The Remains of the Day: Winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature

BOOKER PRIZE WINNER • From the winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature, here is “an intricate and dazzling novel” (The New York Times) about the perfect butler and his fading, insular world in post-World War II England.
 
This is Kazuo Ishiguro's profoundly compelling portrait of a butler named Stevens. Stevens, at the end of three decades of service at Darlington Hall, spending a day on a country drive, embarks as well on a journey through the past in an effort to reassure himself that he has served humanity by serving the "great gentleman," Lord Darlington. But lurking in his memory are doubts about the true nature of Lord Darlington's "greatness," and much graver doubts about the nature of his own life.

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Published Sep 12, 1990

245 pages

Average rating: 7.6

315 RATINGS

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What Bookclubbers are saying about this book

✨ Summarized by Bookclubs AI

Readers say *The Remains of the Day* is a beautifully written, subtly reflective novel praised for Ishiguro’s elegant prose and vivid portrayal of a b...

Sue Dix
Mar 14, 2026
8/10 stars
It may just be my current frame of mind, but the ending of this book just ripped my heart out. This is a beautifully written novel about a man realizing too late that he has neglected to live his life. The descriptions of the English countryside and his reminiscences do lead him beyond his regrets and to a desire and possibility to live a larger life.
thenextgoodbook
Sep 04, 2025
8/10 stars
“It is my impression that our generation was the first to recognize something which had passed the notice of all earlier generations: namely that the great decisions of the world are not, in fact, arrived at simply in the public chambers, or else during a handful of days given over to an international conference under the full gaze of the public and press. Rather, debates are conducted, and crucial decisions arrived at, in the privacy and calm of the great houses of this country.”

Great thoughtful story about looking back at one's past. Full review on the site.

thenextgoodbook.com
Jo-readsandyarns
May 19, 2026
7/10 stars
I was frustrated with the main character, Stevens, throughout this book and by the end I was just so sad. I wanted to give him a good shake so many times. I was left feeling bereft and quite depressed when I’d finished. I don’t think I’ve read anything written in this style before and I enjoyed it.
terihealy
Nov 16, 2025
V
a c
Nov 18, 2024
8/10 stars
Well, I was really infuriated with Stevens when he acted coldly with Kenton after she told him about her engagement, I still have my doubts about his romantic feelings towards her runs how deep as there was no definitive response after Kenton's confession other than he said his heart broke and his teary eyes(which I don even know if it's because he was talking about his old post). I don't think wasted his life away though maybe if his self-realization was prevalent when his life was at the morning stage then he would've been supposedly much more of an original person not only someone's employee. The title was very nice, by that I mean really really nice. Oh well, Mr. Darlington was a Nazi sympathizer… I don't know how to feel about this as I've not encountered his personality other than Steven's vision. The portrayal of the aftermaths of ww1 and ww2 behind the life of a butler in a grand mansion, and how little it affects him personally is also depicted here quite nicely.
My rating is 4 stars.

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