reading_rainbow_with_chris 's review for:

Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro

5.0

challenging mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

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 “Klara and the Sun” by Kazuo Ishiguro

Klara the AF lives in her store, observing the world outside and waiting to be selected. One day she goes home with a girl named Josie and comes to know humans in a way that she never expected. 

I had heard amazing things about this book and it was somewhat intimidating, leaving me feeling like I needed to wait for the *perfect* moment to read this masterpiece. I finally felt like I was in a space to read it and I’m glad I waited. Ishiguro has crafted a fascinating novel that I read as an exploration of the human desire for more and the consequences of such desire. But telling the story through the eyes of an Artificial Friend (AF) who must learn the rules of the world as she goes means that the novel avoids the “morality tale” vibe of many stories in this vein. Klara may be the narrator but in many ways she is not the center of the story. She is a nonjudgmental foil for all who revolve around Josie, who I would consider the center of the story. This is to me what makes this novel work. There is no direct explanation of the dystopian world which sets the stage for the plot, no moment where a character is shoehorned into explaining things in dialogue. Everything that we learn about the world is through Klara’s eyes as she takes things in, makes connections, discovers schema, and develops relationships with the humans. It makes for a slow, sometimes confusing, but ultimately very satisfying payoff when we come to understand a new piece of the world with Klara. Ishiguro also manages to avoid all of the normal “robot” or “AI” tropes that you might expect, meaning Klara is not a “beep beep boop” AF but one who is simply an intelligent being who happens to be artificially created. 

At the end of the novel I thought I would be unsatisfied with some of the loose ends I was experiencing but when I closed the book last night I felt nothing but satisfaction. This is one of those books that I don’t think ever needs to feel complete or finished. Kazuo Ishiguro has written a really fascinating book that is quiet but impactful, subtly stunning in a way that it doesn’t need to scream its brilliance. It simply is.