Showing results by author "Kazuo Ishiguro" in All Categories

In one of the most acclaimed novels of recent years, Kazuo Ishiguro imagines the lives of a group of students growing up in a darkly skewed version of contemporary England. Narrated by Kathy, now thirty-one, Never Let Me Go dramatizes her attempts to come to terms with her childhood at the seemingly idyllic Hailsham School and with the fate that has always awaited her and her closest friends in the wider world.

From her place in the store, Klara, an Artificial Friend with outstanding observational qualities, watches carefully the behaviour of those who come in to browse and of those who pass in the street outside. She remains hopeful a customer will soon choose her, but when the possibility emerges that her circumstances may change for ever, Klara is warned not to invest too much in the promises of humans.

In Nocturnes, a sublime story cycle, Kazuo Ishiguro explores ideas of love, music and the passing of time. From the piazzas of Italy to the Malvern Hills, a London flat to the "hush-hush floor" of an exclusive Hollywood hotel, the characters we encounter range from young dreamers to cafe musicians to faded stars, all of them at some moment of reckoning. Gentle, intimate, and witty, this quintet is marked by a haunting theme: the struggle to keep alive a sense of life's romance, even as one gets older.

A contemporary classic, The Remains of the Day is Kazuo Ishiguro's beautiful and haunting evocation of life between the wars in a Great English House. In the summer of 1956, Stevens, the ageing butler of Darlington Hall, embarks on a leisurely holiday that will take him deep into the countryside – and into his past.

England, 1930s. Christopher Banks has become the country's most celebrated detective, his cases the talk of London society. Yet one unsolved crime has always haunted him: the mysterious disappearance of his parents, in old Shanghai, when he was a small boy. Moving between London and Shanghai of the interwar years, When We Were Orphans is a remarkable story of memory, intrigue and the need to return.

The Romans have long since departed, and Britain is steadily declining into ruin. But at last the wars that once ravaged the country have ceased.The Buried Giant begins as a couple, Axl and Beatrice, set off across a troubled land of mist and rain in the hope of finding a son they have not seen for years. They expect to face many hazards - some strange and otherworldly - but they cannot yet foresee how their journey will reveal to them dark and forgotten corners of their love for one another.

Ryder, a renowned pianist, arrives in a Central European city he cannot identify for a concert he cannot remember agreeing to give. But then as he traverses a landscape by turns eerie and comical - and always strangely malleable, as a dream might be - he comes steadily to realise he is facing the most crucial performance of his life....

1948, Japan. The celebrated painter Masuji Ono fills his days attending to his garden, his house repairs, his two grown daughters and his grandson; his evenings drinking with old associates in quiet lantern-lit bars. His should be a tranquil retirement. But as his memories continually return to the past - to a life and a career deeply touched by the rise of Japanese militarism - a dark shadow begins to grow over his serenity.

Klara ist ein Artificial Friend, eine künstliche Intelligenz, die dafür entwickelt wurde, Jugendlichen eine Gefährtin zu sein auf dem Weg ins Erwachsenwerden. Von ihrem Platz im Schaufenster eines Spielzeuggeschäfts aus beobachtet sie ganz genau, was draußen vor sich geht, studiert das Verhalten der Kundinnen und Kunden und hofft darauf, bald von einem jungen Menschen als neue Freundin ausgewählt zu werden.

La esperada novela de Kazuo Ishiguro tras el "Premio Nobel". Una historia de ciencia ficción que indaga en lo que nos hace humanos. Klara es una AA, una Amiga Artificial, especializada en el cuidado de niños. Pasa sus días en una tienda, esperando a que alguien la adquiera y se la lleve a una casa, un hogar. Mientras espera, contempla el exterior desde el escaparate. Observa a los transeúntes, sus actitudes, sus gestos, su modo de caminar, y es testigo de algunos episodios que no acaba de entender, como una extraña pelea entre dos taxistas.

Kathy H. tem 31 anos e está prestes a encerrar sua carreira de "cuidadora". Enquanto isso, ela relembra o tempo que passou em Hailsham, um internato inglês que dá grande ênfase às atividades artísticas e conta, entre várias outras amenidades, com bosques, um lago povoado de marrecos, uma horta e gramados impecavelmente aparados. No entanto, esse internato idílico esconde uma terrível verdade: todos os "alunos" de Hailsham são clones, produzidos com a única finalidade de servir de peças de reposição.

Ein großer Sportplatz, freundliche Klassenzimmer und getrennte Schlafsäle für Jungen und Mädchen – auf den ersten Blick scheint Hailsham ein ganz gewöhnliches englisches Internat zu sein. Aber die Lehrer, so engagiert und freundlich sie auch sind, heißen hier Aufseher, und sie lassen die Kinder früh spüren, dass sie für eine besondere Zukunft ausersehen sind. Dieses Gefühl hält Kathy, Ruth und Tommy durch alle Stürme der Pubertät und Verwirrungen der Liebe zusammen – bis es an der Zeit ist, ihrer wahren Bestimmung zu folgen.

Kathy, Tommy e Ruth vivono in un collegio, Hailsham, immerso nella campagna inglese. Non hanno genitori, ma non sono neppure orfani, e crescono insieme ai compagni, accuditi da un gruppo di tutori, che si occupano della loro educazione. Fin dalla più tenera età nasce fra i tre bambini una grande amicizia. La loro vita, voluta e programmata da un'autorità superiore nascosta, sarà accompagnata dalla musica dei sentimenti, dall'intimità più calda al distacco più violento.

Seduta in vetrina sotto i raggi gentili del Sole, Klara osserva il mondo di fuori e aspetta di essere acquistata e portata a casa. Promette di dedicare tutti i suoi straordinari talenti di androide B2 al piccolo amico che la sceglierà. Gli terrà compagnia, lo proteggerà dalla malattia e dalla tristezza, e affronterà per lui l'insidia più grande: imparare tutte le mille stanze del suo cuore umano. Dalla vetrina del suo negozio, Klara osserva trepidante il fuori e le meraviglie che contiene: il disegno del Sole sulle cose e l'alto Palazzo RPO dietro cui ogni sera lo vede sparire.

Delivered in Stockholm on 7 December 2017, My Twentieth Century Evening and Other Small Breakthroughs is the lecture of the Nobel Laureate in Literature, Kazuo Ishiguro. A generous and hugely insightful biographical sketch, it explores his relationship with Japan, reflections on his own novels and an insight into some of his inspirations, from the worlds of writing, music and film. Ending with a rallying call for the ongoing importance of literature in the world, it is a characteristically thoughtful and moving piece.

La prima settimana di libertà dell'irreprensibile maggiordomo inglese Stevens diventa occasione per ripensare la propria vita spesa al servizio di un gentiluomo moralmente discutibile. Stevens ha attraversato l'esistenza spinto da un unico ideale: quello di rispettare una certa tradizione e di difenderla a dispetto degli altri e del tempo.

Ausgezeichnet mit dem Nobelpreis für Literatur 2017! Seit Jahrzehnten dient Stevens als Butler auf Darlington Hall. Er sorgt für einen tadellosen Haushalt und ist die Verschwiegenheit in Person: Er hat sein Leben voll und ganz in den Dienst seines Herrn gestellt, niemals würde er auch nur ein Wort über die merkwürdigen Vorgänge im Herrenhaus verlieren. Jetzt bricht er zum ersten Mal aus seiner gewohnten Welt aus, um seine ehemalige Kollegin, Miss Stenton, in Cornwall zu besuchen.

Das Opus Magnum des Literaturnobelpreis-Trägers - erstmals als Hörbuch! Britannien im 5. Jahrhundert: Nach erbitterten Kriegen zwischen den Volksstämmen der Briten und Angelsachsen ist das Land verwüstet. Axl und Beatrice sind seit vielen Jahren ein Paar. In ihrem Dorf gelten sie als Außenseiter, und man gibt ihnen deutlich zu verstehen, dass sie eine Belastung für die Gemeinschaft sind. Also verlassen sie ihre Heimat in der Hoffnung, ihren Sohn zu finden, den sie seit langer Zeit nicht mehr gesehen haben.

Inglaterra, julio de 1956. Stevens, el narrador, durante treinta años ha sido mayordomo de Darlington Hall. Lord Darlington murió hace tres años, y la propiedad pertenece ahora a un americano. El mayordomo, por primera vez en su vida, hará un viaje. El americano regresará por unas semanas a su país, y le ha ofrecido al mayordomo su coche —que fuera de Lord Darlington— para que disfrute de unas vacaciones.

Steven spielt Saxophon in einer Jazzband, die von Bar zu Bar tingelt und nicht weiter auffällt. Er weiß, dass er richtig gut ist, aber er sieht aus wie ein Loser. Lindy ist der Star der Boulevardpresse, schon etwas älter, Schönheitsoperationen halten sie frisch. Gerade geschieden von Tony Gardner, einem einst berühmten, jetzt verblassten Jazzsänger, ist sie wieder reif fürs Messer. Nachts, auf den verschwiegenen Fluren eines Nobelhotels in Hollywood, träumen die beiden Frischoperierten und Zubandagierten von einem neuen Leben.