Had no clue what this story was going to be about when I started, now that I’ve finished it I’m at a loss for words.

The book is essentially science fiction mixed with a little bit of a love story between friends. The narrator is Kath, who tells the story of her time as a child at a place called Hailsham. She grows up at Hailsham and had a happy childhood with other children, her closest friends being Ruth and Tommy. Hailsham on the surface sounds like a boarding school, where Kath and her friends have lessons, play sports, write poems and create art. However, there is always an ominous tone behind all of these normal routines. The book talks of their future as “carers”, then “donors”, of clones and “possibles”, and their teachers are called “guardians”. Despite all this, the children do not find anything strange and seem to be aware of the future ahead of them. As we read on, more information of their world comes to light, and we find out the tragedy that has already been written into the lives of these characters.

Although the idea of organ donation and clones is not new,

I thought the way Ishiguro framed and wrote the story refreshing and oddly intimate. The science fiction theme is used as a setting, with the friendships forged and lives built amidst a cruel world the centrepieces of the book. I really enjoyed reading this!