It took me 11 days

Published on by Grace

to drag myself through a book. A book of approximately 275 pages. 11 days. I know it was 11 days because I got the book from my local library and loans are for 21 days and the library says I have 10 days until it expires.

I reserved the book 4 months ago (the library now has 31 copies of the ebook and there are 231 people on the ‘wait list’), I was so excited when I got the notification that the book was available for me to download. Finally my turn!

Total waste of time. So disappointed. I mean, really disappointed.

“Klara and the Sun” by Kazuo Ishiguro. That link will take you to an NPR review. The narrator of the book is an AF – artificial friend, a robot.

As I started reading I thought to myself – “This is a rip off of the movie “Bicentennial Man” ( starring Robin Williams). I loved that movie, more than a little sentimental, hokey even, you will cry at the end, but, oh yes, I loved that movie. This book, “Klara and the Sun” – not so much. Not at all.

I have read one other book by Mr. Ishiguro, who, by the way, is a Nobel Laureate, “Never Let Me Go”. I love that book, I have read it 4, maybe 5 times. It never fails to please, and to touch me. (They made an excellent movie of the book.)

“Never Let Me Go’ and “Klara and the Sun” are both sorta kinda science fiction – not my favorite genre. I have a problem with suspension of disbelief yet I very much enjoy paranormal type stories – having a bit of a paranormal background myself (not writing about it but living it.)

I’m just so irked that something I was so looking forward to turned out to be a dud.

Perhaps I am just not deep enough, or intelligent enough or thoughtful enough to appreciate the book. Or perhaps I am too literal. Or perhaps the emperor has no clothes.

 

15 thoughts on “It took me 11 days”

  1. I loved it, but I didn’t consider it a particularly deep book. I bought Never Let Me Go because I liked Klara so much ~ glad to hear you enjoyed it because I haven’t started it yet. I generally don’t choose sci-fi, but every once in a while something grabs me…

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    1. “Never Let Me Go” SO good. What is there to love about Klara? So boring, I did not care one whit about any of the people in the book, or the stupid robot. The story was vague…Oy, no, bad book, bad…

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    1. You wait 4 months to read a book (OK, I’m cheap, coulda bought it when it came out, glad I didn’t) and – huge disappointment. Got great reviews…just not from me. (And yet, “Never Let Me Go” is so marvelous…)

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    1. I didn’t care for The Handmaid’s Tale either, barely glanced at it. Science fiction normally doesn’t engage me either, but I read more of it when I was young – like ‘A Canticle for Leibowitz’. I like Atwood’s poetry far more than her novels.

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  5. It’s so disappointing when books don’t live up to expectations! If it’s science fictiony, I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t like it either. Hope your next book is much more enjoyable!

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  7. Never Let Me Go is one of my favorite books. I have yet to buy Klara so maybe I’ll wait on it. I don’t want to spoil my appreciation of Ishiguro’s talent. I like thinking he’s brilliant.

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    1. Don’t let me stop you – it may well be brilliant, and as much as I love “Never Let Me Go” that’s how much I dislike ‘Klara and the Sun”. If I want a story about robots and how human or not human they might become, well I’ll just watch “Centennial Man”

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