BOOKS
‘HLEttttst'gltt "" MARCH HIGHLIGHTS
When We Were Orphans (Faber £16.99) at * int
\ 5PM FRI l7TH MARCH
\ Kazuo lshigum ..... HOWARD MARKS
will be signing copies of \ ' . When We Were Orphans MR N'CE l x _
\ \\ ~Byk\lte author of The Remains of the Day ‘ 7PM TUES 2T ST MARCH
‘ ALLAN FOSTER
will be discussing his book
I THE MOVIE TRAVELLER l
7PM WED 22 MARCH
AN DREW O’HAGAN T
will be launching the paperback of his navel
T OUR FATHERS |
8PM SAT 25TH MARCH
ROBERT KNOX
will be introducing
CABARET IN THE CAFE l
the best new stand-up, parlormance poetry, music and Spoken word in the City.
7PM MONDAY 27TH MARCH
KELSANG THARCHIN
will deliver the latest in his series of talks on Buddhism.
l , 7PM TUESDAY 28TH MARCH
Painstaking suspense and dark intrigue fill Kazuo lshiguro's latest triumph : ' F E ; S I I | | I ' I
With his latest novel, Kazuo Ishiguro embraces the detective genre to explore abiding concerns and scores yet another triumph. Christopher Banks is the most revered detective of 19305 London. Yet, for all his careful
-' ' " -' t F , t ' t t
; imitation of old guard customs, he cuts an isolated figure; ill at ease within : dlscove' llle p'mc'plés 0 mg 8 ll.“ and low 0 . . ; apply them to everday lile.
: polite society. .
As in lshiguro's previous work. an unresolved history hangs heavy over
3 the well-ordered existence of the protagonist. Banks' past is literally a
foreign country and he becomes tormented by fragmented childhood 1
memories of his parents' disappearance in Old Shanghai. As the world I J slides into war, he is unable to resist returning to China in pursuit of C l N G S O O N
i rationalisation.
I lshiguro’s characteristically restrained prose style and subtle. unflashy I l N l storytelling effortlesst convey a profusion of ideas about ' .
disenfranchisement and shifting perceptions (childish, deluded, nostalgic) . l AN as well as the great unsolvable mystery of the self. The dual settings are I l_ I S H I
expertly realised; Shanghai is an exotic mire of corruption and conflict,
symbolic of the chaos simmering beneath pre-war London’s veneer of l l O N E
gentility. Clearly well-versed in the art of classic detective fiction, lshiguro "
3 provides a painstaking build up of suspense, drawing us ever deeper into the dark intrigue surrounding Banks' investigation.
As ever, the success of lshiguro's novel depends mainly on our response
to his protagonist/narrator and Banks rivals Stevens from Booker-winning " The Remains Of The Day for sheer inflexibility of upper lip. Readers may ; struggle to connect with him initially but as the novel progresses and we become fully immersed in Banks' insecurity and confusion the author
succeeds in eliciting sympathy for the detective's quest. Another triumph. l 98 BUCl‘C‘W” Slreel/ Glosgow Gl 38A And another Booker? (Allan Radcliffe) ' - 8am to lOpm, Monday l0 Wednesday, ; I When We Were Orphans is published on Mon 3 Apr. 80m to l lpm Thursday to Saturday, 10am to 9pm Sunday
30 Mar l3Apr 2000 THE llST103