A God in Ruins

Life After Life is one of my favourite books of all time, so it was with some trepidation that I approached A God in Ruins. I was rewarded with feelings of foolishness: after all, with Atkinson you are in skilled hands. There is no need to doubt whether Atkinson can hold her own with a fresh take on the tale of the Todd family. She is a magnificent writer, and A God in Ruins is a beautifully structured novel with a breathtaking narrative.

Atkinson continues the story of the Todd family but from the perspective of Ursula’s younger brother, Teddy. As in Ursula’s story, we encounter the war and the Todd family’s eccentricities, this time through Teddy’s eyes. We are also privy to his loves and disappointments, the choices made and bedded. The story is structured differently to Life After Life, but again there is no linear time line. Atkinson leaps from decade to decade, from year to year: each segment told with the grace necessary for illustrating the consequences of past decisions as they present years later. Atkinson’s writing consistently illustrates the vulnerability of humanity through familiar stories and it is this skill that secures her place as one of the most remarkable story tellers of our time.

A God in Ruins is a novel that can be read without Life after Life; the story is told as a companion rather than a sequel. Nevertheless, your imagination will be richer for having both books by your bed.

Chris Gordon