You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.99 AVERAGE
3.99 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
adventurous
challenging
medium-paced
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
adventurous
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I heard about this book because of the movie coming out, and I'm glad I was able to read it before the theatrical release. I found some of the language tedious in both the ewig-sea story, and moreso in the post-apocalpytic story. I just find it annoying to read "as they were speaking" which largely consists of confusing grammar and spelling. Past that, the stories were individually addicting, and the mix of the different times kept me interested. In general the ties between the different storylines were relatively minimal (unless I missed something big) but it was enough to make me happy. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and I will give the movie a chance (although I have no idea how they will present such an epic in a couple hours on the screen).
Reread April 2025: Such a ballsy project of a novel that only impresses more upon a second time through.
Listen, I realize I’m almost 20 years late to the party. But this book’s excellence defies my grasping attempts to describe it. A more “LiTeRaRy” man’s Hyperion by Dan Simmons on HGH. One of the most ambitious things I’ve read
Listen, I realize I’m almost 20 years late to the party. But this book’s excellence defies my grasping attempts to describe it. A more “LiTeRaRy” man’s Hyperion by Dan Simmons on HGH. One of the most ambitious things I’ve read
Overhyped. Excellent storytelling - I found each of these stories completely engrossing and found it hard to stop reading long enough to get off the bus or make dinner. And yet, I was hoping for a little more magic in the way they knit together. Each story feels very perfect and self-contained. I wish that they touched and influenced each other more than they do.
Still, I really enjoyed reading this and I may read it again.
Still, I really enjoyed reading this and I may read it again.
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
My best advice for reading this book: Get through the first 40 pages, because after you do you will throughly enjoy it. Once I got to the second 'movement' of the sextet and the narrators changed, I really started to get into the story line. While six narrators tell their stories in completely different time periods, styles, and voice, Mitchell does a beautiful job of connecting the 6 stories without it seeming hoke-y. I most enjoyed the Luisa Rey and Son-Mi-451, but that could just be my love of female protagonists.
I was coming into reading this book with the mindset that it would be a sort edgy sci-fi novel written with six different narrators, but it was so much more than that. Cloud Atlas is evocative and seamlessly written in way that I could only adequately compare it's structure to a perfectly balanced symphony. Read this book and you'll understand exactly what I mean.
I was coming into reading this book with the mindset that it would be a sort edgy sci-fi novel written with six different narrators, but it was so much more than that. Cloud Atlas is evocative and seamlessly written in way that I could only adequately compare it's structure to a perfectly balanced symphony. Read this book and you'll understand exactly what I mean.
Fascinating! Not so easy to get into, but I have not stopped thinking about it.