The novel spans the period 1910-1967 and Ursula’s third person narrative brings the major events of those years to life with extraordinary vividness. What if you had the chance to live your life again and again, until you finally got it right?Īs you might imagine, this makes it virtually impossible to attempt a synopsis of the story (unlike ruining it, which would be easy), so I’m going to concentrate on other interesting aspects of which there are many, especially for anyone who writes fiction.
#LIFE AFTER LIFE BOOK KATE ATKINSON FREE#
The structure works well as a means to explore ideas which are the subject of popular fascination in both fiction and film (think Sliding Doors and Groundhog Day): the role of fate and free will in determining the course of a life, and the inevitable What If? question: This is the template for a pattern of alternative outcomes (sometimes more than two) repeated throughout the book. In one, the baby dies and in the other, she lives. The premise of Life After Life is a complex if not totally unfamiliar one: as the novel opens in February 1910 we are presented with two different accounts of protagonist Ursula Todd’s birth during a snowstorm. Any disappointment felt by fans of Brodie at his absence is likely to be shortlived if they pick up the author’s latest offering.
#LIFE AFTER LIFE BOOK KATE ATKINSON SERIES#
Life After Life marks a return to the standalone novel following the four-part series featuring police inspector turned private detective Jackson Brodie. Since her debut Behind the Scenes at the Museum won the Whitbread (now Costa) Book of the Year in 1995 she has consistently delivered a new book almost every two years. Unlike many other writers of that rank, she doesn’t subject her fans to long waits between titles. Kate Atkinson is one of Britain’s foremost literary novelists writing today – of this there is no doubt.