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Content snapshot
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Violence
None
Implied infanticide; Nagasaki aftermath referenced
Language
None
No profanity
Sexual Content
None
No sexual content
Substance Use
None
No substance use
Emotional Intensity
A lot
Deeply unsettling unreliable narrator; implied infanticide; guilt and repression
What this book is about
Ishiguro's 1982 debut novel follows Etsuko, who looks back on her time in postwar Nagasaki and a friend whose daughter may have died. The novel subtly suggests the narrator may have been responsible for her child's death. Deeply unsettling psychological reading. For mature readers.
Notes for sensitive readers
Reader-flagged moments and themes that may affect your experience.
Implied infanticide
Deeply unsettling psychological content
Reader Verification
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