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Title: Atonement
ISBN: 0754055124
Author:
Ian McEwan
Publicate Date: 2002-11
Publish: 2002-11
List Price: $94.95
Average Customer Rating: 4.0
Format: Audio CD
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Amazon Lowest New Price: $199.84
Amazon Lowest Used Price: $29.99
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1: Beautifully written and engrossing.
Atonement is an extremely beautiful story about how differing perceptions of a single event can affect the lives of those involved, whether negatively or positively.
This book is told in three parts and each part is from three different perspectives.
The story begins in 1935 and is told from the viewpoint of the 13 year old Briony. Briony witnesses an event involving her older sister, Cecile, and the gardener, Robbie, that her young brain does not understand. Briony decides that Cecile would never commit such an indecent act of her own accord; therefore, Robbie must have forced Cecile into the situation.
Briony later witnesses an assault on her cousin and names the lewd Robbie as the perpetrator. Briony is unwaveringly believed in her account of the tale and Robbie is imprisoned.
Part two of the book is told from the viewpoint of Robbie. He was able to bargain an early release from prison by joining the military and being shipped off to France to fight. Robbie wants nothing more than to return to England and his beloved Cecile. His account of his struggle through the French countryside in an attempt at retreat is mesmerizing. His love for Cecile and absolute hatred for the person who tore him away from her and single handedly imprisoned him instills the same passion in the reader.
The third part of the book is told, again, from Briony's perspective. Years have passed and she is now a nurse for the wounded soldiers. She feels an immense sense of guilt for her childish take on the event so many years ago. She wants nothing more than to reconcile with Cecile and Robbie. Briony is finally able to confront the ghosts of her past and make her appeal to the parties involved. The outcome of this occurrence lies within the pages of the book itself. I will say, however, that the ending...affected me.
I found this book to be elegantly written. The language was absolutely exquisite and I identified with Briony. I could hardly put the book down...I had to force myself to stop reading each night when the hands of the clock approached 1 a.m. I was entranced with every page, every word. The tale of Briony, Cecile, and Robbie will be carried with me for the rest of my days and is now considered to be one of my most beloved experiences.
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2: Atonement is a work of art!
Ian McEwan is a sensual writer. He sculpted the narrative with beautiful imagery on an English estate. I found it to be purposeful, from cover to cover. There is a reason why the novel is written in 4 parts. Once you get to the last few pages, the structure of the novel makes sense! It stands out as a significant work of art compared to contemporary literature which is mostly superficial. There are thought provoking themes that lie beneath the story lines: shame, guilt, cognitive development, truth, perception, social class, forbidden love, and more. I will savor this novel for years to come.
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3: Not a quick read.
For starters: I've never read any McEwan before, and generally do not care for modern writers, but I was absolutely floored by his prose. The writing is amazing.
His portrayal of naive, pre-teen Briony is dead-on and eerie, and, even though she is far less developed, I could identify some with Cecelia's feelings of being a bit lost and out-of-place at home after the relative independence of college.
I've read a lot of reviews that are impatient with the slow pace, especially of the first part of the novel. While I agree that it is a novel that immerses the reader fully in descriptions, I think such criticism is a little unfair. It is not a novel that should be read in anticipation of getting to a juicy ending; it's a novel that should be read with the mindset that getting there is half (most of) the enjoyment.
While I didn't especially *like*, or closely identify with, any of the characters, I thought they were reasonable (I don't like most real, live, people that much, either). I didn't think Briony was horrible so much as she was ignorant, confused, and self-centered, as are most 13-year-olds; I include myself in that, as embarrassing as it is to remember it. I thought she was an excellent characterization of an adolescent at an awkward place in life, with an incomplete view and as-yet poor understanding of the world.
The ending was complicated. No, I don't think anything she did later could actually atone for the mess Briony made. On the other hand, she was 13 and acting out of ignorance more than viciousness. And, frankly, I thought the title referred more at her attempt to atone to herself, to lay her conscience to rest, than to actually achieving any sort of atonement in the eyes of the rest of the world. I think it should not be taken too literally.
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4: Interesting But Over-Hyped
Overall, I liked the book but do consider it over-hyped. I enjoyed the first part and didn't have a problem with the same "scenes" described from different people's perspective that some people seemed to have. Actually, I thought that worked very well. I thought the characters were very well drawn out and you could understand (may not agree but understand) their motivations.
If you're expecting a twist or deep secret, don't. There isn't one. Most people will figure out what is going on and who did what right from the start.
For me, the book falls apart in the second section. It is still well written and very descriptive, perhaps overly so as some have pointed out. But I did think I got a feel for London at the beginning of WWII.
Spoiler Alert.
I don't necessarily like happy endings but the ending is unsatisfying. The man who actually molested a child ends up marrying her and evidently lives happily ever after. You don't really get much sense of where Briony has been other than that she is losing her memory. BTW, I thought this was a nice touch. Evidently she is being tortured by what she did and, short of death, this might provide her some relief. And the hero and heroine die during the war. The book ends where it started with Briony's play. Didn't see the point of that. Interestingly, the movie took this scene out completely and replaced it with Cee and Robbie frolicking on the beach near the cottage she had arranged fro them to go to after Robbie returned. I guess the movie producers thought that the ending was too much of a downer and put in that fantasy scene.
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5: Reconciliation...Really?
Websters Dictionary defines atonement as reconciliation, reparation for an offense or injury:satisfaction.
Briony Tallis is a brilliant, fanciful and immature girl of just 13 or so as this book begins. Briony Tallis is a brilliant, celebrated, accomplished writer of 77 as this story ends.
As a reader, I did not understand the title before the last chapter titled "London, 1999".
From the beginning I found this book bumping along with a sluggish story line. Filled with Briony's personality, this story was rather mishapen. I wasn't sure I liked the book. I set it down many times from lack of interest and boredom. Not familiar with the story, I vaguely remembered it had been a movie-never saw it, and thought, never WILL see it.
I hate to not finish a book, so I kept on with reading a few pages each night before bed. (hint, hint)
Somewhere, about three quarters of the way through, the book offered redemption. No pun intended.
The interesting thing is, I couldn't care about the characters. Not until Briony is eighteen and training as a nurse in WWII England does the story start to reveal the treasure.
I can't reveal the ending of this book. It is for each reader to find on his or her own. It may be different for each person, but I found this novel to have been a surprise. I didn't like this story half way through, I have ended the book with a new opinion.
Briony Tallis must atone for her life altering mistake.I like that this author did not make it so simple. Satisfaction complete.
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