Japanese-English author Kazuo Ishiguro's sixth and most recent novel, Never Let Me Go, showcases a little-known author at the height of his writing prowess. His latest book takes quiet risks and is written in clear, gimmick-free prose. The novel has a simplicity of style often associated with the Japanese literary tradition and a British sensibility which is manifested in the novel's preoccupation with the country's society and landscape.
Never Let Me Go Synopsis
The action of the novel takes place at the fictional boarding school of Hailsham, located in East Sussex, England. The school is inhabited by child clones ages 12-16. At Hailsham, the children are free from the pitfalls of strenuous labor and nearly anything that could be considered "difficult."
Instead, the children are encouraged to create art - the best of which is collected by a mysterious woman, known to the children as Madame, and believed to be stored away in a gallery somewhere. When it is time for the children to graduate from the school, they are moved to "the Cottages," a place where they begin to discover the true purpose of their creation and the society they inhabit.
The novel primarily follows three characters who attend Hailsham together - Kathy, Ruthy and Tommy. Kathy is a reserved and quiet protagonist who serves as a fly on the wall to observe those around her. Tommy is a clumsy boy who is often bullied, and Ruthy is his outspoken girlfriend with a domineering disposition. The three attend the school together, and each struggles in their own way to come to terms with their own "purpose" at Hailsham.
Never Let Me Go Structure
The novel is broken up into three parts. Ishiguro uses in medias res - the novel begins near the end of the story. Ishiguro moves readers through the childhood of the protagonist, Kathy, all the way through her adolescence up until the time she becomes a "carer" as a young woman. The novel skips ahead several years and follows the three characters as adults, long after Hailsham, the place that defined them and the place where their memories reside, has closed for good.
Together, the three struggle to come to terms with life after Hailsham and still have difficulty understanding the significance of their tenure there many years ago. In order to understand, they must confront the memories they shared with each other as well as their friendly yet obfuscating teachers.
Never Let Me Go Review
Never Let Me Go is beautiful in its simplicity. Ishiguro is primarily concerned with the telling of a story, and he does it with real subtlety and care. A great deal of mystery surrounds the novel, and it is quite understated. Even by the end of the novel, there is a sense of mystery surrounding Hailsham and the fictional, dystopian universe created by Ishiguro.
Ishiguro doesn't provide the readers with any easy understanding or moment of epiphany. The novel is suspenseful at times, but the genre "thriller" seems almost to be a misnomer here given Ishiguro's careful, evenly keeled prose.
The novel has garnered a great deal of praise and recognition. It was shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 2005 and is included in TIME 100 Best English-language Novels from 1923 to 2005. It was made into a film directed by Mark Romanek in 2010.
Todd Christopher Petty - Todd Petty is a student studying Journalism and English Literature at The College of New Jersey.
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