I picked up Klara and the Sun on a whim at a local bookstore. While browsing through various titles, the bright red, blue and yellow book cover from Klara and the Sun caught my eye. In a flash I recognized Kazuo Ishiguro’s name and made a spot decision to purchase a copy. Having previously read The Buried Giant I figured that it would be a similarly enthralling novel. Unfortunately it did not quite work out as I had expected. While I found the story to be easy to read and well written, it lacked for me a captivating element. It took me almost eighty pages to fully immerse myself in the narrative and feel curious about what would come next. In short Klara and the Sun is a tale about love, loyalty and faith which is set in a dystopian future in which human genetic enhancement is the norm, as are children with solar powered robot companions called artificial friends or AFs. The protagonist in the story is a girl AF named Klara, who possesses the uncanny talent of paying keen attention to detail about everything around her and interpreting this information in thoughtful ways. She ‘befriends’ a young girl named Josie suffering ostensibly from a genetic disease linked to gene editing, and is thrust unwittingly into a journey of discovery of the full breadth of human experience – from love and hope to fear and loss. What I enjoyed most about Klara and the Sun, was Ishiguro’s skillful description of the observations of human behavior through the eyes of Klara. Her profound insights into human character and motivations, at times were quite perceptive, while still credible for an artificial intelligence powered AF. In contrast, the predictability of some parts of the narrative and the plodding development of the storyline greatly diminished my enthusiasm for Klara and the Sun. So in summary, I would recommend Klara and the Sun to readerswho are interested in exploring the breadth of writings by Ishiguro by exposing themselves to another dimension of his beautiful imagination.
Have you read Klara and the Sun?or another of Kazuo Ishiguro’s books or essays? What grabbed you most about his writing? Please feel free to share your thoughts in a comment below. Thanks as always for visiting my blog! Also, if you would like to receive more updates about my writing please consider joining my newsletter mailing list by subscribing below.