Reagan Arthur Books

Life After Life

Title: Life After Life
Author: Kate Atkinson
Genre: Fiction
Published: April 2013 – Reagan Arthur Books (544 pages)
Source: Review copy from the publisher

Synopsis (publisher): What if you could live again and again, until you got it right?

On a cold and snowy night in 1910, Ursula Todd is born to an English banker and his wife. She dies before she can draw her first breath. On that same cold and snowy night, Ursula Todd is born, lets out a lusty wail, and embarks upon a life that will be, to say the least, unusual. For as she grows, she also dies, repeatedly, in a variety of ways, while the young century marches on towards its second cataclysmic world war.

Does Ursula’s apparently infinite number of lives give her the power to save the world from its inevitable destiny? And if she can — will she?

My take: What a unique story! It’s the first of Kate Atkinson’s novels I’ve read and after a bit of a sluggish start I really liked it. Sluggish because I started reading and then life got busy for me. It took me about a week to read the first 200 pages. So I recommend reading this book in as few chunks of time as possible. I think that would have helped me get into the rhythm of the story more quickly.

I really don’t want to say much about the plot because the synopsis tells enough. Kate Atkinson’s writing is lovely. With each lifetime another layer of Ursula’s story was added. And with each lifetime I cared more about Ursula. There were a couple of times in the second half of the book that I found myself in tears quite unexpectedly. That just doesn’t happen to me very often.

Atkinson brings to life London during the blitz as well as Germany in the time leading up to WWII. We see it all through Ursula’s eyes and feel the powerful emotions felt by many characters.

So, if you’re up for a memorable novel I think you might like Life After Life. It’s filled with good characters, settings, and a compelling era. It would be a fabulous book club selection. There are definite philosophical points to discuss. I know that Ursula, Hugh, Teddy and all the others will stay with me for a long time.

My thanks to Reagan Arthur for sending me the book.

Title: 13 rue Thérèse: a novel

Author: Elena Mauli Shapiro

Genre: Fiction

About: (pub. synopsis) American academic Trevor Stratton discovers a box full of artifacts from World War I as he settles into his new office in Paris. The pictures, letters, and objects in the box relate to the life of Louise Brunet, a feisty, charming Frenchwoman who lived through both World Wars.
As Trevor examines and documents the relics the box offers up, he begins to imagine the story of Louise Brunet’s life: her love for a cousin who died in the war, her marriage to a man who works for her father, and her attraction to a neighbor in her building at 13 rue Thérèse. The more time he spends with the objects though, the truer his imaginings of Louise’s life become, and the more he notices another alluring Frenchwoman: Josianne, his clerk, who planted the box in his office in the first place, and with whom he finds he is falling in love.

My thoughts: Imagine starting a new job in a new country and you discover a box of someone’s mementos in your new office. That’s what happens to Trevor Stratton. Something interesting occurs as he looks at each item: he seems to become part of the story of that item. I wish I’d read the book with a group because I’d like to get other interpretations.

Elena Mauli Shapiro’s novel is different from any I’ve ever read. Through her characters we experience the horror of war and the life of one interesting young woman. Scattered throughout the book are photos that depict the contents of the box. The story grows as Trevor examines each object. It is inventive, sensual, emotional and provocative.

This is a tough book for me to review as it is so unique but I will say I read it a few weeks ago and still think about it.

Recommend: Yes, especially if you’re looking for a different kind of novel. Check out the website at the link below.

Source: Reagan Arthur Books

You can read more about 13 rue Thérèse here