Life after Life - Kate Atkinson

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Life after Life - Kate Atkinson

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1Soupdragon
Mrz. 24, 2013, 2:54 pm

Before Life after Life, Kate Atkinson's books could be divided into two categories: her often fanciful early novels and her Jackson Brodie crime fiction. With Life after Life, Atkinson moves into historical fiction. Yet this book is even further away from standard genre fiction than the Jackson Brodies.

As usual, the writing is lively, intelligent, playful and unexpected. Life after Life tells the story of Ursula, born in a snowstorm in 1910 til her death...again and again. After each death Ursula's life resumes, but with history having slightly re-arranged its details enabling Ursula to carry on down a different path. This does not always make smooth reading as time shifts back and forth throughout the book. However Atkinson makes it work. Her writing was a joy and I fell for her characters. Some of them seemed a tad two-dimensional but it was quite helpful with time shifting frequently, to know who you were rooting for and who you weren't! The story of WW2 England and Germany is a familiar one in fiction but in Life after Life, the conclusion seems less obvious and anything feels possible.

I don't know how widely I'd recommend the book. If it sounds like it might be too much for you, you may well be right. If you're already a Kate Atkinson fan and like the idea of parallel realities in the early twentieth century, I would recommend - though if that's the case, you probably already have your copy!

2rainpebble
Mrz. 28, 2013, 1:51 am

I am looking forward to reading this one Dee. It sounds up my alley but I've thought that about others that really bombed for me. :-( Sounds like you enjoyed it though so there's hope. I am finding such a mediocrity with the L/L this year. And it is so disappointing because the Oranges are usually so big on my lists. It's almost like: "We lost our sponsor, had to change the name so what the hell!" IDK

3Soupdragon
Mrz. 28, 2013, 6:42 am

I suppose a lot depends on the taste of the judges. Looking at this year's panel, I notice that the two judges who are fiction writers are both authors I have tried but gave up on after a few pages. I don't know if that is significant or not!

4lauralkeet
Mrz. 28, 2013, 6:43 am

Dee, your description of this book sounds pretty enticing to me!!

5rainpebble
Mrz. 29, 2013, 4:21 am

Oh Dee, that sounds very significant to me.
And your review is enticing. I had to give you a thumb up on it.

I am looking forward to reading this one too Laura.

hugs,

6vancouverdeb
Mrz. 29, 2013, 7:27 am

I have Life After Life and though I am only about 55 pages in (of about 500 pages) , I'm enjoying it so far. I looked up a number of review from various newspapers online and attached them to the main page. All of them are positive. The premise sounded really odd to me, but I am pleasantly surprised so far... but it's early yet.

7rainpebble
Bearbeitet: Mrz. 30, 2013, 4:58 pm

Diese Nachricht wurde vom Autor gelöscht.

8rainpebble
Mrz. 29, 2013, 7:03 pm

STOP Deb! You are making my skin itch...........to get my hands on it and read it. My OCD is kicking in and it won't arrive on my Kindle until the 2nd! I wonder if it will arrive at midnight????????? Eastern Time????????????? Woe is me! I keep looking at my Kindle every hour or so hoping that it arrived early............ :-(

9lauralkeet
Mrz. 29, 2013, 9:15 pm

Rob (rbhardy3rd) made me aware of this New York Times article about Life After Life:
Kate Atkinson’s ‘Groundhog Day’ Fiction

10Soupdragon
Mrz. 30, 2013, 9:40 am

Thanks Belva and Laura.

I particularly liked this line from the article, referring to Behind the Scenes at the Museum.

The book seemingly came from nowhere to win a major literary prize in London, instantly establishing Atkinson as a singular voice while generating grumbling among more established (male) writers.

11rainpebble
Mrz. 30, 2013, 4:58 pm

Ha ha; love it Dee!

12lauralkeet
Mrz. 30, 2013, 5:45 pm

>10 Soupdragon:: Dee, today I finally managed to read the entire article. I loved reading about how she upset the male-dominated literary establishment when she won the Whitbread prize.

13vancouverdeb
Mrz. 31, 2013, 7:58 am

I'm on page 155 of Life After Life and I am loving it!

14rainpebble
Mrz. 31, 2013, 11:44 am

>13 vancouverdeb:: Oh yea Deb!~! I do so hope to love it as well.

>12 lauralkeet:: Laura, I couldn't help the grin and giggle that popped out when I read that about the guy thing too. Giggling again just thinking of it.

Blessed Easter ladies & gents out there. Here in the Pacific Northwest it is a beautiful day for a Resurrection Service. Can hardly wait to get to church this A.M. Our Good Friday service was so good and my grandson took his first communion. He was so happy. Even his Papa (my hubby, who is a non-believer, but attended service with us), was happy for him and smiled. I know this isn't "the correct forum" but I can't help thinking how good God is.

Easter hugs,
He is risen.

15vancouverdeb
Apr. 7, 2013, 5:56 am

Here is my review of Life After Life by Kate Atkinson.

Once every year or two I am fortunate enough to run across a novel that is very unique, beautifully written and so engaging that I just get lost in the pages and I am so sorry when the novel draws to a close. Such is the case with Life After Life.

Prior to reading Life After Life, I had some misgivings . The story is based on the premise that the main character, Ursula Todd, is born and dies many times throughout the novel. I have difficulty with " experimental " novels and in particular I did not care for the movie Groundhog Day in which a man wakes on Groundhog's day repeatedly. This concern with regard to Life After Life was for nothing, so expertly and smoothly does Kate Atkinson handle the transitions. Each time that Ursula dies - or takes her last breathe, she wakes up as the same person , with realistic , grounded settings and an expanse of well - drawn characters, rounded characters . Each time Ursula is born into the same family, with the same setting, just the circumstances change, sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse. The novel depends on the premise that when one comes to a fork in the road of life, one can choose to go left or right, and everything that happens after that choice is made is more or less consequence. Ursula is not is not always reborn as a baby, but often " the darkness falls" even as she is older , only for her to wake at the same age, or slightly older or younger, but always she is always Ursula, surrounded by the same cast of friends and family, though as time goes on new characters are of course present, and where Ursula lives changes as she ages. Once you accept that premise , which was very easy, the novel flows effortlessly .

As the story begins in February of 1910, Ursula is born and reborn several times , depending on whether the cord around her neck is cut in time or not. The re-births slow down greatly as the novel goes on. Ursula Todd is the third child , born to Hugh and Sylvie Todd. Father Hugh is a banker and mother Sylvie is his well -bred, intelligent wife.Eldest brother Maurice is a difficult, often cruel and thoughtless character throughout the story. Pamela, the second child, a practical, steadfast person and remains a close friend to Ursula no matter the circumstances. Younger brother Teddy ( Edward) is the good natured family favourite, and youngest child Jimmy arrives after Hugh returns from Flanders Field, WW1. The Todd family lives in country home called Fox Corner , which is within commuting distance of London England. They are well- to- do, with a cook, Mrs Glover and and Irish maid,Bridget.

As Ursula experiences " the darkness falling" and waking up to new set of circumstances, she begins to occasionally have a sense of deja vu. Will Bridget and Teddy die of the Spanish flu, will a child drown in a lake or not, when Ursula turns 16, will she be raped , causing a dreadful episode, or will she throw off her attacker and go onto and go onto college? Each episode ends with darkness falling and Ursula reacting differently and thus a new set of circumstances come into play.

The novel moves forward to WW11, with the London Blitz being perhaps most central to the novel , vividly and realistically described. Darkness falls relatively frequently during the Blitz, as Ursula works for the war office, does or does not work for the ARP, is or is not hit directly by a bomb.There are many grim scenes of bombs falling, fires, dismembered bodies, the smell of cordite and death. The horror of the London Blitz become very real. I enjoyed Kate Atkinson's even handed treatment of the soldiers of war. During the London Blitz, as Ursula is outside amongst the bombing , she " found it very odd to think that up above them there were German bombers flown by men who, essentially, were just like (her brother) Teddy. They weren't evil , they were just doing what had been asked of them by their country. It was the war that was evil, not the men. Although she would make an exception for Hitler.'Oh yes, 'Miss Wolff said, 'I should think the man is quite, quite mad.'" page 374

Does Ursula's seemingly infinite number of number of lives allow her to change the worlds destiny or not?

Though the plot may sound intricate and possibly grim, overall it is a warm, wonderful, and not infrequently darkly humorous read, one to be savored and appreciated. I enjoyed each and every word, and was sad to say good- bye to Ursula and the many wonderful characters that populated the novel.

5 wonderful stars

16Soupdragon
Apr. 7, 2013, 6:29 am

Wow Deborah, and to think I was worried you might not like it! Excellent review!

17kidzdoc
Apr. 7, 2013, 6:51 am

Great review of Life After Life, Deb! I'll go to my local Barnes & Noble after breakfast and buy it, as it's on my list of planned reads for the month.

18vancouverdeb
Bearbeitet: Apr. 8, 2013, 8:54 pm

@16 I was not sure if I'd be able to handle the Life After Life part - you know, the dying and " re-birth" bit, but it proved to be no problem at all for me! Loved it!!!! I'm not sure if I've loved a book for a while! Thanks for going first, Dee!

17 Thanks Darryl, I really struggled with how to explain the re- birth bit, because that idea was off putting for me, but Kate Atkinson handles it so well! I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. It's a completely different book than The Lighthouse by Alison Moore, which I also loved, but very good.

19brenzi
Bearbeitet: Apr. 16, 2013, 6:59 pm

I finished and REVIEWED the book. In a word, wonderful.

20Soupdragon
Apr. 17, 2013, 3:45 am

And a wonderful review too, Bonnie!

Life after Life certainly seems to be proving popular over here, and now it's been shortlisted too. Not having read the other shortlisters, I don't know if this one deserves the prize or not but I would love Atkinson to win.

21brenzi
Apr. 17, 2013, 9:50 pm

Thanks Dee. I've read three of them: NW and Bring Up the Bodies. I will probably read Flight Behavior and Bernadette but the reviews for May We Be Forgiven? here on LT are, frankly, terrible so I don't think I'll be reading that one.

22rainpebble
Apr. 18, 2013, 4:21 pm

I have held NW and May We Be Forgiven both in hand from the Library and just couldn't bring myself to get interested in either and so returned them unread. This year's lists just aren't quite cutting it for me. :-(

23LizzieD
Mai 10, 2013, 11:11 pm

I really loved Life After Life too. They should give the prize to Bring Up the Bodies, but if they mess up and don't do that, I'll be moderately happy if they give it to *LAL*!
I have Flight Behavior and The Light Between Oceans yet to read, and then I'm going to think long and hard about any others from this year's list.

24vancouverdeb
Mai 13, 2013, 9:52 pm

I'm about half way through May We Be Forgiven and to my surprise I am enjoying. Somehow it does not seem like Orange Prize fiction, but of the short list that I've read, it's maybe coming in 2nd for me.

From the shortlist I've read Life After Life 5 stars
Where'd You Go Bernadette 4 stars - but just more of a fun read
Flight Behaviour - abandoned on page 90 or so.

25Yells
Mai 14, 2013, 11:54 am

May We Be Forgiven was really odd but I quite liked it. To be honest, I kinda pictured a male author when reading it so it seemed like an odd choice for an Orange.

26rainpebble
Mai 19, 2013, 9:58 pm

I am absolutely loving everything about Life After Life and finding it very prize worthy.

27Yells
Mai 19, 2013, 9:59 pm

I so want my library hold to move faster!!!

28rainpebble
Mai 19, 2013, 10:03 pm

Tell them to get a move on bucket! You've got pages to turn.
hugs,

29Yells
Mai 19, 2013, 10:17 pm

If all goes well, I should get it on May 30th (unless some deadbeat DARES return it late!). But I am going to start Wolf Hall now so that I can hopefully read the second one in time for judging so the 30th might work out just fine. Thankfully tomorrow is a holiday so I should be able to take a chunk of it :)

30Yells
Mai 28, 2013, 12:37 pm

My copy came in from the library last night so I promptly sat down and read the first 200 pages. Can't wait to go home and finish it tonight (if everyone leaves me alone long enough).

31lauralkeet
Mai 28, 2013, 1:38 pm

>30 Yells:: Ha! I know that feeling.

32rainpebble
Mai 28, 2013, 3:20 pm

I finished Life After Life while in Philly and it was a wonderful 5 star + read for me. Very prize worthy.
When I got home, I began Wolf Hall because I really want to get to Bring Up the Bodies before the prize comes out and wanted to read this one prior to. I am finding WH good but a bit redundant as I have read so much on this subject matter. Hoping that BUtB won't be more of the same for me.

33Yells
Mai 28, 2013, 4:28 pm

I am about 200 pages into Wolf Hall and finding it okay. I am not a history buff and don't know anything about this era so while it's interesting, it's not interesting (if you know what I mean). I have been referring heavily on the tutored read that was done on a separate thread and it is really helping to fill in the blanks. I will start again once LAL is finished and will plough on to BUtB because I want to read all shortlist stuff before the big announcement!

34rainpebble
Mai 28, 2013, 8:27 pm

bucket,
Do you know what date in June the winner will be announced? I am hoping to have time to finish WH and read BUtB, NW, FB and MWBF. I guess I spent too much time on the L/L. :-(

35Yells
Mai 28, 2013, 9:35 pm

Apparently June 5th. I gotta lot of reading to do!

36AnneDC
Mai 28, 2013, 10:14 pm

I loved Life After Life--definitely 5 stars for me.

37rainpebble
Mai 29, 2013, 2:17 am

We are right there with you Anne. I thought it an amazingly distinctive, well written & unique novel.

Oh man, there is no way I can read the entire short list minus LAL & WYGB so I will probably try to finish WH then read BUtB & simply read the others later. I began NW; didn't do a thing for me so I set it aside. The same with FB & MWBF. I did read Bernadette and though I thought it not to be prize worthy I enjoyed it a great deal. Anyway hoping I can nail these two down before the 5th. Thanks bucket. That's only a week away. :-(

38vancouverdeb
Mai 29, 2013, 10:54 am

I loved Life After Life, but I was very surprised to enjoy May We Be Forgiven by A . M. Homes. I did not write a review for it, but it was a 4.5 read for me. Very unique.

39Yells
Mai 29, 2013, 12:51 pm

I loved the sarcasm in May We Be Forgiven. The whole dysfunctional family thing reminded me of Beach Music by Conroy. Overall I was very surprised that I liked it as much as I did. It is definitely not something I would have picked up otherwise.

Didn't get much of Life read last night as I had visitors. But tonight I am locking the door, turning off the phone and ploughing through. My only criticism so far is that I sometimes lose track of the story because I am just waiting for the next death. It's a little distracting!

40kidzdoc
Mai 30, 2013, 6:35 pm

I haven't reviewed it yet, but I loved Life After Life, and gave it 5 stars. It's the best novel I've read so far this year.

41Yells
Mai 31, 2013, 11:54 am

I gotta admit, I just finished Life After Life and while I enjoyed it (and loved the premise), I found it a bit tedious after awhile. But, I am one who was REALLY irritated by Groundhog Day so that might be why. I gave it a solid 4* and I do think it has a good shot at winning. I am going to spend this weekend working on Wolf Hall but I am not sure I have enough time to finish off the shortlist.

42rainpebble
Jun. 4, 2013, 12:26 pm

I am totally with Darryl on this Life After Life. My best read so far this year.

43Soupdragon
Jun. 4, 2013, 2:48 pm

I loved Life after Life, didn't find it tedious but it was a four star rather than five star read for me too.

I think the reason it didn't quite make five stars for me was something to do with the characterisation. The different lives made it difficult for me to follow the character development of the main protag and I couldn't understand why the nasty brother was so nasty. I think the books I give five stars to, tend to be ones that resonate with me psychologically. I still loved it though!

44raidergirl3
Jun. 4, 2013, 3:16 pm

I generally have to have an emotional response to give a book 5 stars, which is why I rated The Light between the Oceans higher than Life After Life. I cried in that one, and felt so bad for the characters. But, intellectually, I recognize the plotting and writing of Life After Life more than The Light between the Oceans.

45rainpebble
Jun. 5, 2013, 1:02 am

I was so emotionally involved with both of those books that it still gives me chills to think about them. Loved them both; LAL & TLBtO. I found them both to be beyond wonderful.
I hope we hear soon who the winner is.

46vancouverdeb
Jun. 10, 2013, 8:24 am

I agree, with Daryl and Belva - I Life After Life has been my best read this year. I really enjoyed it!

47framboise
Jun. 17, 2013, 7:05 pm

Hi all, first time posting here. Just finished Life After Life last night & have a few questions. I've read some other readers' thoughts online, but am curious as to what you think. Is this the right place to post questions?

48Yells
Jun. 17, 2013, 11:42 pm

Yup, ask away!

49avatiakh
Jun. 18, 2013, 12:22 am

I just finished Life after life and wan't so elated with it. Probably 3.5 stars from me. It had clever plotting but I never particularly engaged with Ursula, so having a few lifetimes of her was a bit much.

50Yells
Jun. 18, 2013, 1:27 pm

49 - I gotta agree. And I was starting to think I was the only one who didn't find it the best read this year. I did enjoy it but I keep getting caught up in the death/life cycle (waiting for the next one) that I missed key parts of the story and had to re-read. By the end, I was tired and ready to move on.

51framboise
Jun. 18, 2013, 9:22 pm

I finished the book a couple of nights ago and have been thinking about it ever since. It took me about 100 pages to really get into it; from then on, I read it almost nonstop. Here are some questions I have & am curious as to what other readers think:

**************SPOILER ALERT*****************

1. What do you make of the ending? For me, it was kind of anti-climactic, but from what I've read online, the author meant for Ursula's story & lives to go on infinitely, that there would be no one life where she was happy and then she would just die for the last time.

2. Towards the very end of the book, on pg 520, when Sylvie is giving birth and whips out a pair of surgical scissors, the chapter ends with "Practice makes perfect." What do you make of this? Does Sylvie have a touch of deja-vu as well?

3. From the beginning, I kept expecting Izzie's son to show up in an unexpected & important way, and was disappointed that he only surfaced in one lifetime. I felt sort of misled. What did others make of that?

4. When Ursula is a child and has a sense of deja-vu & keeps trying to stop Bridget from going out and catching the Spanish flu, I got the sense that Ursula is prompted to change things in each life, albeit subconsciously, to correct a wrong. I loved that idea. But later on, this is not always the case. For example, sometimes she saves Nancy; other times she does not. I was disappointed in that aspect.

5. Teddy, at the end of the book, says "Thank you" to Ursula. How do you interpret this?

I definitely feel like I want to start the book all over again & chart all her lives! Would definitely recommend this. Atkinson mentioned writing a sequel from Teddy's perspective. That'd be interesting.

Thanks!

52raidergirl3
Jun. 18, 2013, 9:35 pm

I definitely had the same reading experience that you did!

1. I took the ending to be that Ursula's life went on and on. I wondered how Atkinson decided to end it when she did, as there can be no real ending. It wasn't Groundhog Day, trying to perfect something.

2. Maybe all of them have lives they live over and over in their own way? So Sylvie (and everyone) would have a deja vu and have different outcome at each point that affects their lives.

3. I thought her son would appear too! Now I can't even remember that he had a life where he did show up! Which one was that?

4. I found that aspect difficult as well. I kept thinking that each life would be better, but they were just different. If it was a really big wrong (the rape) then it didn't happen again - that only took once life to realize how to correct.

5. I don't know. Good questions. But a book from Teddy's persepective would be awesome, especially to see how Ursula changes/stays the same in his life. It also leads credence to my answer in #2.

53framboise
Jun. 18, 2013, 10:05 pm

Thanks for your thoughts, raidergirl3! Izzie's son was adopted by Ursula's parents in one life towards the end of the book (I think they named him Roland) and was an intellectually disabled little boy. They lost him at the beach.

Speaking of the rape, I found it hard to believe that in a subsequent life, Ursula pushed the would-be rapist off of her and that took care of it. Not too plausible, in my opinion (I know it's fiction, but still!).

I also found it more than a bit intriguing that Sylvie was seen in public with another man, but this occurred only once! Wish we could've gotten more insight into that.

54Soupdragon
Jun. 19, 2013, 1:47 am

51:It's a few months now since I read the book so don't remember all the detail.

I do remember being really satisfied with the ending. It felt a good time to finish the story and any subsequent re-living because of what Ursula achieved. I felt as if everything that happened in her previous lives was about getting her to that point. Though there was a twist to that too, wasn't there, which I can't mention without a massive spoiler.

For me, the greatest strength of the book is Atkinson's writing style which is playful and sometimes hints, rather than tells. Because of this I was happy to just get clues about some events such as Sylvie's possible man. Also, if we'd known everything about everyone, the book would have got very long and unwieldy!

I also expected Ursula to somehow make improvements with each new life, but maybe that would have been too pat and tidy. Also, as I said, the ending tied everything up fo me.

I think the "practise makes perfect" comment and Teddy saying saying thank you, are also examples of Atkinson having fun with the story, and we aren't really meant to know.

As I've mentioned before, the aspect I really wanted to know more about was Ursula's nasty brother (can't remember his name). I couldn't see what in his life had made him so awful. Also, it was sometimes difficult for me to get a feel of who Ursula was and what she had gained from each experience and each new life.

55LizzieD
Jun. 23, 2013, 1:47 pm

And I thought about the whole thing as a demonstration of how the parallel universes might work. As I understand it every decision point spawns x number of universes: I decide to go get groceries now and that plays out in one universe; I decide to wait until tomorrow morning and that decision is followed in a separate universe. That would explain why Ursula wasn't gaining anything or making positive changes from one life to the next because they were all happening at the same time. That would not explain the deja vu unless universes may somehow bleed from one into another. Anyway, that's what I thought for what it's worth.
And I just thought that Ursula's nasty brother was simply a limited human being. Some people just are.....

56KimD66
Jun. 28, 2013, 8:55 am

While I enjoyed the characters, I just didn't care much for this book overall. The concept didn't bother me, but it just went on and on and on. It was almost like the author had a short story and put her re-writes in to make a novel.

57rainpebble
Bearbeitet: Jun. 29, 2013, 2:10 pm

Diese Nachricht wurde vom Autor gelöscht.

58Nickelini
Mai 6, 2014, 2:43 am

Just met with my book club tonight to discuss Life After Life. overall, everyone liked it (although the person who suggested it had only got through 23% of it --she's an accountant, it's tax season, so we can't be too hard on her). But I'm mentioning it because we had one of the longest and most involved book conversations we've had in years. So if you're looking for a good book club read, do try this one.