I feel like I've got reviews coming out of my ears at the moment but THIS, this is my favourite book of May, just squeezed in at the end!!! Please excuse me while I run around outside urging everyone to read this book (not really, I'd never do something as exuberant as that).
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Have you ever wondered how the repercussions of one tiny act done differently could impact the course of your entire life? Life After Life explores the fantastic possibility of having a destiny, of being given a second, third, fourth, sixteenth chance to live out the life you were fated to have. There are so many different possibilities all hinging on seemingly inconsequential events and so many 'what ifs' I have NEVER read anything like this before, so unique in its concept as well as so beautifully, intimately written! My mind is honestly boggled.
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Kate Atkinson is just a wonderful author! Ursula is a brilliant creation, as is her entire complex network of family, friends, acquaintances, each bringing something unique to the tableau of British life spanning over the two World Wars. It has so many layers and overlapping, repeating narratives so I can see why it might be tedious for some people, but for me personally this structure was a huge YES! I was wary about historical fiction focussing on war, but Life After Life perfectly (and heartbreakingly) captures the sheer atrocity of war as well as the resilience of human spirit by focussing more on the day to day of an average citizen than the war on a large scale.
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Atkinson seamlessly weaves heartfelt, amusing, tragic, dark storylines together into a masterpiece; it's so rich I can tell I'll be thinking about it for a long time to come!