Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Never Let Me Go

Double post day!

Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro is a different kind of book. My sister said today “it was subtle and slow, but in a good way.” I agree. Please excuse the brief explanation, the book is better if you realize what is going on as it is slowly revealed to you.

Kathy, the main character, is reminiscing about her school days at Hailsham. There’s some typical friend drama, some not typical friend drama, and some other weird stuff going on. Some of the teachers say mysterious things or act strangely around the students at times. The students at Hailsham are special, and not everyone likes them outside of the school. Once they are done with school, their lives are very different from normal lives.

I enjoyed this book. Again, sorry for the vague description. If you enjoy futuristic novels with interesting moral questions, read this book. I wish I could discuss it more on here without ruining anything, but I can’t. I haven’t seen the movie, but I’m interested in seeing how they handled the book.

In the Sea There are Crocodiles

In the Sea There are Crocodiles by Fabio Geda is based on the amazing true story of Enaiatollah Akabari (a name I had to copy and paste to spell correctly). The story starts when Enaiat is ten and his mother smuggles him out of Afghanistan into Pakistan - and leaves him there. He travels throughout the Middle East working in various places and dealing with racist/mean people. Crossing many dangerous borders illegally, it takes him five years to reach Italy where he seeks political asylum.

While this book was not as powerful as other books I’ve read about the Middle East, I enjoyed it. I peeked at some reviews on Amazon, and some complained it was too simplistic and good for young adults. While I agree young adults should read it, I think anyone can enjoy reading this book. It is always fascinating to read about other cultures. I thought the parts where Enaiat talked about how certain groups hated each other and how he was smuggled across borders were captivating.

I would not put this book on the top of a reading list, I would still recommend it. It’s quick, sad, interesting, and fun at times. Overall worth reading at some point.