The stories in Kate Atkinson's newest work of fiction confirm her abundant gifts: equal parts comedy, tragedy, and myth, they inevitably lead to ut...
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May 23, 2008
W.B.
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THE BODY SPIRITUAL: A REVIEW OF KATE ATKINSON'S NOT THE END OF THE WORLD
The title of Atkinson's collection of short stories is decidedly ironic, since for many of the characters who populate these stories it is indeed "the end of the world." Many of them die, and others undergo metamorphoses; these latter characters are often transported to new, otherworldly modes of existence.
One senses Atkinson wanted to effect a transposition of Ovid's masterful work bearing More...
The title of Atkinson's collection of short stories is decidedly ironic, since for many of the characters who populate these stories it is indeed "the end of the world." Many of them die, and others undergo metamorphoses; these latter characters are often transported to new, otherworldly modes of existence.
One senses Atkinson wanted to effect a transposition of Ovid's masterful work bearing More...
Nov 08, 2011
Lainie
rated it: 
I always enjoy Kate Atkinson's writing, and these stories are no exception. She smoothly weaves surreal/magical realist elements into her stories of ordinary people in everyday settings. If you have an affection for classical mythology, you will enjoy her use of gods, goddesses, and mythological events to add a layer of metaphor and magic to the experiences of her contemporary characters. If you are a fan of the Jackson Brodie detective novels, don't expect the same stuff here. These are distinc
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Jan 14, 2012
Nancy
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Mildly amusing, but a little too quirky for me, I guess. Several of the stories were more than a little surreal, which was a bit distracting, as was the little conceit of referring to some of characters in different stories which kept me flipping to try and recall "was he in a previous story, which one?" I am sure that there was some deeper message to the structure, but I wasn't getting it. I tend not to pick books because they are "trendy" or "stylish" as those
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Feb 03, 2011
Peggy
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Once you become a Kate Atkinson fan the entire world looks different - much creepier. As a devoted Jackson Brodie follower I was delighted to find some of her work I hadn't read while counting the days until the April release of her next book. I've never read her stories, which I'm afraid are now going to be forever part of my psyche in the same way as Roald Dahl's adult stories. Atkinson is a genius, but she's also gruesome at times. Every story was engrossing and usually rather creepy. I'm tem
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Aug 18, 2010
Beth
rated it: 
I've read 3 of Atkinson's "Jackson Brodie" novels, and loved all of them -- but I didn't so much love this one :( And, I can't even blame the author -- her writing is still great. I just don't like short stories, but I thought I would try this anyway. However, I just couldn't enjoy this book. When I read a book, I really need more character and story development than short stories can offer. With this collection of short stories, I found myself not caring enough about any of these cha
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Jul 01, 2010
Ally
rated it: 
I really enjoyed the intelligent but kooky nature of this book. It's a 5 star read for me.
I don't think I understood enough of the references to ancient Greek/Roman mythology so I'm off to do some research and reading. I also must read more of Atkinson's work as I thought her writing style was really engaging. - It speaks volumes that I scored this book 5/5 when I dislike dystopian or 'magical/fantasy' fiction in general. I think Atkinson approached her themes in a way that was entir More...
I don't think I understood enough of the references to ancient Greek/Roman mythology so I'm off to do some research and reading. I also must read more of Atkinson's work as I thought her writing style was really engaging. - It speaks volumes that I scored this book 5/5 when I dislike dystopian or 'magical/fantasy' fiction in general. I think Atkinson approached her themes in a way that was entir More...
Jan 13, 2009
Patty
rated it:
This was a very strange book. The first story seemed to be set in a post-apocalyptic world although it was hard to tell what exactly had happened. Most of the other stories were set in the present day. However, there were odd bits in almost every story.
I am not sure who I would recommend this book to. I like it and I found myself thinking about the stories after I had finished them. But the average person I know does not read short stories AND they probably would find the odd bits More...
I am not sure who I would recommend this book to. I like it and I found myself thinking about the stories after I had finished them. But the average person I know does not read short stories AND they probably would find the odd bits More...
Aug 17, 2011
Josie
rated it:
I assumed the stories would all be completely separate, so I was surprised to discover links between them. I loved experiencing a sense of recognition when minor characters from one story got their chance to shine in a later tale. I liked the way it tied the whole book together, as did the recurring themes of Greek mythology, death, the fictional soap Green Acres, Buffy, and the mysterious wolfkin. My favourite tales were probably Unseen Translation and The Cat Lover. I thought the first and
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Oct 28, 2010
Anita
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I really like Kate Atkinson. I enjoyed her Behind the Scenes at the Museum, and I absolutely love her Jackson Brodie series. (I'm waiting impatiently for the fourth book in the series, which is already out in the UK but doesn't come out here in the US until March of 2011!)
This collection of short stories is closer in tone to Behind the Scenes: quirky, inventive, odd, and funny. The book is framed by the first and last stories, which follow two characters as the world ends and ar More...
This collection of short stories is closer in tone to Behind the Scenes: quirky, inventive, odd, and funny. The book is framed by the first and last stories, which follow two characters as the world ends and ar More...
Jul 31, 2009
Marsia
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These short stories delighted me so much that, before I'd even finished reading them, I went out in search of more books by Kate Atkinson. I've now read all her novels as well as this book of stories and have pressed them all upon my book-reading friends. NOT THE END OF THE WORLD is a good introduction to this exceptionally readable, humorous, yet seriously literary author. It includes stories that at first seem unrelated, but as one progresses through the collection, themes emerge, and one begi
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Aug 17, 2009
Laura
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I might not have been in the right frame of mind when I read this... I love Atkinson. The way she winds her characters together is phenomenal. But I found this book confusing and was waiting for a "pop" at the end... that never came. I could be too literal, or, like I said, it could have just been my frame of mind. The connections were still good, but there was a lot of mythology and suspending belief and I don't do well with either unless I'm well prepared (like with Jasper Fforde's b
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Jul 28, 2011
Derek
rated it:
These stories are loosely linked by a common character here and there, apart from the two set in an unspecified apocalyptic future which bookend the collection. Short stories tend to irritate me, so I suppose the fact that I read all of these is a positive review in itself.... But I found the references to myths and legends pretentious, as were the quotations from Ovid etc, and the overwhelming sense of triteness was hard to escape. Seemed like a failed novel to me (and with good reason) some pa
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Dec 17, 2009
Rebecca
rated it:
A bad book. What a disappointment.
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Aug 09, 2011
Kirsty
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Ostensibly this is a collection of short stories but I'd advise doing what I did: start at the beginning and read them through like they're a book. Because they are, sort of. Very loose and not quite plotted but they work well in order. I'm torn between saying that they are individually nonsense and collectively make sense, or individually quite sensible and collectively quite nonsensical, so I'll just say both and add that I really enjoy reading Kate Atkinson's stuff and hope that there's lots
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Sep 21, 2011
Leslie
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Not her usual mystery/thriller, this book is a series of quirky and v. interesting short stories, set in imaginary futures or parallel universes. I was particularly charmed by the title story, which is about a friendship between two upper middle class women in large metroplopitan city (London? Edinborough?) as the world and society breaks down around them, as they oblviously continue to do things like acquire clothes on sale, got to parties, etc. Bizarre, funny, sharply written, entertaini More...
Apr 01, 2011
kates
rated it:
This is quirky. I'm not sure how it ended up on my list, but it sat in my "to read" for a long time so when I saw it on sale at Powell's, I had to finally buy it.
It's a collection of short stories. The characters are shared, but the plot lines are not necessarily. Make of that what you will.
There are quite a few Buffy references in the stories. In one moment, a narrator ponders the Buffy/Spike relationship for a whole paragraph.
Even though I'm More...
It's a collection of short stories. The characters are shared, but the plot lines are not necessarily. Make of that what you will.
There are quite a few Buffy references in the stories. In one moment, a narrator ponders the Buffy/Spike relationship for a whole paragraph.
Even though I'm More...
Aug 10, 2011
Glenn
rated it:
I "read" this book twice as an audio book, because I have a long commute. It is a collection of short stories and they are very bizarre, but awfully fun. Some of the stories are loosely connected and I won't say any more, because you might read/listen and ponder if there's any meaning to the connections. I think the audio version would probably be better than the book, because (a) the reader has an ideal English accent and (b) there are lots of really fancy words that just sound so goo
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Jul 24, 2011
Jenny
rated it:
Ever since I read Emotionally Weird, I have been trying to find something Atkinson has written that was as charming or inventive. The stories come close in certain moments, but overall they were just.. sufficient. I appreciate the way they are tied together through characters that reappear, even with shared events. My favorite story was probably about the 8 year old and his nanny.
Jan 22, 2012
Kestrell
rated it:
This was just what I was looking for, a collection of stories which use myt to explore the modern world. Inspired by Ovid's _Metamorphoses_, most of the stories focus on the interior lives of women and children, with all of the characters being loosely connected. The images of metamorphosis are delightfully whimsical, reminding me a bit of Joan Aiken and Kelly Link, althought he use of the fantastic is not as pronounced as in the works of those two writers.
Jul 22, 2011
Emily
rated it:
A quick short story anthology. I think I bought this book when Barnes & Noble went out of business downtown. It's been sitting on my bookshelf ever since. Then I took a vacation and wanted to take real books on the plane, and this was one of them. There were a few stories that stuck with me. Bothered me. That I'll think about at various times in my life. There was one story in the middle of the book that I loved. Glad to have read it. Won't read it again.
Dec 12, 2008
Jen
rated it:
Okay, I'm not a writer, but this book just seemed like some sort of practice exercise you would do for a class: Take all the random characters that have been bouncing around in your head but you haven't been able to work into a novel. Write them into some random scenes. Give a character from each short story a cameo in a following story. For further cohesiveness, make sure each story references Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and add a boring framing story at the beginning/end.
That s More...
That s More...
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Jan 17, 2009
David
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An engaging novel in stories, or perhaps novel in fables is more apt, since most of these tales let the metaphor out of the bag. Characters and pop culture references interlock across the book—Buffy the Vampire Slayer, a notorious actress named Romney. And Atkinson nods to her comic predecessors as well, with characters variously named Fielding, Addison, Fletcher, and Meredith.
I marked "The Cat Lover" and "The Bodies Vest" with stars in my table of contents. In More...
I marked "The Cat Lover" and "The Bodies Vest" with stars in my table of contents. In More...
Jul 08, 2011
Kay
rated it:
another no Brody from Kate Atkinson. Instead, an eerie series of short stories that sometimes seem to be about the same people and other times just feel connected. Story one, two girls wa der through a department store stocked with every imaginable item. Last story, same girls in a much different situation. In between, stories of friends,families and unrelated people that somehow fit in.
less humor, more irony, more tragedy. Wonderful read.
less humor, more irony, more tragedy. Wonderful read.
Jul 10, 2009
Kera
rated it:
My least favorite of this - all the usual smart and funny Atkinson writing, but halfway through the book I thought maybe I was reading short stories and not a novel because the characters really don't ever come together like the description claims. So while the writing was good, I kept waiting for it all to start make sense. Had I gone into it thinking it was separate stories, my expectations would have been different.
Jan 04, 2012
Emily
rated it:
At times I wasn't sure about this book, but by the end I was charmed. Some stories are better than others, and some are just beautiful and intriguing. Overall the stories are sometimes overly linked, but not in a cheesy or forced way. The end brings meaning to the connections. I feel like it will be a book I might go back to in 5 or 10 years and remember great details and be charmed again.
Sep 21, 2009
Allen
rated it:
Unusually sophisticated retelling of the story of Noah's ark, told partially from the point of view of the younger sister of Shem, Japheth, and Ham, but also from the wives of Noah's sons, and even the animals on board. Short but satisfying, taking the Biblical story quite literally, but questioning the morality of both God's and Noah's actions.
Sep 06, 2009
Kellyann
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
To view it, click here
Sep 02, 2009
Patsy
rated it:
nearly tossed the book out of the window at first... but after pushing on the characters in the individual stories started connecting and then the book opened up. the impossible parts, like when the dead mom comes back, was a bit much but it made sense in the end. am looking forward for reading her other stories.
favorite word:
glaikit - senseless, foolish, (of woman) giddy, flighty
favorite word:
glaikit - senseless, foolish, (of woman) giddy, flighty
Aug 19, 2007
Jessica
rated it:
This accomplished collection of intertwined short stories weaves tales of mothers and children, friends, and lovers with myth, both classical and contemporary (knowledge of Buffy the Vampire Slayer is as illuminating as knowledge of Demeter and Persephone). A marginal figure in one story will come back at the center of another, and while the setting is more or less the last 40 years in Scotland and England, there are futuristic intimations that all is not as it seems. One set of characters will
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Feb 12, 2011
Keranjit
rated it:
A great set of short stories, I'm not usually a fan of short stories. What I like most about this book is the way the stories connect through characters and themes. As always Kate Atkinson delivers a bizarre, clever and well thought out story... stories which make you feel an array of emotions so be prepared!
