An Artist of the Floating World & The Remains of the Day

by Kazuo Ishiguro

An Artist of the Floating World & The Remains of the Day (Omnibus) [Paperback] kazuo ishiguro

Genres: Fiction

455 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

Sir Kazuo Ishiguro (カズオ・イシグロ or 石黒 一雄), OBE, FRSA, FRSL is a British novelist of Japanese origin and Nobel Laureate in Literature (2017). His family moved to England in 1960. Ishiguro obtained his Bachelor's degree from the University of Kent in 1978 and his Master's from the University of East Anglia's creative writing course in 1980. He became a British citizen in 1982. He now lives in London.

His first novel, A Pale View of Hills, won the 1982 Winifred Holtby Memorial Prize. His second novel, An Artist of the Floating World, won the 1986 Whitbread Prize. Ishiguro received the 1989 Man Booker prize for his third novel The Remains of the Day. His fourth novel, The Unconsoled, won the 1995 Cheltenham Prize. His latest novel is The Buried Giant, a New York Times bestseller. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature 2017.

His novels An Artist of the Floating World (1986), When We Were Orphans (2000), and Never Let Me Go (2005) were all shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize.

In 2008, The Times ranked Ishiguro 32nd on their list of "The 50 Greatest British Writers Since 1945". In 2017, the Swedish Academy awarded him the Nobel Prize in Literature, describing him in its citation as a writer "who, in novels of great emotional force, has uncovered the abyss beneath our illusory sense of connection with the world".

Reviews

[Cookiekelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

The last two books I have read-this one and "Independent People"-both so intelligently create complex emotional situations using the sparest language. Books which seem deceptively simple, and yet one realizes that broad brush-strokes are painting psychological portraits with all the detail of a hyper-realist. The end of both these books brought me to my emotional knees, all through language. I full well knew the endings of both. If you are looking for literature, I cannot recommend them highly enough.

[Lynette · Rating 4 out of 5]

I rather enjoyed this depiction of a life lived with a sense, not so much of regret as of whether it could have been better. Should he have done this or that and would it have made a difference to his reputation, his relationships, his place in the world? I also liked the descriptions of a Japan in transition - it mirrors our own sense of loss when the familiar changes and we are left feeling as if we might have lost our mooring somehow.

[Liz · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Re-read" Remains of the Day by listening to it on Audible. So well done. The pace of the narration really worked for me as it mimics the pace of life during that era and allowed the words to linger and be contemplated.

What is a great butler? A great man? A Great Britain....?

"It is a matter of dignity."

"The state of the silver made a small but significant contribution towards towards the easing relations between Lord Halifax and Herr Ribbentrop."

[Patricia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Smitten by Ishiguro. This was recommended when I mentioned the trend of books on WWII all seem centered on Germany and France. I wanted learn more about life in Japan in the war. This is more about post war Japan but I learned a lot.

[Zinnia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Välskriven

[Fiona · Rating 3 out of 5]

Of course well written but i simply don’t like it lol

[Silvia · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Deb cambria · Rating 4 out of 5]

three stars for An Artist of the Floating World

four stars for The Remains of the Day which I read a few years ago

[D. Fox · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found the book by accident in a small bookshop and i'm glad I decided to give it a try.
Beautifully written, thorough and somehow- soo British.