To Atone or Not To Atone? McEwan's Two-Sided Tale

Atonement

Book review by Margaret

Ian McEwan

Rating: 8/10

Date read: 8 June to 11 June

Atonement is a 2001 British metafiction novel which takes place in three settings: 1935 England, Second World War England and France, and 1999 England. It follows the story of Briony Tallis, a thirteen-year-old, upper-class girl whose innocent mistake one summer night ruins the lives of her elder sister, Cecelia, and Cecelia’s childhood friend and lover, Robbie Turner. Briony spends the rest of her life trying to atone for her mistake, as the effects of it spread throughout her family. Atonement is centred around themes such as the power of storytelling, the nature of perspective, regret and guilt, and childhood versus adulthood (Sparknotes).

In short, I was enthralled by the first half and utterly bored by the second. I thought the writing was excellent; the setting was richly vivid, the characters deep and unique, and the story (at least the first part) absolutely gripping. Yet I hate war stories, and Atonement, though disguised, turned into just that. Watching Robbie crawl through war-torn France was a poor sequel to the compelling mystery and frustration of Part One. The book did redeem itself slightly towards the end, with a bittersweet and sentimental resolution which I thought particularly clever.

I certainly enjoyed the novel, hence its high rating, but I felt that the narrative would have benefitted from a greater focus on the original setting and story. It seemed that the disconnection between parts of the narrative slowed the story down and created a certain apathy in the reader. Nevertheless, I thought that the portrayal of the characters, particularly Briony, Cecelia and Robbie, was artfully done and the setting of Part One was a feast of imagery. I would definitely recommend this book as a recreational read.

Atonement | Rotten Tomatoes

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