1. How do the “fantasies” that Kathy and her friends imagine at Hailsham compare with those they imagine as young adults?

Compare Kathy and Ruth’s relationship at Hailsham with their relationship at the Cottages and later on at Ruth’s recovery center. How does their friendship change over time? In what ways does it remain the same?

Kathy makes several notable car trips, including two visits to Norfolk. What role does driving play in the novel? What elements do her many car trips have in common, and what sets them apart from one another?

In his early notes for Never Let Me Go, Ishiguro referred to it as “The Students’ Novel.” Why is it important that Kathy and her peers are students? What role do their studies play in the novel?

What is the effect of the novel’s alternate historical timeline? Why might Ishiguro have chosen to set the novel in the 1990s, rather than sometime in the future?