Kazuo Ishiguro

This quintet ranges from Italian piazzas to the Malvern Hills, a London flat to the 'hush-hush floor' of an exclusive Hollywood hotel. Along the way we meet young dreamers, caf ̌musicians and faded stars, all at some moment of reckoning.

Five Stories of Music and Nightfall

Nocturnes

From the piazzas of Italy to the Malvern Hills, a London flat to the 'hush-hush floor' of an exclusive Hollywood hotel, the characters we encounter range from young dreamers to cafe musicians to faded stars, all of them at some moment of reckoning. In this title, the author explores ideas of love, music and the passing of time.

It's weird reviewing short story collections. It seems unfair to review these five stories as a collective when they're all accomplishing different things individually. So, with that being said, I'll give a much shorter review of each one and rank them all one at a time :)

 is a story of a guitarist who meets one of his role models in Tony Gardner, who he helps by playing guitar for him while he serenades his wife. It's a simple story about the hope that comes with music: the way music gives you hope that the love you wish for will come, or the love you have will stay. I found the narration to be a bit bland, but the story and theme behind it is sweet and works well as an introductory story to get you familiar with what kind of concepts you have to look forward to in the collection. 

 is about an English teacher named Raymond and his married friends, Emily and Charlie. In short: Emily's upset with Charlie because she feels he's not living up to his full potential, that he could be doing more with his life, and is therefore a failure in her eyes. Charlie is upset with Emily because he feels their life together is fine, comfortable, could be a lot worse, etc. So, Charlie has decided to invite Raymond over to showcase him as an example of failure, as a figurative 

look at how shitty of a live Raymond leads and think of just how good we have it.

 from laughter at some of the bits of dialogue here. I could totally imagine these characters as the main cast of a sitcom, or some hallmark movie where Raymond is played by Adam Sandler and we just watch him somehow make the situation worse every five minutes. I'm certain this is Kazuo Ishiguro at his funniest and his silliest and I loved every second of it. 8/10

 follows an unnamed (I believe) narrator who has a somewhat failing music career and is now working as a waiter at a cafe with his sister and brother-in-law. The story essentially covers an encounter the narrator has with a married couple, and explores their relationship and their love for music. The ending was beautifully melancholic, and what I love most about this collection is getting to see recurring themes and tones which is definitely the case here. However, I found the story as a whole to be a bit directionless, and it was difficult to get attached to anything going on with the narrator / their environment. 

 is a comedy involving plastic surgery. It's also the return of a character from the story 

: Lindy Gardner. The narrator, Steve, is a talented saxophone player faced with the fate of being ugly, and thus not having the appearance to make it in the big leagues. He ends up getting plastic surgery on his face, and his neighbor, Lindy Gardner, is receiving the same treatment. They become friends, shenanigans occurs.

I love this story a lot, and I think Steve and Lindy were a HILARIOUS pair in this story. The musical themes in this story also worked the best, as it was directly associated with Steve and Lindy and their journeys. I do, however, think the whole talent vs. appearance message was a bit too repetitive, and maybe we could've gone without one or two of those conversations, but I still think this story is a 

 of fun; if you’re going to pick any short story in this collection to read, I’d say to give this one a try 

 is about a cello prodigy named Tibor and his relationship with his mentor, Eloise. This feels, to me, like the most complicated story to describe and criticize, because the trajectory of this relationship and the story in general was just... strange. The ending felt so odd and so sudden, and the fact that this is narrated by some distant friend of Tibor's just kind of makes me see the story as a 

listen to this really weird shit that happened a few years ago

I don't have much to say about this one. I think it was sweet and had some charming moments, and I liked the themes, but I also don't have anything too substantial to say about it. 

All the stories here are really consistent with their themes, but vary pretty widely in tone, pace, and total quality. The comedies in here (

) are 100% worth trying out, but the other three would depend on your preferences.

smile

It's weird reviewing short story collections. It seems unfair to review these five stories as a collective when they're all accomplishing different things individually. So, with that being said, I'll give a much shorter review of each one and rank them all one at a time :)

CROONER:  (30 pages)

Crooner is a story of a guitarist who meets one of his role models in Tony Gardner, who he helps by playing guitar for him while he serenades his wife. It's a simple story about the hope that comes with music: the way music gives you hope that the love you wish for will come, or the love you have will stay. I found the narration to be a bit bland, but the story and theme behind it is sweet and works well as an introductory story to get you familiar with what kind of concepts you have to look forward to in the collection. 7/10

COME RAIN OR COME SHINE: (49 pages)

Come Rain or Shine is about an English teacher named Raymond and his married friends, Emily and Charlie. In short: Emily's upset with Charlie because she feels he's not living up to his full potential, that he could be doing more with his life, and is therefore a failure in her eyes. Charlie is upset with Emily because he feels their life together is fine, comfortable, could be a lot worse, etc. So, Charlie has decided to invite Raymond over to showcase him as an example of failure, as a figurative look at how shitty of a live Raymond leads and think of just how good we have it. 

This story is HYSTERICAL. I was crying from laughter at some of the bits of dialogue here. I could totally imagine these characters as the main cast of a sitcom, or some hallmark movie where Raymond is played by Adam Sandler and we just watch him somehow make the situation worse every five minutes. I'm certain this is Kazuo Ishiguro at his funniest and his silliest and I loved every second of it. 8/10

MALVERN HILLS: (34 pages)

Malvern Hills follows an unnamed (I believe) narrator who has a somewhat failing music career and is now working as a waiter at a cafe with his sister and brother-in-law. The story essentially covers an encounter the narrator has with a married couple, and explores their relationship and their love for music. The ending was beautifully melancholic, and what I love most about this collection is getting to see recurring themes and tones which is definitely the case here. However, I found the story as a whole to be a bit directionless, and it was difficult to get attached to anything going on with the narrator / their environment. 5.5/10

NOCTURNE: (58 pages)

Nocturne is a comedy involving plastic surgery. It's also the return of a character from the story CROONER: Lindy Gardner. The narrator, Steve, is a talented saxophone player faced with the fate of being ugly, and thus not having the appearance to make it in the big leagues. He ends up getting plastic surgery on his face, and his neighbor, Lindy Gardner, is receiving the same treatment. They become friends, shenanigans occurs.

I love this story a lot, and I think Steve and Lindy were a HILARIOUS pair in this story. The musical themes in this story also worked the best, as it was directly associated with Steve and Lindy and their journeys. I do, however, think the whole talent vs. appearance message was a bit too repetitive, and maybe we could've gone without one or two of those conversations, but I still think this story is a ton of fun; if you’re going to pick any short story in this collection to read, I’d say to give this one a try 8.5/10

CELLISTS: (32 pages)

Cellists is about a cello prodigy named Tibor and his relationship with his mentor, Eloise. This feels, to me, like the most complicated story to describe and criticize, because the trajectory of this relationship and the story in general was just... strange. The ending felt so odd and so sudden, and the fact that this is narrated by some distant friend of Tibor's just kind of makes me see the story as a listen to this really weird shit that happened a few years ago. 

I don't have much to say about this one. I think it was sweet and had some charming moments, and I liked the themes, but I also don't have anything too substantial to say about it. 6/10

~~

All the stories here are really consistent with their themes, but vary pretty widely in tone, pace, and total quality. The comedies in here (Nocturne and Come Rain or Shine) are 100% worth trying out, but the other three would depend on your preferences.

Some of the dialogue and character actions just had me scratching my head. Distracted from an otherwise fun atmosphere

Joe Zimet

i love how ishiguro writes. the way he writes about disappointment, not achieving your dreams and goals in nocturnes got to me. he doesn't talk about it like it's a colossal failure, no. he describes them like they are - they are normal and natural, and almost everyone's reality in one way or another.

it's a story about being mediocre even if you thought you would be great, and i think that reality happens to all of us at some point when we grow up to see past the rose coloured glasses of our hopes and dreams for the future and we have to come to terms with making the best of the life we have. 

it's definitely not my favourite read from him (when he wrote never let me go, a pale view of hills, etc) but it didn't disappoint me and i liked it a lot, still. 

i love how ishiguro writes. the way he writes about disappointment, not achieving your dreams and goals in nocturnes got to me. he doesn't talk about it like it's a colossal failure, no. he describes them like they are - they are normal and natural, and almost everyone's reality in one way or another.

it's a story about being mediocre even if you thought you would be great, and i think that reality happens to all of us at some point when we grow up to see past the rose coloured glasses of our hopes and dreams for the future and we have to come to terms with making the best of the life we have. 

it's definitely not my favourite read from him (when he wrote never let me go, a pale view of hills, etc) but it didn't disappoint me and i liked it a lot, still. 

3.5/5

i rlly love how kazuo ishiguro writes ^~~^  u have all ur attention w his books,, they r so detailed and interesting,, they also have a warm feeling ♡

mimi

heather

I've never enjoyed reading short stories because they either have not much substance or there just isn't enough explored in the stories themselves but Kazuo Ishiguro omg... This was quite an exquisite collection... 

Some of the characters were so realistically unhinged, I actually really liked them. While there aren't strong storylines within each story, we get a sneak peek of certain significant or quirky episodes/events that happened to a particular character. Most importantly, Ishiguro's writing make the stories seem so much more personal and intimate :") So overall, I really liked this collection and also especially since it was a pretty easy read!

Josephine Lemonade 

*Kazuo Ishiguro's new novel Klara and the Sun is now available to preorder* From the Nobel Prize-winning author of The Remains of the Day and Never Let Me Go In Nocturnes, Kazuo Ishiguro explores the ideas of love, music and the passing of time. From the piazzas of Italy to the 'hush-hush floor' of an exclusive Hollywood hotel, the characters we encounter range from young dreamers to café musicians to faded stars, all of them at some moment of reckoning. Gentle, intimate and witty, this quintet is marked by a haunting theme: the struggle to keep alive a sense of life's romance, even as one gets older, relationships founder and youthful hope recedes.

Erin 

Overall I think I'm a fan of Kazuo Ishiguro, but this lacked a something that I can't quite put my finger on.

Crooner: 4.5 stars
Come Rain or Come Shine: 3 stars
Malvern Hills: 4 stars
Nocturne: 2 stars - Bit odd that the title story is the lowest rated, but oh well.
Cellists: 2 stars

Lucy Li

HelyaSameni

caro

Libby

charlotte

Kat Albanese

Landen Angeline

sharkie

beth

five stories of music and nightfall

Lydia Rose

Niki Sotiropoulou-Nassika

In this sublime story cycle, Kazuo Ishiguro explores love, music and the passage of time. This quintet ranges from Italian piazzas to the Malvern Hills, a London flat to the “hush-hush floor” of an exclusive Hollywood hotel. Along the way we meet young dreamers, café musicians and faded stars, all at some moment of reckoning. Gentle, intimate and witty, Nocturnes is underscored by a haunting theme: the struggle to restoke life’s romance, even as relationships flounder and youthful hopes recede.

Nocturnes Five Stories of Music and Nightfall

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