Cloud Atlas (20th Anniversary Edition)
By David Mitchell & Gabrielle Zevin
- Release Date: 2004-08-17
- Genre: Literary Fiction
Description
#1 NATIONAL BESTSELLER • A new edition of the timeless, structure-bending classic that explores how actions of individual lives impact the past, present and future—from a postmodern visionary and one of the leading voices in fiction
Features a new afterword by David Mitchell and a new introduction by Gabrielle Zevin, author of Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow
One of the New York Times’s 100 Best Books of the 21st Century • Shortlisted for the International Booker Prize • A Kirkus Reviews Best Fiction Book of the Century
Cloud Atlas begins in 1850 with Adam Ewing, an American notary voyaging from the Chatham Isles to his home in California. Ewing is befriended by a physician, Dr. Goose, who begins to treat him for a rare species of brain parasite. The novel careens, with dazzling virtuosity, to Belgium in 1931, to the West Coast in the 1970s, to an inglorious present-day England, to a Korean superstate of the near future where neocapitalism has run amok, and, finally, to a postapocalyptic Iron Age Hawaii in the last days of history.
But the story doesn’t end even there. The novel boomerangs back through centuries and space, returning by the same route, in reverse, to its starting point. Along the way, David Mitchell reveals how his disparate characters connect, how their fates intertwine, and how their souls drift across time like clouds across the sky.
As wild as a video game, as mysterious as a Zen koan, Cloud Atlas is an unforgettable tour de force that, like its incomparable author, has transcended its cult classic status to become a worldwide phenomenon.
Reviews
Cloud Atlas Hilarious
5By music9manA thoughtful but hilarious romp about civilization’s misguided dictators. Music9manYawn
2By SdfrdeghfrjedI thought it would be better than the movie but not reallyWonderful but...
4By leavinThis book is a work of art in terms of character development and interlocking stories. HOWEVER if you have not experienced the writing style of David Mitchell or seen Cloud Atlas as the movie first, this book may be a bit challenging and quite extraneous to read. It's a whole collection of stories that effortlessly fit together if you can open your mind to the differences and similarities of each character and their time period. It is an amazing book and I have never read anything like it before. It's weirdly strange, yet so utterly captivating!Wonderful
5By LC in PHXThis novel was amazing from start to finish. The first jump between characters was a little disconcerting but I found myself quickly immersed in each new narrative. The quality of the writing is so vivid that it's more like watching a movie in your head than reading a book. I will definitely be reading the author's other works, and can't wait to see the movie based on this one.A masterpiece!
5By Jon LesSometimes I sit on my balcony, watch the traffic and just think about life. What is it all about; what’s the point? What does my life amount to? I don’t mean this in the whiny or sad way, more in the pensive/intellectual way. I had always kind of come up with a blank at the end of my thoughts, that is, until I read Cloud Atlas. I know that the book, and subsequent movie, are quite divisive, so I’m not going to tell you that this book is going to change your life or that it’s going to be some majorily profound expereince for you. However, in some small way, the book did change mine. David Mitchell’s masterpiece somehow managed to teach me about what it’s all about. There’s one other interesting thing I learned reading this book. The simplest of all messages can take in excess of 500 pages to really convey. It’s the beauty of the written word, and something that Mitchell thoroughly taps into. To be honest, the central message of this book has been done before. It has just never been done quite like this—or anything like this for that matter. This is one of those books i’ll be coming back to for a very long time.Excellent
5By Sailing SueThe characters Mr. Mitchell creates are so imaginative and strong. I will be thinking about this book for a long time to come.Excellent book.
5By Crazy MikeFReading this book helped to understand some of the elements of the movie. I have a bad habit of starting to watch a movie hafway in, then getting around to watching the beginning of the flick. You can't do that with this film adaptation. So i read the book. Very well written. Is this a new genre? Multiple story lines, seemingly different but tied together by trascendental threads woven throughout? I found this book very mentally challenging - but there is a reward for the reader that sees it thru.Crud Atlas
1By Chandler CourtThis book came highly recommended and I was highly disappointed. I found the Luisa Rey and Sonmi characters too bland and virtuous and the Timothy Cavendish and Robert Frobisher characters too whiny and craven. The chapter in future Hawaiian pidgin was just annoying. It's okay not to like business or capitalism, but the future as imagined here seems to consist entirely of recycled clichés from bad science fiction movies made in the last 40 years from Soylent Green to Running Man to Rollerball. I was told this book was groundbreaking but I found it boring, heavy-handed and derivative.Lucciano
3By JCLucciVery difficult to follow theme in this book, not sure what author was trying to convey. Maybe when I see the movie the answers will reveal themselves.Cloud Atlas
2By Really258Ugh. Scattered and confusing. Not what I thought it was going to be. Very loosely associated in "lives". I struggled through this book to my disappointment.Disappointing End
3By Bluesqx4Totally into this book. Wrapped up in trying to figure out where this story is taking me and the deeper level of the multiple intertwined story lines. Really got into the independent story lines and the adventure aspect of them. Then the end comes. One last burp of pseudo insightful philosophy. So disappointing. Made me feel like the entire story could have been skipped and this could have been published as an affirmation placard sold in an organic coffee shop/dog treat bakery. I won't see the movie but for those who do, I hope Hollywood came up with a more meaningful and profound ending.Cloud Atlas
5By Salvador QuinonesGreatest Book in the history of mankind!Surprisingly Interesting
5By TiffyWiffy16When I first started reading I was nervous because the story didn't seem interesting. As I continued to read I began to appreciate the mystery and connection among the characters. I liked how the author presented each characters story through different methods of written communication. I also appreciated the historical perspectives within some of the characters stories. Slow go in the beginning but quickly picks up. Going to see the movie tonight.Cloud atlas: a novel
2By AK 55Disappointing. Just not a compelling read, Can't imagine anyone thinking this is movie material, but I will check it out when it comes to Red Box.Masterful
5By Philh22I read the good and bad reviews, but decided that if it became a movie there has to be some merit to the novel. The summary of the book does it justice and I agree completely with the comparison to Eco (though I've only read 'Name of the Rose' which I also highly recommend.) Which is also to say that this story is not for everyone. I'm not trying to say that "if you not an intellectual you won't like this…" because I've tried twice to read "Tale of Two Cities" and failed because it bored me too much to get past the first 100 pages. But after listening to the book I think I'm going to try TTC again. The story is rich, and well smithed (pun intended…you'll understand if you read/listen to it). The best I can do is to describe it as a web of seemingly disconnected stories that, as you get into the chapters, start to resemble fractal patterns. Each pattern weaving itself into the next as much as they are distanced from the beginning only to flow back into what seems to be the very pattern they originated from. The characters and their stories are interesting on their own, but are entirely connected components of core themes and a single tale. There wasn't a word wasted. This is on my list to listen to again, but likely read for the first time (and enjoy a second). I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.Cloud atlas
4By MerkababolGreatCloud Atlas
4By Doctor Professor DaddyYes it takes a bit getting used to the somewhat jarring timeline changes but well worth it. The language is superb even in the various formats. The characters are compelling.Brilliantly epic!!!!
5By Dan NyariJust an amazing ride!!!Cloud Atlas
5By Shanster the ScamsterEasily the best book I've read. A religious experience that I think on almost daily. I have such high hopes for the film version.
