Started on 4.24.25, finished on 4.25.25

Though it’s not that short, this is a super quick read, and I stayed up way too late getting through the first two-thirds last night before finishing it off when I had a chance today. Out of Ishiguro’s books, I’ve only read Never Let Me Go before this one.

This book definitely builds a world and leaves the reader guessing in a way that I enjoyed—I really like books that don’t do too much handholding. I could have seen the author telling this story in a larger, more sprawling way, but instead he chose to focus on one robot’s relationship with one family. I’ve seen some comments from readers who found the book a bit shallow and criticized the character building, and I really don’t agree with them. I found the characters to be complex and well-developed—it’s just that there aren’t many of them and we’re not seeing the full story since we’re seeing the entire book from Klara’s perspective. I thought this was a really lovely way to handle the narrative, and I think it gives the book an intimate feel that I really enjoyed.

All that said, I fear there is slightly too much robot fiction right now, including movies! This is not Ishiguro’s fault and this book is definitely toward the top of the pile in terms of quality.

Click here to buy this book on Bookshop.org

My favorite quotes:

“The rain stopped as we came into a street with buildings so tall the sidewalks on both sides were in shadow …” (This one might be a slightly odd pick but I liked it because it’s something I think about often—I walk a lot and am always considering whether I want to be on the sunny sidewalk or the shady sidewalk based on the weather, and when both sides of the sidewalk are sunny or both are in shadow it’s always something I notice.)

“‘If he wasn’t mega-accredited, I’d be like, Mom, we have to get this guy arrested. No, no, don’t panic, he isn’t improper. It’s just so obvious he’s fixing something in his shed, you know, to blow us all up.’”

“‘Hope,’ he said. ‘Damn thing never leaves you alone.’”