Recent comments in /f/books

CakeBatterEater t1_jd1q7hh wrote

Reply to The Goldfinch - Why did this win a Pulitzer? by CoastalSailing

Just finished reading this yesterday! Someone said that that the book is an exploration of the question - "what is real art?". Hobie talks about how art means different things to different people. An art collector, a dealer, a person buying a book from a gift shop that has a reproduction of the piece etc. And how it would mean different things to different people, far into the future. That said, my takeaway was beyond the commentary on art. Theo may be an unreliable narrator but he talks about life is a catastrophe. And how he thinks everything he wants is an illusion but there's charm in wanting and experiencing that illusion. He also talks about how some secrets define who we are on the inside and that the painting helped him realize who he is. To me, the painting is Theo's way of learning and accepting who he is. >!There's a line in the last few pages that say "There is no resolution". Maybe Theo doesn't intend to end his narration in a conclusive way. In my view, the painting is yet another part of Theo's life that has touched him but he will never get to own. There is no resolution for Theo. No Pippa. No Kitsey (though he hinted that the engagement wasn't off?). No painting. Even Boris. Was there a conclusion or continuation of that relationship? !<IDK, maybe I read too much into those last few pages but that was my takeaway!
Also OP, as to why it won the Pulitzer - I'm not sure! Just like the painting, the book can mean different things to different people. As an exploration of someone coping with trauma and using art as a way to explore themes like loss, temptation, addiction, love, friendship and crime, its a good (without being spectacular) book Like most people, I liked the first 2/3 of the book and the last act felt rushed and forced. Maybe I should read the other finalists (if there is such a thing) to see which book lost out to this one!

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juangoat t1_jd1k4t8 wrote

Reply to Where to Start with Kazuo Ishiguro by edward_radical

I'm glad everyone can agree that When We Were Orphans is by far his worst work, lol.

Personally, of the Ishiguro canon that I've read, I'd rank accordingly.

Remains of the Day

The Unconsoled

Never Let Me Go

Klara and the Sun

The Buried Giant

When We Were Orphans

Love Remains of the Day. By far my favorite Ishiguro novel. It's what sold me on him. Ishiguro's writing style in general is to kind of say some innocuous statements that have this depth of emotion that is left unspoken by the narrator, but it really hits the peak with Remains of the Day because of how it fits in with Steven's character. We can understand him as this really repressed character because of his position in life and what he's trying to achieve vis a vis his goals in life as well as just his sheer Britishness, i.e. the stiff upper lip and the comedy of errors style humor. His writing style coalesces with the characters and narrative that really make it more than the sum of its parts, unlike something like When We Were Orphans - his writing style doesn't really add to the story as whole.

Second is The Unconsoled for me - I remember going to one of Ishiguro's talks, and at the end he was taking questions from the audience. Someone of course had a question about The Unconsoled, and Ishiguro said something like, "Someone always asks about it, and it's always because they either loved it or hated it." I'm obviously in the love it camp. Yes, it doesn't really make sense. It doesn't need to. Something that gets understated about Ishiguro's writing is how funny he can be. I'm thinking of situations like when >!Stevens is trying to get out of meeting Miss Kenton, and he's like, "She's making a mountain out of a molehill. Can't believe she's making such a big deal out of nothing. In fact, it's such a trivial matter that I'm going to avoid topic by sneaking out of the window so she can't confront me." Hilarious way of letting the audience know you can't trust that motherfucker Stevens.!< I brought that up to say The Unconsoled is by far his funniest work. I rarely laugh out loud when reading - I may occasionally think, "That's funny," or smile, but very rarely actually laugh. I laughed quite a bit when reading this book. I do have to caveat that with the fact that it's been years since I read it, so I might be due for a reread to reevaluate my position.

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I thought Never Let me go was decent, I read it little while after The Remains of the Day and it just couldn't reach those lofty heights that The Remains of the Day did.

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I liked Klara and the Sun - the proto robo religion thing vibed with me, especially with the reveal at the end where >!Klara is telling this story from memory after basically getting junked. Kinda similar vibes to Never Let Me Go in the sense of these "soulless" subhumans (In their respective societies, anyway) hitting their point of planned obsolescence.!<

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Buried Giant - Kinda meh. Read it, forgot most of it. Did like the ending, though.

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When We Were Orphans - Nothing else needs to be said, lmao.

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UppzYourz t1_jd1djlt wrote

Reply to Where to Start with Kazuo Ishiguro by edward_radical

I enjoyed an An Artist of the Floating World - but I didn't know there were rules - I may've dodged a bullet as I've not read anything of his since...

phew... I'll consult this post if I decide to wade in with the collectors

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kavsekr t1_jd1akck wrote

Reply to comment by MarsUltor05 in Where to Start with Kazuo Ishiguro by edward_radical

Agreed. I read Never Let Me Go as my first Ishiguro novel, followed by Remains of the Day later, and then Klara and the Sun after that. I think the part of Klara that really left an impression for me was the specific way that you see the world through Klara's mind. It has a much different feel to it compared to the other novels, and I think its definitely worth a read.

I should try to read some of his other stuff too, but I guess I'll skip When We Were Orphans then.

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TortieB t1_jd1ak8d wrote

Reply to The Inmate by Freida McFadden by ryanschool

I have not finished reading this book yet, I’m about 80% through and I’m screaming. Why after all her suspicions about him and him gifting her the same exact necklace she had on the night she was almost murdered WOULD SHE JUST WILLINGLY GO TO HIS HOUSE FOR DINNER?!? She’s so dumb I can’t handle it.

(Sorry if this was mentioned already, I did not read any comments to avoid spoilers.)

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emerald_bat t1_jd1a7s9 wrote

Reply to Where to Start with Kazuo Ishiguro by edward_radical

Pale View does feel like a rougher version of Artist, which I think is actually a good reason to start with Artist; I could see someone bouncing off him entirely based on Pale View.
I think starting with Klara could also work, as it ends up being a bit lighter than most of these.

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ughit t1_jd1a5ng wrote

Reply to Where to Start with Kazuo Ishiguro by edward_radical

Going to have to disagree on Klara and the Sun. He wrote a character that had an incredibly consistent world view that was so different than ours and was exceptionally well realized.

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professorphil t1_jd18xic wrote

Reply to What's your opinion about "The Alchemist" by Paulo Coelho? by poporola

I actually liked it a fair bit. It was a really quick, fairly simple read. It talked about a lot of esoterica, but in fairly approachable terms. It was a pretty normal hero's journey but the tools which the hero acquired were weird bits of philosophy and simple life skills.

I liked its take on magic (Alchemy) as a very spiritual, philosophical thing, which isn't something I see developed enough in fantasy.

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