Reviews

I first discovered this story as a movie trailer while aimlessly watching anything and everything on YouTube on a sleepy Saturday night. Deciding to read the book first, I bought a paperback (sadly, it was the movie tie-in edition) after ages and ages of putting it on hold. The first thing you acknowledge after reading some fifty pages is the fact that this book has been wrongly promoted as a science fiction novel. Though it contains certain elements of sci-fi, the story is majorly a tale of emotional whirlpools, which builds up as a song of a morning bird, taking so much from the readers and leaving them heartbroken at the end. I rate it 4/5 because it is a brilliant book with exceptional writing from Kazuo Ishiguro. I might have given it a five but I held it back for the lack of one thing in the book - a happy ending. But again, all good stories can't be a walk on a rainbow ending in a pot of gold. The story is going to stay with me for a long time. I will remember Kathy (the narrator and one of the protagonist)at times of complete loss. I will remember Tommy when rebellion will seem better than denial. And I will remember Ruth when a friend will become the saviour of my drowning desires.
So, go ahead read it while I go buy another one of the author's book - "The remains of the day". It will break your heart in the most beautiful way.
P.S. Not recommended for those with dislike of stories that take up a lot of time to build up.

courtneyptum's review against another edition

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challenging emotional mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.0

radiantdaydreams's review against another edition

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5.0

I enjoyed reading this book about Kath, a old Hailsham student who works as a carer in a society where people like her are cloned in order to become organ donors.
Thanks Ms Khine for recommending this book!

shubbard116's review against another edition

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2.0

That was weird.
And I’m not talking about the plot. The whole “Brave New World” concept was fine and interesting.
But how it was carried out was weird.
Why was 60% of the book about sex? There are other ways to show humans have souls, other than showing how much they love sex.
No thanks.

andotherworlds's review against another edition

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4.0

4.5 - 5 // this was everything i wanted - the melancholy, the nostalgia, the looming sense of an almost cosmic helplessness - thank you mr. ishiguro

nightmarekitty13's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

andrewsweet's review against another edition

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5.0

When I started writing Models and Citizens, I was looking for the right sub-population to reflect some of what I see in our society around us. It wasn't supposed to be about clones at first. This is the book that made me think about using clones for my lower-caste.

The book follows a trio of clones and their relationship over a number of years from an experimental "boarding school" called Hailsham. The way that Kazuo maintains focus on Kathy makes the reader invest so deeply in her that even though the ending is foretold in the first chapter, the reader builds a healthy denial throughout until the very end. This exceptional book made me realize that cloning could be a very effective tool for examining the society we live in. Excellent writing, engaging story, and compelling treatment of a science fiction trope.

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