Station Eleven - optional read - discussion!

[Cordelia]

For those who are reading Station Eleven too!

[Katherine]

Yes, please!! This is the book I have and has been on my list for a while...

[Ninitha (Niko)]

I just got my hands on it. Will be starting soon!

[Gabby]

It's on its way, I'm very excited to get to discuss it ☺️

[Lindsay]

I am getting my copy today, woohoo!

[Gabby]

I've read nearly half of the book and so far I like it. At first I didn't really get the connections between characters and I was confused because I thought there was some other symbolism involved (e.g. The dog) but it's all starting to click into place now. The only thing that bothers me is I much prefer the pre-collapse storyline and I'm curious to know if I'm the only person who thinks this.

[Elsa]

Pre- collapse was good but I prefer the after the collapse and how everything is fitting in place (e.g. The dog, Station Eleven, the paperweight). At first I was like why do we need to know about a paperweight or the name of the dog but she works it in the story so well. I feel like I found something super secret when I connect the dots.

LOL

[Gabby]

Elsa wrote: "Pre- collapse was good but I prefer the after the collapse and how everything is fitting in place (e.g. The dog, Station Eleven, the paperweight). At first I was like why do we need to know about a..."

I finished it this morning and actually like how the two fit together. I think I was quite attached to Miranda and liked how everything kind of resonates from her role in events even though she isn't directly related to the flu outbreak or the collapse. I think the book had a lot to say about relationships and regret and it's clever how Mandel writes about the collapse of society and the before and after without this actually being at the core. It just reminds you that even with the complete destruction of a civilisation, the world is an awfully small place.

[Annemette]

I usually stay away from dystopian novels, I find them way to scary! (ghost stories and crime doesn't have the same effect, I don't mind those) but, even though I can hear my mind go 'what if...it could happen..', I am really enjoying the book. I think it is very well written and the way the stories fit together, is brilliant- I, too, feel like I discover a secret when realising why/how/who! I am 2/3rds through the book and still need some answers

[Annemette]

I finished a few days ago and loved it. (Cried a few times and just wanted to hug my little son and really want to read something happy next time, but for a post apocalyptic book, I guess that's a good thing) how about you?

[Robin P]

I am another who generally avoids post-apocalyptic books because they are so grim. Although there are some scary things in this story, overall there is a lot about people working together and helping each other. There's also a theme of the arts - the importance of the comic book, and the troupe that brings Shakespeare and music to the people, "because survival is insufficient". I would say this is a very humanist book in that humans are in charge of their own fate and work to build a better world. There is nothing supernatural about it. Apparently the author didn't feel it should be classified as sci-fi because there is no futuristic technology. I was skeptical about whether I would like it but read it for a different book group and it was one of my favorite reads all year.

[Ninitha (Niko)]

I'm having such a hard time getting through this book. I'm about a hundred pages in and I am just not hooked. Been reading it since early October and still only barely into the book. Something else grabs my attention and off to the back this goes.

[Annemette]

Malobee wrote: "Annemette wrote: "I finished a few days ago and loved it. (Cried a few times and just wanted to hug my little son and really want to read something happy next time, but for a post apocalyptic book,..."

I, too, spend a lot of time trying to understand why no one 'just' started doing normal stuff like making electricity, shoes or medicine, but I think you are so right, I cannot imagine I woukd be able to function on a more than completely basic level if everything and everyone I knew was gone..

[Charlotte]

I loved it - as a few of you have mentioned already, for the focus on the human impact, and of course the consistent emphasis on the arts and their enduring importance, even under such dire circumstances.

A key thing for me is that the surviving characters aren't all in possession of really useful survival-orientated skills - which I think is realistic, given the relatively small number that survived. If I had survived it, I wouldn't be able to make any normal things such as electricity or medicine, even knowing what I do about them, as my skills are in completely different areas. I love how that is reflected in it.

[Elsa]

Finished it a while back. I'm one of those that like the post apocalyptic stories. Gets you thinking....are we ready for something like that and what can I do be prepared just a little.

I really enjoyed the story, no tears shed for me on this one, there was a few sad moments but tears refused to fall.

[Cordelia]

Elsa wrote: "Finished it a while back. I'm one of those that like the post apocalyptic stories. Gets you thinking....are we ready for something like that and what can I do be prepared just a little.

I really ..."I love that. "tears refused to fall"