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3.99 AVERAGE
3.99 AVERAGE
challenging
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I picked up Cloud Atlas because I was excited for a multi-storied book which weaves elements of each together. Unfortunately, and infuriatingly, each section is only vaguely referenced in the succeeding chapter (generally as some kind of fictional event). Fiction within fiction, without true connections to one another, with undeveloped storylines, irredeemable characters, and unsatisfying endings. I wanted to love this book so I could dive into David Mitchell's universes, but Cloud Atlas actually turned me off to reading his other works. Sonmi and Luisa Rey were the two storylines which held promise, I wish we'd seen more of those and less made-up language and racism.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism
Moderate: Gun violence, Sexual assault, Suicide, Violence
Minor: Racial slurs
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gun violence, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, War
Minor: Sexual content
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I wanted more Sonmi and Luisa Rey. These were the most compelling stories for me, and I wished that Mitchell had focused more on one or both of them instead of tying together so many vaguely related novellas. I want a whole novel of fabricants vs purebloods, not just little snippets! I also enjoyed Cavendish's story, but not nearly as much as Luisa's or Sonmi's.
adventurous
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I was looking forward to this book largely because of the hype. Usually, when I succumb and read a modern "literary" book, it ends up surprising me and being much better than I expected. This one, not so much.
It's a series of six vaguely connected stories, all of different genres, taking place in different time periods, ranging from the 1860s to some time in the not specific, far distant future. The stories themselves, except for the sixth, are all broken in two, so the first story begins and ends the book (and is most distant in the past). The second takes place later and is also the penultimate segment. So it goes thus 1 - 2-3-4- 5 -6-5-4-3-2-1.
Moreover, a character in each story, always the protagonist except in story 6, has a birthmark of a comet. This suggests a kind of reincarnation. Pretty cool, huh? Well, not so much, since it doesn't seem to lead very far. And on top of that, the stories are nested in strange ways, each story looks back and includes the one that precedes it in some fashion. Thus, the main character from 5 is known in a god in 6, so her story is largely a myth. But her story refers to story 4 as a movie that she sees. And story 4 refers to story 3 as a work of fiction, while story 3 includes a character from story 2, and story 2 (now a double/triple fiction) refers to the first as a forgotten manuscript found in a library). So, in some sense, they are all just fictions stacked on top of each other. It's clever, but like many things that are clever, it is unsatisfying because it doesn't point anywhere.
All this wouldn't be a problem, except the stories are pretty uniformly trite and a bit hackneyed. Mitchell dabbles in multiple genres, and this shows off a kind of virtuosity, but he has not really nailed any of the genres, and none of them are particularly convincing. It strikes me as being the kind of thing that would be really impressive to a person who doesn't particularly like genre fiction. But if you love genre fiction, as I do, I'm afraid it's all likely to fall flat.
Of the six, the only story I truly enjoyed on its own terms was the second, about the roguish composer who goes to work for a has-been, and gets involved both with his mentor/competitor's wife and daughter. This one had some depth to it and was much, much better than the faux corporate filler, or the boring dystopian sci-fi.
I might have forgiven all, except for the novella length sixth story, told in a dialect that is almost as annoying as the Welch in Wuthering Heights. This is a post apocalyptic tale set in a future Hawaii where the language has devolved in ways that are inconsistent except in how aggravating they are to read.
There are writers who write wonderfully in multiple styles. Dan Simmons does it extremely well in Hyperion, a much better book. Joyce of course does it incredibly well. This book does it... Very disappointing.
It's a series of six vaguely connected stories, all of different genres, taking place in different time periods, ranging from the 1860s to some time in the not specific, far distant future. The stories themselves, except for the sixth, are all broken in two, so the first story begins and ends the book (and is most distant in the past). The second takes place later and is also the penultimate segment. So it goes thus 1 - 2-3-4- 5 -6-5-4-3-2-1.
Moreover, a character in each story, always the protagonist except in story 6, has a birthmark of a comet. This suggests a kind of reincarnation. Pretty cool, huh? Well, not so much, since it doesn't seem to lead very far. And on top of that, the stories are nested in strange ways, each story looks back and includes the one that precedes it in some fashion. Thus, the main character from 5 is known in a god in 6, so her story is largely a myth. But her story refers to story 4 as a movie that she sees. And story 4 refers to story 3 as a work of fiction, while story 3 includes a character from story 2, and story 2 (now a double/triple fiction) refers to the first as a forgotten manuscript found in a library). So, in some sense, they are all just fictions stacked on top of each other. It's clever, but like many things that are clever, it is unsatisfying because it doesn't point anywhere.
All this wouldn't be a problem, except the stories are pretty uniformly trite and a bit hackneyed. Mitchell dabbles in multiple genres, and this shows off a kind of virtuosity, but he has not really nailed any of the genres, and none of them are particularly convincing. It strikes me as being the kind of thing that would be really impressive to a person who doesn't particularly like genre fiction. But if you love genre fiction, as I do, I'm afraid it's all likely to fall flat.
Of the six, the only story I truly enjoyed on its own terms was the second, about the roguish composer who goes to work for a has-been, and gets involved both with his mentor/competitor's wife and daughter. This one had some depth to it and was much, much better than the faux corporate filler, or the boring dystopian sci-fi.
I might have forgiven all, except for the novella length sixth story, told in a dialect that is almost as annoying as the Welch in Wuthering Heights. This is a post apocalyptic tale set in a future Hawaii where the language has devolved in ways that are inconsistent except in how aggravating they are to read.
There are writers who write wonderfully in multiple styles. Dan Simmons does it extremely well in Hyperion, a much better book. Joyce of course does it incredibly well. This book does it... Very disappointing.
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Hugely, hugely enjoyable, and so wonderfully clever that I can't help but love following all of the threads it dangles. Some sections were definitely harder work to get through than others, but all came together to make a thoroughly worthwhile story with a lot to say.
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
challenging
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I really loved some parts and trudged through others. I think it would be an interesting movie for sure. A fun, loose intertwining of multiple stories. The very different styles of the different stories was compelling.
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This is a good book, but I'm not quite sure I understood it all. The format of 6 different narratives, each being loosely related, was certainly interesting but I felt it lacked the profundity that it seemed to evoke in other reads. Each story was for the most part good, except I found the middle one about the post-apocalyptic Hawaii a bit tedious to get through, although I think that is more due to my dislike of the choice to spell out the accent rather than imply it, which also showed up in the Somni chapters. Each of the stories focused on the idea of independence and exploitation, repeated in varying contexts including colonialism, capitalism, and interestingly enough, a retirement home. The Somni and the Luisa Rey sections were my personally favorite, but at the end of the day the structure just didn't click for me.
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix