Never Let Me Go

by Kazuo Ishiguro

rrp $23

The haunting and mesmerising story of three children who grow up in an exclusive and secluded boarding school in the English countryside will stay with you long after you’ve finished the last page.  Author Kazuo Ishiguro, of The Remains of the Day fame, was nominated for a Booker Prize upon its release five years ago.

Never Let Me Go is narrated by Kathy, a “carer” in her late 20s who is thinking back to her seemingly idyllic upbringing at the Hailsham estate and her two best friends, Ruth and Tommy.  The students are taught about the world and their role in society, but never venture outside the school grounds.  Their already-set future on the outside is always alluded to by their teachers (called ‘guardians’) and it builds quite a portentous feeling.  The denouement is equally shocking and thought-provoking, which questions the meaning of life and the nature of humanity.

Ishiguro’s simple and minimalist prose, in the voice of Kathy, never quite prepares us for the heartbreaking events later in the novel.  This beautiful book has recently been adapted to film, and is due for release in Australia in late February.

Read the book before you see the film!

In store now.

One You May Have Missed: The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga

I know we’ve all heard of this novel already – after all, it did win the Booker Prize last year! – but I just wanted to remind everyone what an amazing story it is, and to urge anyone who hasn’t already read it to give it a go.

Told in a series of letters to His Excellency Wen Jiabao at the Premiers office in Beijing, it is the life story of Balram Halwai, the “White Tiger”, and his rise to become a wealthy entrepreneur. Born into dire poverty (his parents were too busy working to name him, so he was called “boy” until his teacher gave him a proper name!), Balram grows up in the squalor and indignity of the lower castes. He is ambitious, however, and wants a better life, but soon realises he will have to resort to unconventional measures to claw his way out of “the Darkness”.

Adiga paints a searing and completely unromanticised  picture of the life of the poor in India, and the corruption at all levels of bureaucracy. It is a measure of the skill of the writer that the novel does not feel depressing or heavy, with moments of great humour and unexpected beauty.

Compelling, intelligent, original and brilliantly written, I thought this book was a fantastic read. $24.95. Fiona