num_pages: 9
description: A masterful novel from one of the most admired writers of our time.Christopher Banks, an English boy born in early-20th-century Shanghai, is orphaned at age nine when both his mother and father disappear under suspicious circumstances. He grows up to become a renowned detective, and more than 20 years later, returns to Shanghai to solve the mystery of the disappearances.Within the layers of the narrative told in Christopher's precise, slightly detached voice are revealed what he can't, or wont, see: that the simplest desires—a child's for his parents, a man's for understanding—may give rise to the most complicated truths.A feat of narrative skill and soaring imagination, When We Were Orphans is Kazuo Ishiguro at his brilliant best.Performed by John Lee
language: English
title: When We Were Orphans
titlecomplete: When We Were Orphans
characters: Akira, Mr Grayson, Aldra, Colonel Chamberlain, Wang Ku, Miss Givens, Sarah Hemmings, Christopher Banks, Sir Cecil Medhurst, Mr MacDonald, Diana Banks, Etsuko, Jennifer, Mei Li, Anthony Morgan, Mr Lin, Inspector Kung, Lady Beaton, James Osbourne, Mr Banks, Uncle Philip
genres: Historical, China, Contemporary, Novels, Literature, Historical Fiction, Fiction, Literary Fiction, British Literature, Mystery
ratings_count: 39221
places: Shanghai, London, England
awards: awardedAt: 946713600000
name: Booker Prize, awardedAt: 946713600000
name: Whitbread Award
category: Novel
publisher: HarperAudio