Reviews tagging 'Abandonment'

Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro

28 reviews

sandramarinis's review against another edition

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dark emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This book really made me reflect on ethical dilemmas related to AI-technology. I never thought I would love a robot so much, but I ended up really liking Klara and wanting her to have her needs met. It's so weird since she technically doesn't have feelings like humans do, but she still has a strong moral compass which almost seems like human emotions. It's hard to explain this book.
For some reason I feel like this book would've made an even bigger impression on me if the ending was darker and unhappy. I didn't feel like it needed the happy ending, but that's just my personal opinion.

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chitti's review against another edition

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reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.5

Very well written scenery - can imagine it in my head clearly. It’s a little boring. Lovely characters, charming to see the world through a character as Klara.

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thebetterstory's review against another edition

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emotional sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

A very odd book, owing mostly to its very odd but lovable narrator. We still don't have all that many stories about an AI from their perspective, and those that we do tend to show the AI as very human (see: the delightful Murderbot). Klara's perspective is downright bizarre in a way that's continually surprising and interesting to read. I've never seen an author so successfully convey what it would look like if you essentially created a fully-fledged, mature human, had her live her entire life in a quiet retail store and then sent her out to experience the world with only that limited perspective to rely on. 

The central plot, or what there is of it, remains tense and absorbing as you're drawn into hoping that things will work out for these characters, against all odds and in spite of their blatant flaws.

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mirandyli's review against another edition

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dark reflective sad fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

A Black Mirror-esque story about the loneliness that comes with artificial intelligence. 

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sherpa2015's review against another edition

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hopeful mysterious reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5


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prettiestwhistles's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25


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innerweststreetlibrarian's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful mysterious reflective relaxing medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

This book reminded me a lot of Never Let Me Go (which I loved). There’s something similar about  Klara’s voice, a naïveté perhaps? 
Nothing much really happens and it’s a little infuriating that we don’t get to see or understand more about the world (so in that sense, it reminds me a little of The Buried Giant, which I didn’t like), but there’s enough to keep the reader intrigued. I was quite amused by the AFs having their own superstitions. 

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heather_harrison's review against another edition

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emotional reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

Pros 
* Nailed the linguistics of a robot 
* Complex relationships with family 
* Exploration of idea of being replaced by machines (this happens to Klara herself) 
* Ambiguous ending - was Josie healed by the sun from Klara’s sacrifice or did she die only to be seamlessly replaced by the portrait? 

Frustrations 
* Slow plot 
* POV gives extremely limited view of the world, leaves plenty of unanswered questions about the world and Josie 
* introduced Sal but no explanation of her death 
* Klara is painfully optimistic, unable to empathise with her

Like a duller, lonelier, non-homicidal version of M3GAN. 

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yrlaevelyn's review against another edition

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emotional reflective
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes

3.5


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miyothecat's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective sad medium-paced
  • 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

5.0


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