another edition
3.0
Odd and thought provoking. It’s borderline depressing but really just melancholy. I didn’t have any expectations going in but now I will classify this as alternate reality and dystopian.
I tried to just enjoy it for the interesting premise but a tiny part of my brain kept screaming “why does nobody try to run away?”
I tried to just enjoy it for the interesting premise but a tiny part of my brain kept screaming “why does nobody try to run away?”
yer_das_best_pal's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
trdeanon's review against another edition
4.0
Clones
Whoa. I wasn't expecting this story but nonetheless, I loved it and couldn't put it down. It reminds me of Black Mirror. Its crazy to think that we may be close to being able to do something like this.
Whoa. I wasn't expecting this story but nonetheless, I loved it and couldn't put it down. It reminds me of Black Mirror. Its crazy to think that we may be close to being able to do something like this.
emilywallace123's review against another edition
2.0
I really wanted to like this book. I found the plot fascinating and right up my alley, but the writing style made it hard to get through. The lack of depth and detail left me frustrated and disappointed.
mrwilliams's review against another edition
4.0
This may fall more towards a 3.5 for me. Since finishing The Remains of the Day in July, I have read three additional novels by Ishiguro. This marks my fifth book by the author. This falls somewhere between The Remains of the Day and the first two novels. The book carries a great sadness throughout, but the story feels too stuck in that mood. There are certain scenes that are beautifully written and border line suspenseful. This is a novel of many elements (horror, drama, sci-fic, etc).
david2960's review against another edition
3.0
Dystopian? Yes. Science fiction? Definitely not.
I think this book was about... racism? Accepting one's status as different from the norm and then, um, living with that realization? Well, sort of living with it. Blindly accepting it. Wait, what?
Ishiguro's style is superb. The slow path towards total revelation that these children aren't normal children, but rather they are
The driving idea behind the story feels like a curiosity though. Something suited to a short story in a collection of other dystopia short stories. And this coming from a guy who judges books on whether or not they reach a full 1000 pages, by the way. But this is a rare instance where I think it could have gone the other way and still have gotten the point across.
3/5 ... full marks for style, minus 2 because even 288 pages is more than the central idea of the story deserves.
I think this book was about... racism? Accepting one's status as different from the norm and then, um, living with that realization? Well, sort of living with it. Blindly accepting it. Wait, what?
Ishiguro's style is superb. The slow path towards total revelation that these children aren't normal children, but rather they are
Spoiler
a word that, in my view is actually too spoilery to even go inside a spoiler tag. If you want to know what they actually are, read the book, the reveal of what they are is the point of the whole thing.The driving idea behind the story feels like a curiosity though. Something suited to a short story in a collection of other dystopia short stories. And this coming from a guy who judges books on whether or not they reach a full 1000 pages, by the way. But this is a rare instance where I think it could have gone the other way and still have gotten the point across.
3/5 ... full marks for style, minus 2 because even 288 pages is more than the central idea of the story deserves.
jonathan_von's review against another edition
5.0
4.5 up to 5
It seems scarcely appropriate to make such a clumsy metaphor, but since reading Never Let Me Go, the book has rattled around in my head like a tennis shoe in a dryer. With each metallic clunk, it’s like another element fits into place. And a book I was uncertain about, confused really, takes on a near-perfect sheen; a shimmer of the bleakest poetry. This novel is a series of escalating metaphors: class, education, being an outsider, personal betrayal... it opens up into a brilliant, heart breaking book. A slap in the face, offering a distorted picture of a reality of our disposable youth that lifts off like a howl into the night; offering no answers because there are none. What would you do for a cure for illness? You don’t know these people anyway, what difference does it make if they have souls? Ishiguro specializes in a slow burn and this was slower than most but a deeper cut, a scar to remember.
It seems scarcely appropriate to make such a clumsy metaphor, but since reading Never Let Me Go, the book has rattled around in my head like a tennis shoe in a dryer. With each metallic clunk, it’s like another element fits into place. And a book I was uncertain about, confused really, takes on a near-perfect sheen; a shimmer of the bleakest poetry. This novel is a series of escalating metaphors: class, education, being an outsider, personal betrayal... it opens up into a brilliant, heart breaking book. A slap in the face, offering a distorted picture of a reality of our disposable youth that lifts off like a howl into the night; offering no answers because there are none. What would you do for a cure for illness? You don’t know these people anyway, what difference does it make if they have souls? Ishiguro specializes in a slow burn and this was slower than most but a deeper cut, a scar to remember.