REMAINS OF THE DAY

Katsu Ishiguru is a Japanese-English author born in 1954. The Remains Of The Day is one of the most highly-regarded post-war British novels, the work was awarded the Man Booker Prize for Fiction in 1989. Set in the late 1930's, the book tells the story of an aging, proudly subservient, English butler working at Darlington Hall. At the beginning of the story he is encouraged to take a much needed vacation by his employer, Mr. Farraday, who believes the butler needs a break from his duties. The book spans his one week trip to visit Miss Kenton, who was his former colleague. The book involves a mainly stream-of-consciousness moral inventory of Stevens' life and examines Lord Darlington's connections to the Germans and how he helped them throughout the story. This large and stunningly brilliant tale captures an era that prized decorum above truth with hazardous results.