Thursday, January 22, 2015

If at first you don't succeed, try, try again

Life After Life
I read Kate Atkinson's Life After Life for a book club I just joined.  I read it as an audiobook, which I think was a mistake.  The book jumps around in time so often and references side characters and events quite often and I'm sure I missed quite a bit.  This is a book that requires flipping from one section back to previous ones and forward to new ones as Ursula basically lives a Choose Your Own Adventure.  But it's a long book and I knew I wouldn't get through it in time for the meeting unless I was reading it on my commute, and one of my new years resolutions for 2015 is to get out more and meet new people, so I really wanted to do well for my first book club, so audiobook it was!

The book is about Ursula Todd, a girl born in 1910 who then goes onto live several different versions of her life.  Once, she died at birth.  Another time, she died by drowning.  Another time, she fell off a roof.  Eventually, she manages to grow out of childhood, really coming into her own during WWII.  Sometimes, she lives in Germany during the war.  Sometimes, she lives in London.  In one life (not a spoiler as this is the very beginning of the book), she shoots Hitler but it's unclear what happens after this.  This annoyed me as the book is quite long and it would be nice to know how that life ended...


I enjoyed many things about this book.  First, the opportunity live your life several times and become a stronger, more confident person each time, is something that appeals to all of us.  One of Ursula's lives was just horrible, and it was painful to get through, and the only reason I was really able to get through the pain and abuse was because I knew that she would get to try it again and be better, but it made me sad that most people believe you only get one go at life, and that there are people out there who do not have happy outcomes.  It's nice to think that you can start again with a clean slate.  And it was so fascinating to see the way Ursula reacted to different situations.  She really is a very intelligent, pragmatic woman, and I loved spending time with her.

Second, I really enjoyed Atkinson's charming wit.  She has some great lines in this book that I can't quote because I read it on audio, but the light and playful way that Ursula talks with her father and interacts with her siblings is just wonderful.  I love authors who can write family dynamics well, and I think Atkinson was spot-on here.  The way Ursula fights with her oldest brother, Maurice, and loves her wonderful father, Hugh, and grows up with loyal siblings Pamela and Teddy - it's excellent.

Atkinson brought WWII vividly to life for me.  I don't know if that was really necessary as I am of the opinion that WWII literature already abounds out in the world, but I appreciated that Atkinson showed readers the suffering on both the English and the German sides.  I vastly preferred reading Atkinson's descriptions of the Blitz to, say, Connie Willis', because Atkinson did not focus so much of her time on telling us how difficult transportation was.

I think the only reason this book wasn't a HUGE success for me is because I read it on audiobook and therefore had some trouble with the timelines and what fit where and what was going on, especially towards the ends, when I got confused about which turning-off point turned Ursula in one direction vs another.  I highly recommend reading this book in a physical form instead of in an audiobook one.

Question for people who have read the book before:  Was anyone else extremely disappointed that there was never a life in which Ursula called up the guy sitting next to her on the train who said she was good at crosswords and wanted to give her a job?  I kept hoping that she would go work at Bletchley Park with those awesome women from The Bletchley Circle or, better yet, Alan Turing.

20 comments:

  1. I'm so glad I'm not the only one who isn't big on WW2 settings, especially English ones.

    I read this as an audiobook too and agree it would have been fun to be able to flip through the pages. I loved Ursula and her family and the concept of the book, but I would have loved it even more if it was focused around a different time period.

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    1. I just wrote a very long, impassioned comment here but have decided to take it to email :-) Check your inbox soon!

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  2. It sounds like this would be better taken in via print than audio. I really want to read this one. I read another of the author's books years ago and loved it.

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    1. Seems like everyone likes the Museum book! I'll have to check it out.

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  3. Like Wendy, I read another of this author's books years ago - something about a museum. I remember her humor - very quirky. I've been meaning to read this one and am glad to know that reading it rather than listening would be best. I can see that it would be nice to refer back. And, I think there is going to be a sequel to this book, published later this year. Think I read that somewhere. Anyway, good for you for getting out and attending a book group. How did that go?

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    1. Yes, I think it's technically a companion, as it is set during the same time period, but it features one of my favorite characters, so that should be good!

      And book club is on Monday - I'll let you know!

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  4. I agree that there is too much WW2 literature out there, but I'm still really excited to try this one. Glad that you finished it with a positive note :)

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    1. Yes, if you must read WW2 literature, it might as well be good :-)

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  5. I would def read it instead of listening

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  6. I can definitely see how this would be a frustrating book on audio, but I'm glad you ended up enjoying it in the end. I love Atkinson's writing--her humor is just right up my alley. You should try Behind the Scenes at the Museum next because it has the same wit (more of it, actually) and it's not set exclusively in WWII. (In fact, if I remember correctly, very little of the story is set during WWII.) The story isn't all that new and different, but the narrator's voice is extremely engaging.

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    1. Good to know! I may steer clear for a bit as I think the next book club selection is ALSO set during WW2 (seriously, I hope this is not a book club trend), but I'll definitely have Atkinson on my radar going forward.

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  7. I read it as an e-book and I really liked it! I didn't expect to, to be honest. I am not sure it would work in audio for me. Maybe as a reread...

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    1. Oh, interesting! I feel like it wouldn't work in e-book for me, either, due to the difficulty of thumbing through the pages. But glad to hear it did work well.

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  8. This book gave me heartburn. I think Atkinson is very talented, but I was so put out at the end. lol

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  9. Well, it appears I'm the only one who actually enjoyed the experience of the audiobook - and I definitely did. I think I found it comforting to return to that familiar beginning each time, with each new life - like a little, internal "Whew" every time it rolled around again. And no, you are not the only one who wished Mr. Crossword Man would have shown up again.

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  10. I can see why this would be a difficult audiobook experience. I loved being able to flip back and forth, remind myself of certain connections, and compare her lives after the most minute change. It added so much for me to have that availability to do so. I will be curious what your book club thought of it!

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  11. Elizabeth - I listened to this one as an audio too, and really really enjoyed it. The audio format worked for me and I thought the narrator did a brilliant job. I think in my case, I would have had such a hard time reading through Ursula's Belgravia life that I'd have put it down and not picked it up again - with audio I have more sticking power.

    Aarti, I agree with you on the family dynamics. That was definitely one of my favourite parts of the entire book. The relationships there were varied and complex and the fact that we spent so much time with Ursula through different lives meant that we got to see those dynamics change and vary slightly here and there - though perhaps not as much as I would have liked. :)

    Yeah, I was pretty sad that we didn't see more of the crossword guy. :) But I also saw that, especially with the ending, as an unexplored possibility that probably was explored, sometime, in some way...

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  12. I can see how listening to this book would be confusing. I remember jotting down a sentence about each life while I was reading so I could keep track of them all, but I absolutely loved the book. I don't remember the crossword guy, though.

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  13. I can't remember that part, so I guess it didn't disappoint me, but to see another side of the war via a different job would've been great.

    The good news, I think it's news rather than rumour, is there's a sequel on it's way, so hopefully the ending will be cleared up. That was a bit frustrating.

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