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Book of the month

Find reading inspiration on our Book of the Month forum.

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Original poster

Come and chat to KAZUO ISHIGURO about his extraordinary writing career on Thurs 9 April, 9-10pm

141 replies

TillyBookClub · 24/02/2015 13:15

Kazuo Ishiguro OBE is a multiple nominee and winner of the Booker Prize and dozens of other international awards. Throughout his hugely successful and varied career, from the exquisitely poignant REMAINS OF THE DAY to the dystopian NEVER LET ME GO, he has often explored the idea of memory: how it shapes us, its fickle nature, how it distorts the choices we make.

Ishiguro’s new novel, THE BURIED GIANT, is an adventure fantasy, set in a Dark Ages Britain populated with knights, giants, monks and dragons. All the inhabitants appear to have suffered a loss of memory. The central characters, Axl and Beatrice, are an elderly married couple on a journey to find their son. As with all fantastical quests, they encounter mysterious strangers and dangerous escapades. Throughout the novel, an overriding question hangs in the air: is it worth suffering painful memories, or better to live in ignorance?

For more details, go to our book of the month page. You might also like Mark Lawson's interview with the author on BBC iplayer.

Faber have very generously offered 50 hardbacks of The Buried Giant to give to Mumsnetters. To claim yours, please fill in your details on the book of the month page. We’ll post on this thread when the copies have gone. If you’re not lucky enough to bag one of those, you can always get a copy here.

We have the very rare and special opportunity to talk to Kazuo Ishiguro when he joins us on Thursday April 9th, 9-10pm for a live web chat. The discussion will range from his latest book to his previous bestsellers and future projects. So whether you have read THE BURIED GIANT, or are a lifelong fan of REMAINS OF THE DAY, or would like a few tips from one of the UK’s most experienced and acclaimed writers, please come along and say hello. Look forward to seeing you on Thurs 9th…

OP posts:

whatwoulddexterdo · 23/03/2015 21:24

Have got my copy, thanks Rachel for sorting. It's a beautiful looking book. Am starting it tomorrow. I am also planning a reread of Never Let Me Go, a hauntingly, unsettling book that has stayed with me for years. The film adaptation was boring though.

BsshBosh · 27/03/2015 09:42

Am halfway through. Ishiguro's writing is impeccably fluid and graceful as usual. I'm finding myself drawn in by the questing story; the landscape is vividly portrayed; the question of whether it is better to remember or not is thought provoking.

BouncingJellyfish · 28/03/2015 11:08

Thanks for keeping me up til 2am finishing this brilliant and haunting book!

Was really looking forward to reading this as I enjoyed Remains of the Day. Stayed up reading as I had come to really care about Axl and Beatrice, and wanted to know what became of them. Did you do a lot of research into the legends and myths of this era for this book? Or is this an existing interest of yours?

MrsRedWhite214 · 30/03/2015 23:13

I'm struggling to get into this one which I really disappointing as I loved Never Let Me Go. I will stick with it though as I've been really looking forward to it.

FernieB · 01/04/2015 07:39

When I get MN book emails, I apply for free copies of everything just in case I'm lucky enough to get one. This means I'm sometimes sent copies of books I would never normally have bought myself. This book is one of those. It's one I would have read the blurb on the back and then left on the shelf and I really would have missed out. It was a joy to read.

The bond between the older couple was beautifully portrayed and the various people they encountered were interesting and intrigued me enough to want to know more about them. There's a good blend of reality and fantasy worlds which reminded me a little of Tolkien. I had to read the last few chapters very quickly as I have my book club book which I need to read, but am looking forward to going back to this one later to savour it properly.

I read on another thread that some people have abandoned the book partway through. Don't give up on this book as a lot is revealed towards the end which helps make sense of previous details.

Ellisisland · 02/04/2015 09:21

I just finished this book and loved it. I felt like I was reading someone's dream. It was a wonderfully haunting book that has left me thinking about it long after I have finished reading.

My question is : I first read Remains of the Day as an A level text. What do you think of your books being studied in this way? Do you think that kind of analysis adds or takes away from the books and the enjoyment of reading them ?

Yasmin1 · 02/04/2015 19:21

Just about to start reading the book and am intrigued as it is not my usual read..but have heard so much about it.

MrsRedWhite214 · 04/04/2015 13:12

I'm so sorry but I couldn't finish the book. I loved Never Let Me Go but this one just wasn't for me.

AnonymousBird · 07/04/2015 10:12

Thank you for my copy of this book, it's certainly a lovely thing!

I have read it, but just back from holiday so will bring my thoughts together and post properly later. It didn't bowl me over is my gut reaction, though I was intrigued and I possibly need to re-read the last section. Mostly right now, I am thinking just a fancy fairy story, albeit a beautifully written one.

neeta06 · 08/04/2015 18:24

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

CoteDAzur · 09/04/2015 08:00

I am looking forward to reading Kazuo Ishiguro's reply to neeta

DuchessofMalfi · 09/04/2015 08:13

Poor neeta, couldn't have picked a thread that was more embarrassingly wrong to post on. Have reported it, to see if MN can move it to the right place before this evening.

Pippidoeswhatshewants · 09/04/2015 08:30

I hope to be there tonight. I found Never Let Me Go haunting, but was quite disappointed by the film. Did you like the film? Why did you agree to the film being made, as most films only ever capture a fracture of what a book has to offer? I am aware that money might be involved in that decision.

DuchessofMalfi · 09/04/2015 08:33

My question for Kazuo Ishiguro is - what are your feelings about the films of your novels? Do you feel that they do justice to your novels? I recall an interview with Carlos Ruiz Zafon (not the one on here though) where he said he was reluctant to allow his novels to be turned into films, preferring them to remain with his readers' imaginations. What do you think?

I have read (and seen the film of) The Remains of the Day and loved both - so that one worked for me, but so many other films of favourite novels have turned out to be a disappointment. I read Never Let me Go recently and found it a thoroughly engrossing and thought-provoking read. It raised so many questions in my mind that I'm still thinking about it weeks later, but wonder whether the film could ever do the same?

DuchessofMalfi · 09/04/2015 08:34

Interesting x-post with you Pippi :o

hackmum · 09/04/2015 08:53

Never Let Me Go is one of my favourite books - I think it's extraordinary.

It made me think about how we can readily accept the most terrible injustices if we are brought up with them and come to see them as normal. I just wondered whether you had any particular modern parallels in mind when you wrote it, or whether you saw it as having universal application?

AnnieMoor · 09/04/2015 09:38

Where is the web chat?

hackmum · 09/04/2015 09:56

The web chat will be on this thread, I think, Annie.

I have another question. I really enjoyed The Buried Giant, though I was puzzled by it too. What was your literary inspiration for the book? Was it works of medieval literature and earlier, such as Gawain and the Green Knight, Piers Plowman and Beowulf? Or was it fantasy novels such as Lord of the Rings? Or a combination of those? (I don't normally read fantasy, and I haven't read Gawain etc so I think some of the allusions were lost on me.)

AnnieMoor · 09/04/2015 10:29

Oh yes, thank you!

I thought it was 9am, not pm!

ChampagneTastes · 09/04/2015 10:39

I'm thrilled that you're appearing on Mumsnet; you have been my favourite author since I picked up When We Were Orphans a few years ago.
I have The Buried Giant upstairs, waiting until I have a free weekend to read it all at once.

My question is this: all of your novels appear to have some crucial bit of information hidden, unsaid or unrevealed. This is probably what I love most but also find most frustrating about your books! Is it deliberate? And if so, do YOU know what is missing or do you simply imply it?

Thank you so much for your wonderful writing - it is always a joy to pick up one of your books.

JennyWreny · 09/04/2015 13:45

I'm really excited to be joining in the webchat later. Thanks so much. This is the first of your books that I have read and I really enjoyed it.

KazuoIshiguro · 09/04/2015 16:04

@TillyMumsnetBookClub

Hopefully everyone has received their copies by now, but just to say DO come along even if you haven't managed to read this particular book, or haven't finished it by the web chat.

We aim to make the webchat feel as personal as possible, a chance to spend time with inspirational writers, so feel free to ask about previous novels or recommendations for reading lists or anything at all...

(After finishing Buried Giant I'm now re-reading Remains of the Day and it is as subtle and beautiful second time round as it was when I read it 10 years ago. Perhaps more so, now that I'm older. Absolutely one of my very top books of all time. I'm going to have to seriously limit the amount of questions I want to ask..)

Hello. KI here. Just testing to see if this works. Little faith in technology. Looking forward to chatting with everyone this evening. Do come along with interesting questions, or challenging ones if you dare.

atrociouscook · 09/04/2015 18:00

Ogres and dragons are not my usual fare, but I found this book unputdownable. The portrayals of Axel & Beatrice were so beautiful - were they based on your own parents perhaps or people you know. I was completely fooled by the son living on the island and I think that's why I like your books so much - you manage to write a mystery story which is full of pathos and intrigue whilst at the same time opening up other worlds apart from the one we know. Well worth waiting 10 years for and but I hope the next one will be here sooner.

CoteDAzur · 09/04/2015 19:08

My question for Kazuo Ishiguro: From past interviews and more recently your comments on The Buried Giant ("Will they understand what I’m trying to do...? Are they going to say this is fantasy?"), it seems that you look down on sci-fi and fantasy genres. I also remember reading that you haven't read much (any?) sci-fi at all, because you don't like the genre.

So... Why exactly do you insist on writing in genres that you don't appreciate, first with Never Let Me Go and now with The Buried Giant? I'm really curious about this.

P.S.: You write about dragons and ogres. Of course, readers are going to say "This is fantasy".

ElfontheShelfIsWATCHINGYOUTOO · 09/04/2015 19:11

Not read the new book but am currently on my FIRST Kazuo Ishiguro Novel, Never Let Me Go, I am amazed at how all of a sudden I am half was through, I opened and read first page and fell into half the book its intriguing, no questions have been answered yet. Loved the film of Remains of Day and look forward to reading that next.

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