Book Club Friday...

I haven't linked up for Book Club Friday in a couple of weeks and I already miss it, so I'm back!! If I'm honest I have not done as much reading as I hoped I would this holidays, I kept getting distracted by cheesy movies and 'camp' horror films haha.

But I did manage to read this little gem!

Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro

Synopsis:

As a child, Kathy–now thirty-one years old–lived at Hailsham, a private school in the scenic English countryside where the children were sheltered from the outside world, brought up to believe that they were special and that their well-being was crucial not only for themselves but for the society they would eventually enter. Kathy had long ago put this idyllic past behind her, but when two of her Hailsham friends come back into her life, she stops resisting the pull of memory.

And so, as her friendship with Ruth is rekindled, and as the feelings that long ago fueled her adolescent crush on Tommy begin to deepen into love, Kathy recalls their years at Hailsham. She describes happy scenes of boys and girls growing up together, unperturbed–even comforted–by their isolation. But she describes other scenes as well: of discord and misunderstanding that hint at a dark secret behind Hailsham’s nurturing facade. With the dawning clarity of hindsight, the three friends are compelled to face the truth about their childhood–and about their lives now.

A tale of deceptive simplicity, Never Let Me Go slowly reveals an extraordinary emotional depth and resonance–and takes its place among Kazuo Ishiguro’s finest work.

My Thoughts:

Wow. I have to admit I saw the film before I read the book (it has Carey Mulligan, Keira Knightly, and Andrew Garfield in it!) but I knew from the film that the book was going to be great, and I was right! It is written beautifully, the characters are crafted so well, and it so clever that you don't see anything coming. Its true genius is that its not written as a sci fi or a thriller but it crafts aspects of both into a fantastic piece of literature. I won't say anything else about that as I may give it way, but its crazy good!

The book focuses around the relationships between the characters and the social dynamics of the boarding school itself, we get the story from an adult Kathy's perspective and she describes her younger life in great detail. She skips back and forth between stories of varying importance, mentioning people from her childhood and more importantly her best friends there. Some people have complained about the way it was written, as a one-sided conversation almost, but I thought it worked well with the style of the book. Seriously guys, read this book. it is amazing! And the movie is pretty good as well, its slow moving and full of silences which often puts people off, but if you enjoy well-constructed, beautifully shot, and compelling films then you will love it! its just definitely not a Hollywood blockbuster...

Who knows, maybe I will have more luck reading when I'm back at Uni, actually doing work. It seems to be the case...

xx