A God in Ruins by Kate AtkinsonMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Like so many people recently, I’ve succumbed to a viral infection, with fatigue, a nasty sore throat, and some breathing difficulty. The upside is that I had recently downloaded the audiobook of Kate Atkinson’s, A God in Ruins, so I’ve been able to distract myself from the discomfort and immerse my brain in the world of Teddy Todd and his family.
I must confess that it took me a while to get into it. I found the jump shifts in time, place and point of view confusing, and the book didn’t seem to have a lot of forward momentum initially. It’s likely that I would have got into the groove of it sooner if I had been reading instead of listening to it, and hadn’t been sick, falling asleep and having to rewind so often. But I persevered because the characters were unusual and interesting, and I’d heard such good things about Atkinson as a writer. I’m so glad I did.
Most of the book is told from the point of view of either Teddy (sometimes as a child, other times as a young soldier flying bombing missions over Germany, and still others as a man in a less-than-perfect but not awful marriage), or his daughter, Viola (mostly as an adult, and as an truly awful mother). Teddy ultimately assumes guardianship of Viola’s children, and we see the impact of their dysfunctional parents and loving grandfather on their lives.
Through the second half of the book the momentum builds steadily, up to the shocking twist ending, which leaves you rethinking everything you’ve read. Brilliantly done!
Now I will go back and read her other books, starting with Life After Life, which has many of the same characters and also plays with traditional novel formats. Time for another cup of tea, and, if necessary, a few more sore-throat, bed-ridden days.
View all my reviews
