Reviews

Brilliant! Nine interconnected stories that are basically happening at the same time. The narrative begins in Okinawa, then treks eastwards, all the way to Ireland. We jump to a different character's mind in each new chapter (much like the disembodied spirit from the Mongolia story), showing how the actions of one person affect the world of the next. Cause and effect. Chance vs fate.

David Mitchell delves headfirst into human nature and leaves you spellbound.

"We're all ghostwriters, my boy. And it's not just our memories. Our actions, too. We all think we're in control of our own lives, but really they're pre-ghostwritten by forces around us."
-- Timothy Cavendish

josemclr's review against another edition

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4.0

ACABO DE TERMINAR MI PRIMER LIBRO DEL AÑO !!! agh, soy tan literato, no me soporto.

Bueno, respecto al libro, lo disfruté más que la primera vez, pero me atasqué horrible en el capítulo de Clear Island, igual estuvo interesante, no sé porqué lo sufrí tanto. Eso sí, le sigo sin entender al final, al rato busco una explicación en Google.

bethanharcourt's review against another edition

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challenging mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.75

I finished this book without fully understanding the purpose of it. I recognise this is an earlier book that the bone clocks and I personally felt that showed as the plot was not as strong. There were still that interconnectedness between stories but less so. It did feel more like I was reading several short stories, and just waiting to see how it all matched up. And honestly I'm still waiting. I liked to the tea shop story and Mo's story, but I wish there had been more of a link between these stories, and more of a final event linking them.

kellemcsweeney's review against another edition

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Pretentious, and not compelling writing or characters. I've lived in Japan for 18 years, and visited the other countries he's mentioned, and he's captured it very much as an outsider/gaijin trying to sound cool about exotic locales and cultures. I gave it 200 pages... and that was enough. And I often read 1000 page books. I knew if it wasn't capturing me by then, it was too late. I cut my losses

jess_mango's review against another edition

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5.0

A great, unique read in the form of a series of 10 interconnected stories. Each of the stories is told by a different narrator and characters or events from one story make cameo appearances in other stories. In a way it reminded me of another one of my favorite books, Italo Calvino's "If on a Winter's Night a Traveler."

Very creative and well-written!

bethgarner's review against another edition

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challenging mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

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