Book Report: Life After Life
What’s The Buzz?: If you’ve popped into a bookstore lately, chances are you’ve seen Kate Atkinson’s eighth full-length novel, Life After Life, on the shelves – that shimmery cover with a fox on it definitely stands out, and so does Atkinson (deservedly so). The book has been shortlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction this year, and is a testament to this longstanding British author’s talent. Many people are calling it her best work to date, and given the amount of global hype its earned, I can’t say I disagree.
What’s The Story?: Do you believe in reincarnation? Even if you don’t, what would you do differently if it did exist? That’s the loose question posed in this book set in the first half of the 20th century. On a cold winter’s night in 1910, a child named Ursula Todd is born, but dies before she takes her first breath. Or does she? For moments later, Ursula Todd is born, and this time she survives. The book follows Ursula as she navigates the trials of childhood, teenage emotions, and being a young, independent woman in a world that’s very much asking her to do otherwise – particularly on the eve of WW2. Every time she dies however, her life is rebooted back to that same winter’s night, with only fleeting fragments of deja vu or intuition to course correct her the next time around. The questions then become: what is right? What would be a good kind of life to live through to a ripe old age? Can you save the world from the mistakes you know it will make? And perhaps, what influence do those little AND big moments have on our lives, in equal measure? Atkinson revisits Ursula’s life again and again, tweaking subtle details here and there, and bigger ones based on Ursula’s own (sort of) ‘practice makes perfect’ unique sense of human nature. In it, we see Ursula grow up, but also become more mature (usually) the more often she relives her life, while still maintaining a wholly realized sense of self from start to finish.
What’s The Writing Style Like?: Atkinson has a very, very British vibe to her writing. I actually read her debut novel Behind The Scenes At The Museum a couple of years ago and quite liked it, despite it being a little dense in parts, so it was quite lovely to cross paths with Atkinson’s nearly 20 years after she released her first book, and several since I read it. There’s a certain kind of wink and a nod dry wit here – I wouldn’t call it slapstick, but it’s a bit more forceful than subtle. You’ve really got to read every word in the book to truly appreciate the mastery at work in terms of both the humour and heart that manages to outshine the very heavy weight of death that cloaks most of the plot. It’s not a skim and read kind of book, it’s one you’ve got to be committed to sitting down, curling up with, and letting yourself be drawn into – Atkinson’s worlds are very, extremely vivid and the book just isn’t as good unless you’re ready to follow her down the rabbit hole. Amazingly, the story manages to toe the line between supernatural and super realistic just perfectly.
So If It’s WW2 and You Can Relive The Past…?: I know what you’re thinking. You KNOW, at least somewhat, that WW2 is coming (in fact the book is a little shaky as to how much Ursula actually remembers – it seems the older she gets, the harder it is for her to piece together her other pasts), and that one Adolf Hitler is the man with the ‘plan’. What would you do? The book delves deepest into World War 2 over any other period in the book. As you can imagine, the opportunities for Ursula to die and relive that particular era are quite high, and although she is stationed in Britain, Atkinson explores a number of different avenues that put Ursula in the right place (or wrong, depending on how you look at it) at the right time to directly cross paths with Herr Hitler. Beyond that, it also goes into incredibly vivid, gut-wrenching details about WW2’s impact on London – if you’re a history buff of any sort, you’ll be impressed by the level of factual nuances incorporated into the WW2-specific eras.
But Wait, Won’t I Get Bored Reading The Same Story Again & Again?: Not at all. Admittedly sometimes I was eager for that reset button to get hit. Ursula’s life isn’t quite a dream, despite her learning and improving upon past experiences in most cases, and going back to the beginning made it more palatable for me to hope she’d do better the next time around. And I will say, Atkinson seems to have more fun playing with the novelty of Ursula’s ‘situation’ moreso in the earlier years of her life. But the latter half of the novel, which is more focused on Ursula as a young woman in the 30s and 40s, takes on a deeper meaning altogether. It really stops being about that fun, hopeful factor of getting to course correct your life, and starts to (subtly) ask some big philosophical questions. The result is a delightful, truly wonderfully written book.
Life After Life
1) Leave a comment by May 27th telling me why you’d love to read Kate Atkinson’s Life After Life + if you feel like it, one thing you might change about your past if you were given a reset button of your own.
2) Entries are limited to one per person / per email address / per household (or more if you score bonus entries). A random draw will be conducted on or around May 28th to select the winners, who will have 48 hours to respond before another winner is chosen in their place.
3) Entries are limited to Canadians that have reached the age of majority in their province. Quebec is not eligible to participate in this promotion.
4) Bonus Entry: If you’re on Goodreads, add this book to your to-read list, throw me a link to it in the comments below, and score a bonus entry.
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[…] to being loosely connected as in that book). Another good example would be Kate Atkinson’s Life After Life, one of my favourite reads of the previous year that retells a story over and over again, building […]
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I think we all would like to live some parts of our life over. Everyone makes mistakes. I would love to read this book. The whole reincarnation belief facinates me. If I had to change one thing, it would most likely be spending more time with my mother before she died. I have added this bood to my Good reads list.
I’d like to read this because I’m always up for a good book and love discovering new authors!
I’d love to read it because of your great review. I feel like the book would give me a lot to think about. I don’t have anything I can think of that I would change… I do have things that I wish I didn’t do, but I’m glad they happened.
Your review made this book sound very interesting & I know my SIL would really be interested in this book. Something I’d change – wish I’d started to exercise sooner in life – I enjoy it so much.
I woudl like to read it as I am interested in the re-birth concept.
I would love to read this book and if I don’t win I’m going to either buy it or look in the library. It always makes me happy to think that tomorrow will bring a new day, a fresh start, one more try and this book reminds me of that. I like the thought that when we die we are reborn to start all over again. We haven’t really lived if we have no regrets about the past and I regret not going to the Remembrance Day ceremonies with my Uncle who was a WW2 veteran. He proudly attended every year and I wish I had joined him and let him know how thankful I was for all he did.
Added to Goodreads on my To read shelf (the cover is different?) http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15790842-life-after-life
Hey Annie – yes, I noticed there’s a different cover on GR. You can always switch editions to the lovely snow + fox edition if you’re one of the lucky winners 🙂
i love reading and it looks like a good book to read if i don’t win i think i buy it myself too
I’d love to read this book, you’ve made it sound so interesting. One thing I wish I could change would be getting a better education.
I have recently been reading about NDE’s and think this book would be an interesting (fictional) counterpoint to that literature!
I’ve definitely seen this book on the shelves and wondered waht it was about. You’ve intrigued me to read it!
I’d love to read this book because I love historical fiction. If I could go back and change something I’d have taken a summer trip I passed up on as a teenager, I think it would have been amazing.
Would love to read this – love the idea of rebirth
I would find this book intellectually and spiritually challenging. If I could change one thing in my life, I’d have been more honest with myself and told my husband earlier I wanted children.
This sounds like a very interesting read. I think if I could change anything about my past I would have gone away for school.
I have always been interested in reincarnation. I have also been very fond of fictional and non-fiction stories revolving around WWII. I have only just started reading more frequently and am constantly on the look for new novels that pique my interest.
This book sounds really interesting,I love to read and am always looking for something different to read! Thank you for this contest!
This book sounds really interesting and I think if I had exercised more in the past it would make a difference now in my life.
Wow.. this book will be awesomely interesting and fun to read. Awesome review. What would I change? Well, let me be blunt and honest 🙂 I would not drink alcohol ever. 🙂
love this author looking forward to her new book
The subject of Life After Life sounds really interesting to me so of course I’d love to read it.What would I change- oh wow if only it were possible! I’d inherit better genes so I’d have none of my current health problems.
love to win books this sounds like a good read
Looks so interesting. I think I would have had another child
I would like to read this to see if those we’ve lost might actually be sitting next to us.
I want to read this book very much, it sounds so interesting. I’ve studied reincarnation in the past and it’s an idea that captivates me.
I would love to read this book because I’ve heard such wonderful things about her and this book. She is a new author to me, and I would like to get to know her writing 🙂
I’ve had this book on my to read shelf on goodreads for awhile so I couldn’t find exactly where on my list it was lol I think I have close to 5000 books on there now 🙂 http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/14740620?shelf=to-read
sounds like an interesting book that I would love to read!
I would like to read Life After Life because I would like to see how Atkinson deals with the narrative repeat.
My goodreads link:
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15841873-life-after-life
I have read every one of Kate’s previous books. love them all. So I would love to read this one, if only because every time I finish an author’s works, it feels like I’m lost, losing a friend, and can’t wait for them to come back. If I could choose one thing to reset in my life, it could be having a different father.
I’d love to read Kate Atkinson’s Life After Life ‘cos reincarnation has always intrigued me – actually anything to do with the unknown & possibility. If I could change one thing it would be to take opportunities more freely than I did. It would have been nice to see what alternative path I’d be on
Bonus entry: http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/4908542?shelf=to-read (it has a picture of 2 roses instead of a winter fox)
It’s a fascinating subject and I’d love to read this book
I want to read this book, simply because of the buzz behind it. I am an avid reader and enjoy all genres. Reincarnation (I am not sure what I believe, because I am a .. need to see it/experience it to believe it kind of person) is an interesting subject and the pro’s and con’s of believing in it is entertaining.
If I had a reset button, I would have stayed in school. I dropped out my first year of University to have my daughter. .. she, I would never change, but I would want to have stayed to get my degree. Not that I do not enjoy my chosen career path, but I feel like my life would have been less of a struggle if I stayed in school and became an accountant.
http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/7639087-heather?page=3&per_page=100&shelf=to-read&utf8=%E2%9C%93 so many books to read .. so little time !
I want to read this book because it is a great subject.
Reincarnation is a fascinating topic. If I could chnage anything would have been more adventurous in my career instead of staying in the same job for 25 years
I enjoy this subject
I would love to read this book because of the great review and it sounds very interesting.
Have it on my to read list. http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15790842-life-after-life
The entire premise of this book sound like it would provide a good intellectual workout, and encourage looking at my own life differently. In hindsight, I wish I’d taken a ‘gap year’ before going to University (had never even heard of this at that time).
Bonus entry (Goodreads ‘To Read’ #98):
https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/1660925?shelf=to-read
This book sounds like a fascinating read. Would like to know more about reincarnation. If I were to do it again I would do more travelling in my younger years and experience the world.