A review by sanghadharin
The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro

emotional mysterious reflective sad 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

5.0

Remains of the Day 

 

I absolutely devoured this book over a weekend. I found it extremely captivating in quite a quiet way. The plot doesn’t race or keep you on the edge of your seat like something like Project Hail Mary but the momentum slowly built and I was completely immersed in the world of Mr Stevens. 

 

The level of his repression of self delusion begins with only small hints but becomes more and more oppressive and painful and few moments towards the end where authenticity breaks through are shattering. Having stayed with a character who is putting on such a front for so much of the book, the moments when he is finally honest with himself jumped off the page straight into my heart. It was Mr Stevens’ view of ‘dignity’ that led him to be so closed off to his emotions, which was presumably very common in people of that generation, and ultimately led him to living a life that was not his own. 

 

I’m extremely impressed by the subtlety of Ishiguro’s writing in this and how so little was explicitly stated. The romance being unspoken throughout all but two sentences of the book and his relationship to his memory of Mr Darlington gradually changing over time, rather than him having any dramatic lightbulb moments. 

 

I’ve only just finished this book but I think it has opened my mind into what a novel can be. I’ve never experienced an unreliable narrator so fully. He completely captures how you would imagine a 20th century butler to think, speak and act and manages to covertly convey so much more than is ever said.