Emotionally Weird by Kate Atkinson

 

This was the first book I read by Atkinson and it remains my favorite of hers. It's a delightful mix of academic satire, slapstick comedy, deep dark family secrets, and post-modern metafiction.

The last bit is apparent in its structure -- different typefaces are used to convey the multiples stories we get: Effie's trials and tribulations as a university student in her last year, the truth about Nora (Effie's mother), and Effie's first attempt at writing a mystery novel; not to mention snippets from self-important literary fiction by one of Effie's professors, a romance novel by his lecturer wife, a sci-fi story by a fellow student, and several formal logic problems for good measure.

The bulk of the story is that of Effie's, but she is repeatedly interrupted mid-narrative by her mother, who complains whenever she thinks too many characters are in a scene, or there should be more plot, or that Effie is taking too long to get to the point. The irony is that Nora herself has a story to tell, about her own and Effie's origins, but she uses the same narrative tricks Effie does to avoid telling it. Effie knows this, so she manipulates her own story (introducing certain characters at particular points, pretending to know less than she does) to get a reaction out of Nora, and eventually persuade her to come clean.

There are other games Atkinson plays. One professor's name alternates between "Watson Grant" and "Grant Watson," one page has a black square on it (a callback to Tristam Shandy), and on several occasions Effie revises her story as she is narrating it, to avoid an unpleasant event. Atkinson also makes subtle but repeated use of foreshadowing, rewarding a second reading. And throughout the book there is wordplay of every kind, and not just puns and jokes; books fly out of windows and send people to the hospital and a baby chokes on a crumpled page (words are dangerous!). A manuscript page is burnt, thereby undoing a parallel, tragic event in Effie's story. Words literally fall off pages and land on the ground, or they prise themselves off and hover like flies.

With all this going on, the novel is indisputably about the art of storytelling. Effie switches genres on a whim, Nora's frequent interruptions expound on the necessary elements of a story, and the classroom dialogue Effie depicts serves as a biting satire of literary criticism. All of it serves a higher purpose, however; what Effie wants, more than anything, is to understand how she came into the world -- her own story. Once she knows it, she can finish other stories.

Life after Life by Kate Atkinson

What would you do if you could go back in time?



Kate Atkinson's recent novel, Life after Life, is not exactly about time travel, but its protagonist nonetheless tries to prevent World War II.   Ursula is born on a cold, snowy night in 1910; what follows is her life, or rather, lives, as she lives over and over. She is stillborn. No, she dies as a toddler.  No, she survives the London bombings and the end of WWII, unless she is killed between the Wars.  Atkinson tells her story over and over, each one different in big ways or small, showing how much in life is random -- and how much is inevitable.  But Atkinson adds a supernatural element, as Ursula is increasingly subjected to a feeling of déjà vu and therefore tries to avoid the dangers she senses.

The first part of the book is particularly harrowing, as we see just how easy it is for a child to die.  But it is utterly compelling, too, and one quickly becomes obsessed with seeing each iteration of Ursula's life play out.  This is a magnificent, powerful novel, not just about fate and chance, but also, ultimately, about the horror and futility of war.  It's a cliche, but I truly did not want the book to end.  Ursula may be just one person, but she has a multitude of lives for us to explore.

Jackson Brodie Books by Kate Atkinson

Kate Atkinson is a Scottish author who has written a number of general fiction novels and short stories, and more recently a series of literate mysteries featuring the detective Jackson Brodie. I absolutely adore her older fiction, which is witty and odd and filled with wonderful characters and meta touches (Emotionally Weird has the narrator's mother interrupting the novel to complain about how it is being told; the narrator of Behind the Scenes at the Museum begins, brilliantly and funnily, at her conception), so it is with some apprehension I look at the success and skill of the Brodie books, which are much more conventional. I hope she has not abandoned her previous style entirely.

Which is not to say that her mysteries are at all a disappointment; I've enjoyed Case Histories, One Good Turn, and When Will There Be Good News quite a bit (Started Early, Took my Dog was just released in hardcover). While some aspects of the books are standard to the genre, such as tragic backgrounds, a bitchy ex-wife, adorable children and pets, lots of injuries and violence, last-page twists, and a surfeit of failed marriages, Atkinson's incisive, smart writing shines through. The plots are intricate puzzles, and Brodie does not so much solve them as stumble repeatedly (but likeably) into coincidences. The characters are fully realized and fascinating; in particular Reggie from Good News is a stand-out. Brodie and the other "white hats" are flawed but intelligent and self-aware, and their innate goodness is apparent despite their mistakes and misdeeds. Above all there is a sense of wit, and a recognition of the absurdities and ironies of life, that make the books enjoyable to read even as horrific things happen to characters.