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A review by bestbedhead
Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
This book is a quiet thing. Klara is an Artificial Friend through which this story is told. Like all AFs her beginning is at a store where her life begins with the hope of being chosen by a child. Klara is unique in that her observational skills and her insights go far beyond those of the AFs around her. I found myself for a lot of the story wondering what it was I was to glean from Klara's perspective. Perhaps she is just a vehicle that Ishiguro has chosen to examine human nature or the human condition. Klara's story is thoughtful and introspective mostly. Despite being a sophisticated robot she has thoughts and beliefs which grounded her.
I would say that I would have appreciated a touch more world building in the story. So much of this futuristic setting was left vague which worked in some instances and left me a little frustrated. The world seemed a lot bigger and more involved than what was depicted in Klara's narrow scope and I wish a little more of it had bled into the plot. Over all this was a nice, albeit slow, read that left me with a twinge of sadness in its conclusion.
I would say that I would have appreciated a touch more world building in the story. So much of this futuristic setting was left vague which worked in some instances and left me a little frustrated. The world seemed a lot bigger and more involved than what was depicted in Klara's narrow scope and I wish a little more of it had bled into the plot. Over all this was a nice, albeit slow, read that left me with a twinge of sadness in its conclusion.