1989 Booker Prize winning novel purchased for the Booker Prize Ring of Books organised by tantan.

Cover art differs from edition in hand.

I started reading this and love the pace of it.

Then I got another copy, so I can start this ring earlier than expected. On its way to fushmush 3 March '05.

RING ORDER
fushmush(New South Wales, Australia
meganh (Victoria, Australia)
lady-anglophile (Kuwait)
zzz (Serbia and Montenegro) <---
Lillyanna (Spain)
dodau (England)
jazz-ee2 (England)
Jenatleisure (England)
rhythmbiscuit (Colorado, USA)
tania-in-nc (North Carolina, USA)
Neuilly (Maine, USA)
blurbren (Malaysia)
Back to peggysmum in the Australian Capital Territory, Australia!

I'm looking forward to reading this one. I'm currently in the middle of another Booker bookray. Hopefully, I'll ge tto this one soon.

This book is wonderful! So beautifully written and very much deserving of the Booker Prize.

"Stevens, an elderly butler who has spent 30 years in the service of Lord Darlington, ruminates on the past and inadvertently slackens his rigid grip on his emotions to confront the central issues of his life." -- Amazon

Throughout the novel, Stevens, talks about dignity and what it means. He is the essence of dignity and he keeps a tight rein on his emotions at all times. It is up to the reader to ascertain his true feelings for Miss Kenton and his grief at the death of his father. Often, it is the reaction of other characters that betray what he is really feeling. His loyalty to duty, responsibilty, routines and procedures mean he is afraid to risk loving and maybe losing Ms Kenton. He even keeps his own father at a distance (he always refers to him in third person, even when directly addressing him). And in the end, responsibility and routine is all that he has left to look forward to.

One reviewer on Amazon also mentioned the themes of public and private self... so important to the British (novel setting) and the Japanese (author).

Finally a classic that is truly a must-read!

I'll give this to meganh, along with Rites of Passage, at Melbourne meetup next Tuesday.

Received from fushmush at the Meetup where we had a lovely time renewing friendships and meeting new bookcrossers. This book sounds great (so it might sneak up to the top of MT TBR). What an international lineup of readers we have for this book - it will be well travelled before it returns to you peggysmum!

Like fushmush, I also loved this book. I was impressed with the way in which the (Japanese) author was able to portray the English butler Steven's character so vividly. Stevens had such a "stiff upper lip" personality in the way he hid all his emotions. He supported his employer wholeheartedly even though it became obvious to the reader that Lord Darlington was getting too involved with German interests. It was interesting to hear of the worldy going-ons via the butler - and I was amused to hear the (very drunk) American dinner guest suggesting the English and European guests leave world affairs to the professionals ie the Americans.
A well deserved Booker prize winner. I PMed blurbren for her address 2/5 and will mail book to her as soon as she responds.
EDIT 11/5/05 : Blurbren has not responded to (2) PMs sent and has had no activity in bookcrossing since January. I am makng a decision to skip her at this stage and am PMing the next reader.
Lady-anglophile answered my PM promptly and I mailed the book today 11/5/05.

i received it to today and i'll read it right away since i was praying for a book to come my way. i havent read anything for a week :)

I've finished reading this wonderful book

This book gave me a hard time!!!!!! One day went shopping and I decided to bring the book along with me… but what happened was that every time I went into a store the security alarm went off and the security guards had to stop me and fully searched me thinking I was a thief!!!! so every time that happened I had to explain to them that what made the alarm went off!

I liked it a lot. It was so easy to read and quickly to finish. It was amazing how accurately the life of a butler was depicted by a Japanese author! I do agree with what my fellow bookcrossers said about the book. It was obvious that the major theme the book tackled was "dignity" thorough out the whole novel, Stevens discussed the qualities that made a butler "great," claiming that "dignity" was the essential ingredient of greatness.

But what made me really feel sorry for Stevens was that his professional life took over his personal life… I was so angry at Stevens when he wasn’t there beside his dying father!

I will PM the next person
and thanks for sharing this book with us :)

Mailed to zzz in Serbia and Montenegro... I hope you enjoy reading the book as much as i did :)

Arrived today "safe and sound" as a part of bookring.
Thanks everyone!
Cheers!



This is Kazuo Ishiguro!

UPDATE: 19.10.2005.
Sorry for this delay. I was absent two months in the meanwhile and now I have so many obligations but I'm doing my best to read and release book to the next participant ASAP.
I just want to put this here so that everyone knows that ring is not stalled.
Sorry.

Gosh! I've read this book long time ago but life was incredibly hectic (I've moved three times, was changing the town as well; was in the army; faculty obligation and to be honest I was oblivious). Sorry.
Anyhow book will continue its travel. I PMed Lillyanna for address.