Synopsis: I’m sure many of my followers are familiar with the film adaptation of this book and it is very loyal to the story, although the book is obviously more fleshed out and gives more insight to the characters’ thoughts.
The book is split into two parts, the first part is set during a hot summer day in 1935 and the events of this day are told from the perspectives of several characters. The most important one however, is the perspective of Brionny, who is 13 years old at the time. On that day she stumbles upon several scenes which she, in her 13 year old mind, misunderstands and misinterprets. Her mistakes will alter the course of several lives forever.
The second part is mostly set in the Second World War and the events take place in Dunkirk and London. The London storyline is narrated by Briony, who’s now come of age. As she has matured she has began to see the effect of the errors she made five years earlier. She is therefore trying to “atone” her wrong doings of the past.
Review: I gave this book 4/5 stars. I find that although the book is very well written, the story is interesting and both beautiful and gruesome at times, the book still lacked the ultimate “wow-factor” to make it a 5/5 read.
Having already seen the film I knew what I was in for and I knew what to expect of the plot. Maybe it was for that reason that the book did not make me want to scram through the pages as fast as I could to find out what events will take place next.
However, like I said the book was very well written with some beautiful descriptions and passages. For me, especially the descriptions of the war and the events of Dunkirk were the most fascinating parts, as there was much more to them in the book than in the film. I feel like Robbie gets the attention he deserves in the book, and being inside his head brings so much more well, “character” to his character.
Atonement tells the story of the power of words, whether written or spoken, and of the responsibility which comes with such a power. This applies to both characters of the story but also to the author who has a responsibility to their readers.
So all in all, there’s great writing, there’s multiple narrators, there’s drama, there’s passion, there’s war, there’s growth and there’s tragedy. If these things sound even slightly interesting or I’d like me you’ve seen the film and liked it, then I recommend trying out ‘Atonement’. However, in case you’re not familiar with the story, I should point out that there is talk of a rape/sexual assault in this book so trigger warning applies.
