A God in Ruins: A Novel (Todd Family)
"He had been reconciled to death during the war and then suddenly the war was over and there was a next day and a next day. Part of him never adjusted to having a future."
Kate Atkinson's dazzling Life After Life explored the possibility of infinite chances and the power of choices, following Ursula Todd as she lived through the turbulent events of the last century over and over again. A God in Ruins tells the dramatic story of the 20th Century through Ursula's beloved younger brother Teddy -- would-be poet, heroic pilot, husband, father, and grandfather -- as he navigates the perils and progress of a rapidly changing world.
After all that Teddy endures in battle, his greatest challenge is living in a future he never expected to have. An ingenious and moving exploration of one ordinary man's path through extraordinary times, A God in Ruins proves once again that Kate Atkinson is one of the finest novelists of our age.
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Community Reviews
A God In Ruins by Kate Atkinson
453 pages
What’s it about?
Kate Atkinson wrote "Life After Life" in 2013. I think I was one of the only people I know that did NOT love that novel. Ms. Atkinson uses the same characters in this book, but her main focus shifts to Ursula's brother Teddy. The novel skips back and forth in time and viewpoints but at least we do not replay the same day over and over!
What did I think?
By page 200 I was not feeling too optimistic about this book. The book skipped around in time and viewpoint so much that I often just tired of it. Once again being stuck on a plane with hours to kill had it's reward. I thoroughly enjoyed the second half of the novel! Teddy may be one of my favorite fictional characters in the last year- and let's not even get started on what I thought of Viola! Like all good books I will miss this cast of characters now that I am done reading. No one is more surprised about this than I!
Should you read it?
If you liked "Life After Life" then do not miss this book! If you did not like the earlier book then you may initially struggle with this book as well. I would encourage you to keep at it. It has so much to say about war, memory, history, fiction, and our own mortality. I am dying to talk about it with someone. A sure sign of a good book!
Quote-
"They were all happy, this much at least he was sure of. Later on he realized it was never as simple as that. Happiness, like life itself, was as fragile as a bird's heartbeat, as fleeting as the bluebells in the wood, but while it lasted, Fox Corner was an Arcadian dream."
If you liked this try-
Life After Life by Kate Atkinson
All My Puny Sorrows by Miriam Toews
Our Souls at Night by Kent Haruf
A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara
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