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Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro

33 replies

OnlyTeaForMe · 04/03/2021 13:58

This was launched this week and I watched the Guardian Live interview with Ishiguro himself, which was great.

I loved Remains of the Day and Never Let Me Go, so I was so excited for this new novel.

I just finished it this morning and feel rather flat and bit disappointed. It wasn't the novel I was expecting and I just felt that it skirted around a lot of the really interesting issues it raised.

Would love to talk to anyone else once they've read it to see if it's just me?

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ApplestheHare · 04/03/2021 22:12

I really want to read it but am still on Cazalet Chronicles so I'll come back to this thread when I've got round to it. The review I read sounded good. I know my DH felt as you described after Never Let Me Go, which I loved.

Original poster
OnlyTeaForMe · 05/03/2021 09:14

Oh yes, @ApplestheHare - come back when you’ve read it!
I’m having a crisis of confidence over it and just wondering if it’s actually brilliant but it’s gone completely over my head?
All the reviews are gushing, but that’s often the case when a new book from a well-loved author comes out.

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ApplestheHare · 05/03/2021 10:03

Haha I shall read it next! You've intrigued me with the wondering of whether it's gone over your head. Are you reading now?

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OnlyTeaForMe · 05/03/2021 13:08

Just finished it yesterday!

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IHaveBrilloHair · 05/03/2021 19:42

What is it about?
I also love his two books you mentioned but are his only ones I've read.

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OnlyTeaForMe · 05/03/2021 20:43

It's mainly about a near-future society where an ill young girl has an AF - an Artificial Friend called Klara - as a companion.
The whole book is narrated from Klara's perspective as she tries to understand what it means to be human and relate to human emotions etc.

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HappydaysArehere · 06/03/2021 18:29

I have loved him but stopped reading his books when he went dystopian which is a shame. Also read Margaret Atwood until she too took to the same road.

RoyalCorgi · 07/03/2021 20:32

I've just finished it and pitched up here to see if there was a thread!

I feel slightly the same way as your, OP. I think part of the problem is that Never Let Me Go was so very good and had a similar, or not-dissimilar, idea. And I can't decide whether Klara was utterly brilliant or a clever premise that didn't quite come to fruition. There was so much about love and loss and pain and what it means to be human - and yet somehow it didn't quite come together. The thing that made it good was also the thing that didn't work: it was narrated by the robot, the artificial friend, and he did an amazing job of keeping up that single viewpoint throughout. But because Klara wasn't human, and therefore doesn't show emotion, then it also feels a little flat.

pollyhemlock · 13/03/2021 16:05

Finished this yesterday. After mulling it over I think it’s fairly underwhelming. The question at the heart of it is whether an AI creation can have a ‘soul’. This is an area which has been extensively covered in science fiction books and films. It’s basically the whole premise of Blade Runner. I’m not sure that Ishiguro adds much in this book, though it’s readable, and Klara’s perspective is interesting. Though given what a sophisticated creation she is how can she not know how the sun works?

MysweetAudrina · 14/03/2021 23:29

Started and finished it today as was given it as a Mother's Day gift. I'm still mulling it over. I did find it a little flat but think that was intentional as the more computerised we become I guess the flatter we appear. It had been a while since I physically read a book and this was made apparent to me when I found myself trying to scroll the page instead of turning it. I thought it was a timely read in terms of our current circumstances and online studying instead of in person etc..

RoyalCorgi · 15/03/2021 10:16

Though given what a sophisticated creation she is how can she not know how the sun works?

This puzzled me. It felt like a major flaw in the entire premise. But then, without wanting to give the plot away, there is a bit in the book where the sun does in fact appear to work in the way Klara thinks it does. So that confused me even further!

pollyhemlock · 15/03/2021 14:21

@RoyalCorgi Yes, that bit is confusing. Are we meant to think that some kind of miracle has occurred? Or is it just a coincidence? I know Ishiguro never explains everything, which is fine, but I did find Klara’s mixture of naivety and sophistication a bit unsatisfying.

RoyalCorgi · 16/03/2021 12:00

Are we meant to think that some kind of miracle has occurred? Or is it just a coincidence?

I don't know. I'm glad I'm not the only person who was confused by it. I thought perhaps I was being particularly dim and that other people would have worked it out!

KineticSand · 18/03/2021 08:57

Finished the book last night and come here looking for a thread! V keen to discuss.

I really enjoyed it and I'm now reading reviews (I always read reviews after I finish the book- why are reviews often full of massive spoilers??)

I can't figure out why Josie's dad agreed to vandalise the Cootings machine, unquestioningly, and was willing to maybe ruin his daughter's AF to do so? Maybe it was a suggestion that people too blindly follow what AI suggests and we don't question? But that doesn't fit with the rest of his character.

Re. Klara's magical beliefs in the sun. I thought that was supposed to be a comment on how human intelligence invents magical stories to believe in (religion) to make the world easier to understand and cope with.

KineticSand · 18/03/2021 08:58

I think Josie starting to get well on that particular day was probably a coincidence but Klara attributes it to her sacrifice and praying, this reinforcing her irrational beliefs. Just like religion.

pollyhemlock · 18/03/2021 09:11

@KineticSand I do agree with the thing about the Cootings machine. Why would he go along with something so clearly irrational? Klara’s sun worship is clearly quasi religious and it’s interesting to speculate on how an AI might develop a religious belief.Obviously because ithe book is by Ishiguro it has attracted a lot of interest and debate, and I do wonder whether a novel published as straight sci-fi with similar ideas would have been reviewed/ debated in the same way. ( I’m a huge fan of sci-fi).

KineticSand · 18/03/2021 09:38

Yes definitely @pollyhemlock I eagerly awaited it and read it immediately because of being a fan of Ishiguro already. I don't really read any other sci fi. Also I'm applying this level of analysis because of what I expect from him.

In a review I just read it said you could view this book along with Never Let Me Go and The Buried Giant as a trilogy, themes wise. Going to read The Buried Giant now.

The dad vandalising the machine feels like a bit of a plot/ character hole. Rick unquestioningly helping her get to the barn and back fits in with his character because it's a harmless expedition and he is kind and would want to do it to make her happy. That's interesting actually though. How nonbelievers indulge the irrational beliefs of others, which isn't always helpful.

pollyhemlock · 18/03/2021 13:28

@KineticSand I didn’t like The Buried Giant. Thought it didn’t work either as fantasy or as allegory, though I could see what he was trying to do. But lots of people love it so maybe you will. Never Let Me Go, on the other hand, is I think outstanding. But very sad.

KineticSand · 18/03/2021 20:02

@pollyhemlock I'll give it a try. As a sci fi fan, are there any other books or writers that you recommend? I like Margaret Atwood and Brave New World. But I couldn't get through Ursula Le Guin. I think for me I like the sci fi that is more focussed on human relationships and feelings rather than actual fantasising about science.

ragged · 18/03/2021 20:09

Radio production is excellent, right now on R4 or BBC Sounds. I am amazed at how much the radio version engages me.

I read up on the plot & outcomes, etc., thinking I wouldn't listen any more to the radio play, but then I find I'm totally hooked listening to episodes whenever it's on. Highly recommended.

I'm not a literary person, tbf. From what you guys are saying, book may not be as good as radio version A very objective take on human values and what is right or wrong.

pollyhemlock · 18/03/2021 20:14

@KineticSand you could try Becky Chambers Wayfarers series starting with A Long Way to a Small Angry Planet. Or going back a bit Frank Herbert’s Dune. But if you don’t like Ursula Le Guin it may just be that science fiction is not for you, as I would say her books are a prime example of ‘soft’ sci-fi, ie that’s character driven rather than tech driven.

KineticSand · 18/03/2021 21:07

I heard the radio 4 version was good too. The only drawback to their excellent adaptations is they abridge the book to make it fit into a weeks worth of radio. I listened to Margaret Atwood's sequel to Handmaid's tale at the same time as also reading it and I noticed how big chunks were trimmed out and mostly plot driven sections left. Same with Girl, Woman, Other.

RozHuntleysStump · 18/03/2021 22:49

I thought it was utterly brilliant. I listened to the audible version which was excellent. Obvious parallels with religion with the sun being God, the barn being a kind of church and the steadfast belief in it with the praying etc.

I think the beggar ]man thing was a coincidence with the sun shining on him and Klara believing that it’s revived him where it probably just woke him up.

I have no idea about the cootings machine business.

The ending was sad. I thought Manager was going to take Klara home with her.

I thought it was intriguing and has made me think. 100% a modern classic.

DenisetheMenace · 18/03/2021 22:50

Haven’t read it but listened on book of the week. Disappointed, I’m afraid.

ragged · 19/03/2021 11:24

This radio adaptation is over 2 weeks, so about 2.5 hrs

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