Life after Life
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- Create Date：2022-04-09 00:53:20
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Kate Atkinson
- ISBN：0552776637
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
What if you had the chance to live your life again and again， until you finally got it right？
During a snowstorm in England in 1910， a baby is born and dies before she can take her first breath。
During a snowstorm in England in 1910， the same baby is born and lives to tell the tale。
What if there were second chances？ And third chances？ In fact an infinite number of chances to live your life？ Would you eventually be able to save the world from its own inevitable destiny？ And would you even want to？
Life After Life follows Ursula Todd as she lives through the turbulent events of the last century again and again。 With wit and compassion， Kate Atkinson finds warmth even in life’s bleakest moments， and shows an extraordinary ability to evoke the past。 Here she is at her most profound and inventive， in a novel that celebrates the best and worst of ourselves。
During a snowstorm in England in 1910， a baby is born and dies before she can take her first breath。
During a snowstorm in England in 1910， the same baby is born and lives to tell the tale。
What if there were second chances？ And third chances？ In fact an infinite number of chances to live your life？ Would you eventually be able to save the world from its own inevitable destiny？ And would you even want to？
Life After Life follows Ursula Todd as she lives through the turbulent events of the last century again and again。 With wit and compassion， Kate Atkinson finds warmth even in life’s bleakest moments， and shows an extraordinary ability to evoke the past。 Here she is at her most profound and inventive， in a novel that celebrates the best and worst of ourselves。
Reviews
Blythe Russian
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A little long and repetitive， but pretty enjoyable。
Anantha Giri
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'Life After Life' is based on an interesting premise where the main character Ursula dies again and again in different circumstances。 These experiences get added up to her each time and lead her to different paths in her lifetime。 The book is set between 1910 and 1967。Reading the book made me feel pensive and introspective。 The whole story is summarized in a quote when one of the characters says what if we could start life over again。 The recurrent theme is that our lives touch everyone differen 'Life After Life' is based on an interesting premise where the main character Ursula dies again and again in different circumstances。 These experiences get added up to her each time and lead her to different paths in her lifetime。 The book is set between 1910 and 1967。Reading the book made me feel pensive and introspective。 The whole story is summarized in a quote when one of the characters says what if we could start life over again。 The recurrent theme is that our lives touch everyone differently one way or other and merely being at the wrong place at the wrong time could lead us to a doomed future。 It also focuses on WW2 London and the sufferings of the people who loved through the aerial raids。 The losses are shocking and it's hard to make sense of the losses。 Overall it was a good book to read and gain different perspective about how we live。 。。。more
J Cowdin
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I enjoyed every moment of this book。
Heather Brammer
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So I didn’t actually finish this book。 I got about 1/2 way through and it just wasn’t interesting enough to get excited about it。 I kept wanting to listen to something else so I distracted myself with podcasts。 I returned this one early and picked out a few new books that I will hopefully enjoy more。
Jessica
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I don’t know if I’m at 3。5 stars or 4 stars for this one， so I gave it 4。 I will say it can be very hard to follow， so you’ll get lost if you leave the book for extended amounts of time and then come back to it。 There are a lot of characters to keep track of。 That being said， this was a really well-written book by an author who obviously knows her stuff。 I think I will read the second book。
Jenny
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Absolutely loved this: so beautiful， so clever。 It doesn’t just play with our understandings of time and history， but with the very conventions of storytelling and narrative construction。 I couldn’t put it down， but didn’t want it to end。
Rachael Dean
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This is not a bad book， and has some interesting moments。 I took it down one star because the concept isn't very original， the downside of which is that any "clunky" mechanical aspect of the time travel stands out。The second missing star is really more about editing， or the need for it。 I found myself in the last 3rd of the book very bored。 The payoffs of earlier set ups are lack luster and several situations with no import seem to be thrown in。The book us not a bad read all in all。 Some of the This is not a bad book， and has some interesting moments。 I took it down one star because the concept isn't very original， the downside of which is that any "clunky" mechanical aspect of the time travel stands out。The second missing star is really more about editing， or the need for it。 I found myself in the last 3rd of the book very bored。 The payoffs of earlier set ups are lack luster and several situations with no import seem to be thrown in。The book us not a bad read all in all。 Some of the characters are multidimensional。 The protagonist is a character you really can empathize with which is great。 。。。more
JoJo
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The title sums it up。 😜 I was thoroughly engaged from beginning to end。 At times it felt like I was watching a movie。
James Brixey
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This book is clever。 It is also quite sad， and somewhat confusing。 I am not certain I know what to make of it
Indie
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I loved the beginning then lost interest。 Sorry to say。。。
Rebekah
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The blurb on this book proposes the question - “What if you had the chance to live your life again and again until you finally got it right？’This seemed like an interesting concept， but the book does not really follow through on this idea。The main character is 99% of the time unaware that she is reliving her life， so instead what reads is almost just an author workshopping the same characters in different situations。 It feels almost like the author didn’t know which storyline she liked best so s The blurb on this book proposes the question - “What if you had the chance to live your life again and again until you finally got it right？’This seemed like an interesting concept， but the book does not really follow through on this idea。The main character is 99% of the time unaware that she is reliving her life， so instead what reads is almost just an author workshopping the same characters in different situations。 It feels almost like the author didn’t know which storyline she liked best so she just wrote all of them。I was slightly excited for a small section in the book， which only lasted about 10 pages， where the character did seem to start becoming aware of the repetitive situation and the choices she started to make because of this， but then this concept was completely abandoned and the character returned to being unaware again。 To begin with the plot changes seem to be important and small changes make big differences， but then again this is completely abandoned and the main character lives entirely different lives that don’t really connect with previous one and we are given no reason as to why this time she ended up in a different situation。That being said， the characters created are very well put together and it was only this that kept me reading。 How the characters responded to different situations was always consistent and interesting to see。 。。。more
Caitlyn Barker
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A special book and a special reading experience for me。 Looking at this book it is one I wouldn’t have picked up by myself， but a coworker recommended it so highly and told me I’d love it so I took a chance， and I sure am glad I did。 Ursula is living a Groundhog Day type life and we get to follow her story in all the different ways her life takes her。 I loved how this story makes you realise how one little action really can change the course of your life。 This book is so cleverly written。 It had A special book and a special reading experience for me。 Looking at this book it is one I wouldn’t have picked up by myself， but a coworker recommended it so highly and told me I’d love it so I took a chance， and I sure am glad I did。 Ursula is living a Groundhog Day type life and we get to follow her story in all the different ways her life takes her。 I loved how this story makes you realise how one little action really can change the course of your life。 This book is so cleverly written。 It had me gasping at pints when I realised this the lifetimes were crossing over but in different ways that you mightn’t have been expecting。 Also the descriptions will be sitting in my mind for a long time。 Particularly those of what Ursula experiences during the war - I will never look at a christmas cracker the same。 If I had a critique of this book it would be that I wish we got to see more interactions of the siblings together， specifically Teddy and Ursula。 I era this book was a great surprise read for me。I also read it exclusively while I was on concierge duty at work， thus it taking me a month to get through。 It is the skilled writing and storytelling of this book that had me wanting to pick it up again when I would be leaving it during such odd points in the story。 。。。more
Carrie
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According to the author， it's a book about being English and about bearing witness to the past。 Occasionally I was engaged enough to want to read on and see what would happen next。 More often I plowed through， not really enjoying the reading but not able to look away because I was learning about the struggles my parents and grandparents lived through。 She captures the horror of the blitz in a way that I never imagined before。 According to the author， it's a book about being English and about bearing witness to the past。 Occasionally I was engaged enough to want to read on and see what would happen next。 More often I plowed through， not really enjoying the reading but not able to look away because I was learning about the struggles my parents and grandparents lived through。 She captures the horror of the blitz in a way that I never imagined before。 。。。more
Katie
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There are some Buddhist philosophers （a branch referred to as Zen） who say that sometimes a bad thing happens to prevent a worse thing happening，" Dr。 Kellet said。 "But， of course， there are some situations where it's impossible to imagine anything worse。" page 160Life after Life was recommended to me after reading End of Days and I'm so glad I prioritized it and got to it quickly。 How do you even describe it？ It is a series of overlapping realities， in which Ursula lives her life again and agai There are some Buddhist philosophers （a branch referred to as Zen） who say that sometimes a bad thing happens to prevent a worse thing happening，" Dr。 Kellet said。 "But， of course， there are some situations where it's impossible to imagine anything worse。" page 160Life after Life was recommended to me after reading End of Days and I'm so glad I prioritized it and got to it quickly。 How do you even describe it？ It is a series of overlapping realities， in which Ursula lives her life again and again as she tries to reach her true destiny。 It was incredibly well written and beautifully shaped。 This novel brings up so many questions about what would have happened throughout history if the right person was in the right place at the right time。 "History is all about 'what ifs'" （page 473）。 I loved so much about this book。 Much of it takes place in various parts of Europe during WWII - totally my thing。 Ursula's cozy childhood home is called Fox Corner and is the stuff of fairytales and Kate Morton novels （which are sort of the same thing？）。 She lived so many interesting lives and it was an incredible journey。 It is endlessly discussable and I wish I would have read it with a book group。 Why can't every book be THIS good？？ I definitely experienced a book hangover after this one and had a difficult time landing on my next good read。 。。。more
Katie O’Connor
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LOVED this book！ Kate Atkinson drew me in from the very beginning。 I was worried I would get bored with “replayed scenarios” but was always kept on my toes。
Sara Hollingsworth
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Eh， not bad。 Actually fairly well executed for a time loop story。 I recently read a very poorly executed time loop book， and this one definitely did the time loop interestingly。 The problem is the historical setting was harder to deal with。 I'm not a huge historical person， and having all this slow historical stuff was hard。 And this is a very slow family drama for the most part too。 So much stuff was crammed into this， while yet somehow feeling incredibly slow with not much happening。 Eh， not bad。 Actually fairly well executed for a time loop story。 I recently read a very poorly executed time loop book， and this one definitely did the time loop interestingly。 The problem is the historical setting was harder to deal with。 I'm not a huge historical person， and having all this slow historical stuff was hard。 And this is a very slow family drama for the most part too。 So much stuff was crammed into this， while yet somehow feeling incredibly slow with not much happening。 。。。more
Jennifer
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Parts of this book captured my attention and emotions。 Other parts were boring or confusing。 It is interesting to think about what could happen if we had a chance for do-overs。
Vivienne
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The book opens with the birth of Ursula Todd in 1910 。 。 。 but the baby dies with the cord wrapped around her neck。 In the next chapter， Ursula is born in 1910 and lives on 。 。 。 and so her life of living （and dying） repeatedly， of reliving the same events with different outcomes， begins。 It's a clever and fascinating concept especially as the book progresses and Ursula becomes more aware of her capacity and of the fact that she may be able to change outcomes。 We are drawn to wonder how/if we wo The book opens with the birth of Ursula Todd in 1910 。 。 。 but the baby dies with the cord wrapped around her neck。 In the next chapter， Ursula is born in 1910 and lives on 。 。 。 and so her life of living （and dying） repeatedly， of reliving the same events with different outcomes， begins。 It's a clever and fascinating concept especially as the book progresses and Ursula becomes more aware of her capacity and of the fact that she may be able to change outcomes。 We are drawn to wonder how/if we would make changes to our lives/the world， if we could。 Initially this reliving of situations （in very short chapters at the beginning） is confusing but then it sucks you in， especially as connections and details become clearer， and I found myself anxious to find out what would happen "this time"。 As always， Atkinson's writing is wonderful: she sees deep inside her characters' feelings and is so insightful into the emotions of the everyday， into memories and relationships。 。 。 again reminding me of the writing of Elizabeth Strout。 It's an interesting and captivating book and I certainly now want to read the second book in the Todd family series， A God in Ruins。 **** 。。。more
Georgia Quackenbush
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4。5
Sue Rose
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In my top five most beloved books。
Sydney
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3。7， round up
Kira Lynch
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What an amazing work of art this book is！ Definitely going on my list of all time favourites。I loved the way each life unfolded。 The characters were so rich I got completely caught up in each version so that each time the end came I was both sad but also looking forward to entering the next life。As I neared the end I started to worry that the ending might ruin the whole thing because it was such a complicated beast to try and tie up neatly。 I don't think it was a perfect ending but probably as c What an amazing work of art this book is！ Definitely going on my list of all time favourites。I loved the way each life unfolded。 The characters were so rich I got completely caught up in each version so that each time the end came I was both sad but also looking forward to entering the next life。As I neared the end I started to worry that the ending might ruin the whole thing because it was such a complicated beast to try and tie up neatly。 I don't think it was a perfect ending but probably as close as you could get and all done very cleverly。 。。。more
Cate Gregory
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This was amazing！
Laurie
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Very long and quite confusing。 If it was 1/2 the length， I may have been able to manage。
Bobbi Maiers
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Incredible and sweeping， a rumination on reincarnation in the time of WW2。 An amazing story。
Kim
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3。5/5。0 - I might read this in print at some point because it might be easier to keep track of things。 The premise was interesting， a young woman lives her life over and over again in early 20th century England。 Can she correct the mistakes from the past？ Will she？ Should she？ A little repetitive， but interesting。
Liz Murphy
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Ugh， I had such high expectations for this one， the concept sounded so good！ I liked the early life parts （beginning of the book）， but I got bored throughout the rest of the book。
Ryan Niemeyer
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Really enjoyed this book。 It was a different perspective on historical fiction and one I found engaging。
Chris Stecker
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The idea behind the story was a great idea， but toward the end I was forcing myself to finish。 If you do not pay very close attention you can get lost and then it starts not making sense。
Julie
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Although the writing was good， well detailed and interesting， the continual death was not to my liking。 I tried to like it but found it frustrating。 Toward the end I found myself skimming to get through to the next chapter。 Just not my kind of book。
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Life after Life
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Life after Life&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Life after Life&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0