Never Let Me Go
Impressions
The narrator begins, introducing me to the world she lives in by describing her present role as a “carer.” Right away, the world feels unsettling. She talks about “carers,” “donors,” and “completion” as if these are everyday words, but I don’t know what they mean yet. The casual way she drops them makes me feel like something sinister has been normalized.
When Kathy describes her work, she shows a strange mix of pride and resignation. She is proud of being a carer, but it feels like pride that was instilled in her, almost programmed into her at Hailsham. At the same time, she admits that staying in the role for a long time doesn’t necessarily mean she is good at it:
It’s not necessarily a sign of how well you’ve done. Some carers who’ve been really good at looking after donors have had their careers cut short, maybe even before they’ve really got going.
This casual revelation is disturbing. On the surface, it sounds gentle and bureaucratic, but it suggests something darker. It makes me think the real purpose of carers is not to care for donors, but to manage and control them for some other reason. More than that, it feels like the carers themselves are being managed and controlled by some unseen authority.
The most striking part of the first chapter is the schoolyard incident with Tommy, but Ishiguro pointedly leaves that memory until after Kathy describes her present. By framing the story this way, every detail of the memory carries tension. When Kathy remembers the kids teasing Tommy, it doesn’t feel like ordinary playground cruelty. Knowing what I know from her present-day role, Tommy’s outbursts seem more significant. His inability to fit in feels almost prophetic, like he senses something is wrong, even if he can’t explain it.
I find it important that Kathy chooses to begin her story with Tommy. She remembers him with sympathy, not judgment, and that makes me think regret is tied up in this memory. Maybe she feels she didn’t do enough for him, or maybe he represents something she lost. Kathy doesn’t seem unreliable in the sense of lying, but she is deeply shaped by her world’s assumptions. She doesn’t question terms like “donor” or “completion” and assumes her reader won’t either. That blind spot makes me read her carefully, paying attention to what she leaves unsaid. It feels like she isn’t just telling these stories for me — she is also trying to work something out for herself.
What I’m Looking Forward To
I think Tommy is going to be central to this story, and something tragic will happen to him. I suspect he won’t survive as a donor, and Kathy’s memories will keep circling back to him with regret. I want to learn more about Hailsham, especially how much the children really understood about their futures.
I am looking forward to watching how Kathy’s memories of Tommy evolve. I want to know if she is trying to preserve him through memory, or if she is trying to make up for her past mistakes. Ishiguro’s style makes me expect that the truth will not come out in one big revelation. It will build gradually, through small and ordinary details that carry an undercurrent of dread. That quiet unfolding is what makes me want to keep turning the pages.
A Final Thought on the Title
The title Never Let Me Go now feels like it could be connected to Tommy. It seems possible that those words may end up being Tommy’s final plea to Kathy. Thinking about it this way adds even more weight to why Kathy begins her story with him. If the book’s title comes from him, then her memories of Tommy are the emotional core of the entire story.
