By Kazuo Ishiguro Never Let Me Go (1st Edition) Hardcover – 18 Mar. 2005

Chalk and cheese to some readers, personally loved it. You know what's going on some way in. This makes it a unsettling and somewhat sad read.

This is an extraordinary story of love, with a tragic backdrop of the exploration of the concept of soul, via the fact that the main characters, two young adult women and a young adult man, are clones. It is the classic love triangle with a twist. Told in the first person by Katherine, it is an incredible achievement for a male author. The intensity with which he explores the relationship s within the story becomes totally captivating, to such an extent that half-day through, I realised I had to reach the end as soon as possible, so anything and everything that got in the way of the reading was abandoned! A truly wonderful, enriching read, a dystopian novel which stretches the bounds of negativity to bring a brilliant positive feeling about our essential humanity and our compassion for one another as human beings, in the most tragic and devastating circumstances. Unmistakable, without doubt a novel whose significance will gather enormous momentum over the next few years as another new generation of young adults learns of its power. This is Young Adult literature, but it's message is totally universal and any adult worth their salt should read it before it's too late, quite literally, read this before you are old and decrepit and dementia has overtaken your wits...!

BlurbKathy, Ruth and Tommy grew up together at Hailsham, a seemingly idyllic school deep in the English countryside with a dreadful secret at its heart. Now thirty-one, Kathy attempts to come to terms with her childhood at Hailsham and with the fate that has always awaited her and her closest friends in the wider world.My ReviewAll the excellent reviews of 'Never Let Me Go' along with the prizes it's won, made me wary. But I understand where all the prizes and reviews came from. It's a beautiful book.However, I did have my problems with it. After reading the first chapter, I had to force myself to pick the book up again. This continued to happen until I was about 100 pages in and I'm going to be honest, I almost put it down. Though I can't criticise Ishiguro on why I wasn't gripped because I couldn't find much wrong with the entire book. I suppose maybe it just wasn't for me.Perhaps one of the reasons I found it so hard to get into was because of Kath's narration. It jumped all over the place - though if you were telling the story out loud that's how you'd tell it. Saying that though, I liked how she was unreliable and it made me wonder how much our memories change and warp over time.Once the strange mystery was set up and I began asking questions, I was much more interested and into it, reading more than I set out to each time I picked it up. I loved how everything was downplayed and no huge drama. It's just little bits of life here and there that have a way of really touching you. This is refreshing for someone who reads a lot of high drama in YA books set in another world.Although I can't decide whether or not I enjoyed it, I have a feeling 'Never Let Me Go' will stay with me because it left me empty and sad and thoughtful.EvaluationOverall 8/10Would I recommend it? No. Probably not.Would I look up the author? No. I know all of Ishiguro's books are supposed to be good but I wasn't gripped enough.'Never Let Me Go' was beautiful and thoughtful but a struggle to get into.

The book arrived 9 days earlier than anticipated so that was nice. The front cover was different to the one displayed here but the one sent is actually the newest addition so that's a bonus. But it would have been better if the book I was receiving was the image displayed. Book arrived also in pristine condition.

Used and not new

Good

See title

Never Let Me Go follows three students at Hailsham boarding school. Narrated in great detail by one of these three pupils Kath, she reflects upon time spent with Tommy and Ruth both at school and when they have left. It is soon clear to the reader that this is not your typical boarding school, coming of age story.If you have not read this, I would highly recommend going into it without knowing too much. I expect that if you did know the route that this book was going to go down before picking it up - you may be disappointed as I expect you'd be prepared for a completely different reading experience (sorry for the vagueness).I have so much I want to say but also I do not want to say because of spoilers so I will keep my review brief. The mundanity and level of detail of Kath recalling her memories made me scratch my head at first. "What is the point?" and "Why do I care" were two phrases I was soon asking myself. As things became more apparent, it was understandable why Kath was romanticising, over explaining and over analysing every little detail and my heart just broke more and more as I read on.Never Let Me Go is one of those books that you cannot stop thinking about when you finish reading it. I want to read people's reviews, essays and thoughts on Never Let Me Go to see how others felt about it and what I might have missed. I also know that I need to watch the film asap!A book that really made me consider and question humanity and ultimately left me a mess.