Nocturnes is a thought-provoking short story collection by Kazuo Ishiguro, the esteemed author of The Remains of the Day, which won the 1989 Booker Prize, Never Let Me Go, and The Buried Giant.
Kazuo Ishiguro is the author of six novels, A Pale View of Hills, An Artist of the Floating World (shortlisted for the Booker Prize), The Remains of the Day (1989, winner of the Booker Prize), The Unconsoled, When We Were Orphans (2000, shortlisted for the Booker Prize) and Never Let Me Go (2005, shortlisted for the MAN Booker Prize). He received an OBE for Services to Literature in 1995, and the French decoration of Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 1998.
NATIONAL BESTSELLER
A "New York Times Notable Book
""A fine and moving collection of stories, displaying [Ishiguro's]
unique combination of the sad, the stoic and the consoling. It's
about failure, but it dignifies failure, and with it, the human
condition. There is nobody like him."
— Margaret Drabble, "The Guardian Books of the Year
""Each of these stories is heartbreaking in its own way, but some
have moments of great comedy, and they all require a level of
attention that, typically, Ishiguro's writing rewards."
"— The Observer
"
"An amusing read, at times very funny.... There are a number of
scenes in Nocturnes that are almost worth the price of admission on
their own."
"— The Globe and Mail" "From the Hardcover edition."
In Venice, an old-time singer drafts a guitar player from one of the piazza's bands to accompany him as he serenades the wife he is about to leave. She later turns up in the tale of a sax player whose own wife, having left him, offers to pay for plastic surgery that could help his career. A man who once shared a love for show tunes with an old friend is asked by her husband to act the fool to help save their marriage. A self-centered songwriter breeds disruption while working at his sister's inn, and an inspiring cellist encounters a most unusual teacher. Despite what one might expect from the title, these aren't stories about music, which is simply enfolded in the characters' lives; the music doesn't so much inspire the action as frame it. The writing is lighter and more loose-limbed than one might expect of the author of Never Let Me Go, but it delivers the same scary insights into human misbehavior. Verdict Once again Ishiguro does something different; recommended for anyone who loves thoughtful writing. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 5/1/09.]-Barbara Hoffert, Library Journal Copyright 2009 Reed Business Information.
NATIONAL BESTSELLER
A "New York Times Notable Book
""A fine and moving collection of stories, displaying [Ishiguro's]
unique combination of the sad, the stoic and the consoling. It's
about failure, but it dignifies failure, and with it, the human
condition. There is nobody like him."
- Margaret Drabble, "The Guardian Books of the Year
""Each of these stories is heartbreaking in its own way, but some
have moments of great comedy, and they all require a level of
attention that, typically, Ishiguro's writing rewards."
"- The Observer
"
"An amusing read, at times very funny.... There are a number of
scenes in Nocturnes that are almost worth the price of admission on
their own."
"- The Globe and Mail"
"From the Hardcover edition."
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