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Review - Cloud Atlas
Mar. 12th, 2010 01:46 amCloud Atlas (David Mitchell)
I really enjoyed Cloud Atlas. I knew about the 'matrushka doll' plot beforehand, which helped: if I hadn't, I'd probably have found it frustrating, which is partly what keeps me from giving the book five stars. The structure is a little gimmicky, but patience with it is rewarding, ultimately, I think. My favourite story was undoubtedly Sonmi's. My favourite feature of the book was the use of period-appropriate language -- the way each piece seemed to belong perfectly to the world it illustrated: Sonmi and the branding, Zachry's corrupted but recognisable language... It did render it hard to read, particularly in Sloosha's Crossin', but I loved the attempt at following language-change. I liked the interconnectedness of each story, and trying to follow the parallels. I think this is probably best read with that in mind, knowing what to expect, otherwise it'd be very frustrating -- no conclusions anywhere.
I found this quite slow, actually, thinking about it. Normally I'd devour books, but this was quite hard to just devour. Worth taking the time over, though.
I really enjoyed Cloud Atlas. I knew about the 'matrushka doll' plot beforehand, which helped: if I hadn't, I'd probably have found it frustrating, which is partly what keeps me from giving the book five stars. The structure is a little gimmicky, but patience with it is rewarding, ultimately, I think. My favourite story was undoubtedly Sonmi's. My favourite feature of the book was the use of period-appropriate language -- the way each piece seemed to belong perfectly to the world it illustrated: Sonmi and the branding, Zachry's corrupted but recognisable language... It did render it hard to read, particularly in Sloosha's Crossin', but I loved the attempt at following language-change. I liked the interconnectedness of each story, and trying to follow the parallels. I think this is probably best read with that in mind, knowing what to expect, otherwise it'd be very frustrating -- no conclusions anywhere.
I found this quite slow, actually, thinking about it. Normally I'd devour books, but this was quite hard to just devour. Worth taking the time over, though.
