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Original poster

Which Kate Atkinson book?

64 replies

Cricketbelle · 22/12/2023 09:54

I’d like to read one (or more) of her books.
Any favourites or recommendations please?

OP posts:
Wbeezer · 22/12/2023 20:04

Life after Life is the only book I have finished and then straight away started again right at the beginning! I often re-read favourites but not immediately!

newnamethanks · 22/12/2023 19:57

Started Early - Took My Dog. I love her subversive humour. Just when things have become unbelievably bleak, she'll shock you out of it. And Kate understands dogs, they slink through her pages, almost unnoticed, but always with purpose.

cariadlet · 22/12/2023 19:41

Another vote for Behind the Scenes at the Museum and the Jackson Brodie books (I love all of them).

I wasn't so keen on Life After Life or A God in Ruins.

I've bought Shrines of Gaiety but haven't started reading it yet so it's disappointing to hear that so many people haven't enjoyed it. I'll lower my expectations and might end up enjoying it.

mrsdolittle · 22/12/2023 19:36

Another vote for Behind the Scenes. If pushed I would probably say it is one of my fav books ever. Love the Jackson Brodie series and like other posters preferred God in Ruins to Life after Life and couldn't get on with Shrines of Gaiety

Bichette · 22/12/2023 19:30

Behind the scenes
One of my all time favourites

CaptainMyCaptain · 22/12/2023 19:15

rickyrickygrimes · 22/12/2023 18:19

@Decorhate oops missed your mention !

And my mention. I didn't like it.

Piggywaspushed · 22/12/2023 18:38

My favourite Jackson Brodie is When Will There Be Good News?.

Another Behind the Scenes fan here.

rickyrickygrimes · 22/12/2023 18:19

@Decorhate oops missed your mention !

rickyrickygrimes · 22/12/2023 18:11

When will there be good news is so bleak and so brilliant.

No one has mentioned Emotionally Weird, which is a bit niche but I loved it - I grew up near Dundee and also lived / worked out in the Scottish islands. It’s very funny.

15PiecesOfFlair · 22/12/2023 15:29

I'm reading the Jackson Brodie ones in order and her style - style, she thought, style and beauty? Maybe not so much, her beauty queen days were behind her, at least that's what Stacy always told her - gets a little much after a couple in a row!

newnamethanks · 22/12/2023 15:28

O thank you @margegunderson, will be my Christmas present to myself. Didn't know about that.

margegunderson · 22/12/2023 15:25

There's a new and fab book of short stories by her which turn out to be interestingly linked

OwlWeiwei · 22/12/2023 15:18

I'd go for Life After Life and then a God in Ruins (based on same characters)

Then the Jackson Brodie novels. I think When WillThere Be Good News is her best.

I didn't like Behind the Scenes at all. Tried about 5 times over many years to finish it and always got irritated. I also don't rate her short stories at all. The ones I read were stifling dull stream of consciousness lists with no shape to them. But her best novels are fabulous.

FourSeasonsTotalLandscaping · 22/12/2023 15:10

I love Kate Atkinson broadly, but she’s a bit of a mixed bag. Behind the Scenes at the Museum is my favourite book of all time, and I like the Jackson Brodie books (Case Histories is the best) but some of the others are not so great.

I know most people raved about Life After Life and some sections of it are fantastic but I didn’t feel it worked well as whole. Much preferred A God in Ruins.

CaptainMyCaptain · 22/12/2023 15:04

newnamethanks · 22/12/2023 11:35

Agreed. Shrines of Gaiety disappointing.

Not as disappointing as Emotionally Weird which I have just finished. I see @Decorhate felt the same way.

Decorhate · 22/12/2023 15:02

I liked Life after Life - I thought the sections about the Blitz and the dreariness after the war ended were very evocative. Also liked A God in Ruins, though very sad.

I read Emotionally Weird recently & struggled to finish it.

cheezncrackers · 22/12/2023 13:53

CornishGem1975 · 22/12/2023 13:38

I've read quite a few and liked them but against the grain, I hated Life After Life. Awful characters.

The TV mini series was really nice though, so I can recommend that if it's still on iPlayer.

KnittingKnewbie · 22/12/2023 13:52

Life after Life

I really didn't like Behind the Scenes. (Though I might have listened to it , not read it 🤔)

cheezncrackers · 22/12/2023 13:52

I'm glad I'm not the only one finding Shrines of Gaiety hard going! I've been reading it for weeks and I just can't seem to finish it. I'm nearly 400 pages in so little has happened!!

JollyJellyCat · 22/12/2023 13:51

Case Histories

I love her Jackson Brodie books although I'm not usually a detective/crime reader.

I feel like I miss the point in her others.

If you like the Jackson Brodie ones I'd suggest Jon McGregor as a next read.

Lastexmouse · 22/12/2023 13:49

Read nearly all her books, bar Shrines of gaiety.

They're all good. Love the Jackson Brody books, the last of those I read was Big Sky which was brilliant, but worth reading them in order.

TheChosenTwo · 22/12/2023 13:40

I’ve only read life after life and found it immensely waffly! I definitely wouldn’t recommend that one.

CornishGem1975 · 22/12/2023 13:38

I've read quite a few and liked them but against the grain, I hated Life After Life. Awful characters.

CrossPurposes · 22/12/2023 13:28

Behind the Scenes and Life After Life are both fantastic. Behind the Scenes was the first one of hers I read and I never wanted Life After Life to end.

viques · 22/12/2023 13:28

GretchenPaisleyHiggenbottom · 22/12/2023 12:57

Try any novel written by Kazuo Ishiguro instead

Not the awful Klara and the Sun though! I was so looking forward to it and found it unreadable.