Ishiguro, Kazuo. When We Were Orphans. (London, Great Britain: Vintage International, 2000), 335pp.
Reviewed by Collin Gilchrist, Los Osos High School, Rancho Cucamonga, CA.
When We Were Orphans, by Kazuo Ishiguro, tells the story of Christopher Banks, an English detective who was born in an international district of Shanghai, China. When he was a young boy, his parents went missing and have not been found.
The first section of the novel is about Christopher's early adult life. He is currently living in London and the year is 1930. This section describes Christopher searching to find his way in life. He is kind of reserved and bashful. Very quickly I found Christopher to be one of the most relatable characters I have read about. In the opening scene he is attending a party where he meets many successful people who are a good deal older than him. This scene made me think of several of the fancy events I have attended recently because I am going to college soon, such as the dinner I attended to receive a scholarship from my Dad's company. I met many well-connected people but went in knowing no one. At the party he is introduced to and becomes infatuated with Sarah Hemmings. She retains some amount of significance in Christopher's life later in the novel. Ishiguro's language usage is immediately apparent as very intellectual and proper. The novel feels very British from the first page. Unfortunately, this section feels like it has little plot direction, and started to become boring to me.
The second section of the novel consists of flashbacks to Christopher's childhood in Shanghai. He lives in luxury with his parents. Christopher recounts playing with and getting into trouble with his Japanese friend Akira, who also lives in Shanghai's International district. I found Akira interesting because his personality is very similar to that of one of my friends from my elementary school days. The beginning of this section also felt like it had little direction, but looking back, I realize that this part of the novel is all about detail. Ishiguro takes a great deal of time to make sure that the character's of Akira and Uncle Philip, because they are important later in the novel. The plot suddenly takes off when first Christopher's father, and then his mother, are kidnapped. Because there wasn't a lot of reference to this event, it took me by surprise, and all of a sudden all that background information made sense. One point that I found very amusing is that when Christopher's father is kidnapped, he and Akira pretend to try and rescue his father. I think the disappearance of Christopher's parents played a role in his career choice.
The third and largest chunk of the novel resumes Christopher's adulthood, but now closer towards the middle of his life. He has found his own way, and after gathering more clues, he thinks he has an idea as to where his parents are. Does he find them? I'll leave that to you to read the book and find out for yourself.
Although When We Were Orphans was quite bland in the beginning, it proved to be quite an enjoyable novel. I found the setting and plot to be original and unique when compared to anything I had read before. In terms of plausibility I would say that the story is quite plausible. It is a work of fiction in a completely non-fictitious setting. Although some events feel like small coincidences, they are in no way implausible. By the last page, Kazuo Ishiguro's When We Were Orphans was a great, refreshing read.
-C. Gilchrist
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