Reviews

I enjoyed the themes of this story more than the story itself. It has a fable/myth feel that kept me at a distance from the characters and meant that the dialogue was often unrealistic in the way old-timey stuff is. I didn’t enjoy that. But the topic of memory, in a whole range of contexts, was thought provoking. War and revenge, marriage woes, grief, regrets - are we better off not remembering those things? I don’t think Ishiguro answers that, he just presents the question.

kaceyymair's review against another edition

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2.0

Interesting, and I did like the main couple and the ending was sweet, but this could’ve been 50 pages and I felt like there was too much faffing around

tom_56's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

dellaposta's review against another edition

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3.25

Ishiguro has written many great versions of this story about memory and guilt, both personal and collective. Oddly, while being the most otherworldly of his books, The Buried Giant also feels the most literal, even with its on-the-nose title. I wasn’t pulled in the way I usually am by his writing, though it’s still far from being a bad book.

ddagati33's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

cc_booklists's review against another edition

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2.0

2.5

njean927's review against another edition

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The pacing felt off, so it was difficult to stay engaged. I've read and enjoyed similar books and can't quite put my finger on why this one didn't work for me.

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