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Kate Atkinson won the Whitbread (now Costa) Book of the Year prize with her first novel, Behind the Scenes at the Museum, and has been a critically acclaimed writer ever since. Her four bestselling novels featuring former detective Jackson Brodie became the BBC television series Case Histories, starring Jason Isaacs. Her latest novel Life After Life was shortlisted for several prestigious literary prizes including the Women’s (formerly Orange) and the Costa Novel Prize. She was appointed MBE in the 2011 Queen’s Birthday Honours List.
Kate Atkinson was born in York and now lives in Edinburgh.
'An unapologetic novel of ideas which is also wise, funny and paced like a thriller' Observer The magnificent new novel by bestselling award-winning Kate Atkinson In 1940, eighteen-year old Juliet Armstrong is reluctantly recruited into the world of espionage. Sent to an obscure department of MI5 tasked with monitoring the comings and goings of British Fascist sympathizers, she discovers the work to be by turns both tedious and terrifying. But after the war has ended, she presumes the events of those years have been relegated to the past for ever. Ten years later, now a producer at the BBC, Juliet is unexpectedly confronted by figures from her past. A different war is being fought now, on a different battleground, but Juliet finds herself once more under threat. A bill of reckoning is due, and she finally begins to realize that there is no action without consequence. Transcription is a work of rare depth and texture, a bravura modern novel of extraordinary power, wit and empathy. It is a triumphant work of fiction from one of this country's most exceptional writers. 'How vehemently most novelists will wish to produce a masterpiece as good' Telegraph
A God in Ruins relates the life of Teddy Todd - would-be poet, heroic World War II bomber pilot, husband, father, and grandfather - as he navigates the perils and progress of the 20th century. For all Teddy endures in battle, his greatest challenge will be to face living in a future he never expected to have. This gripping, often deliriously funny yet emotionally devastating book looks at war - that great fall of Man from grace - and the effect it has, not only on those who live through it, but on the lives of the subsequent generations. It is also about the infinite magic of fiction. Those who loved the best-selling Life After Life will recognise Teddy as Ursula Todd's adored younger brother - but for those who have not read it, A God in Ruins stands fully on its own. Few will dispute that it proves once again that Kate Atkinson is one of the most exceptional novelists of our age.
In A God in Ruins, Atkinson turns her focus on Ursula's beloved younger brother Teddy - would-be poet, RAF bomber pilot, husband and father - as he navigates the perils and progress of the 20th century. For all Teddy endures in battle, his greatest challenge will be to face living in a future he never expected to have.
Winner of the Costa Novel Award 2013. Winner of the Specsavers UK Author of the Year 2013. Chosen by the prestigious Kirkus Reviews as one of 10 titles in 2013 that ‘will sweep you off your feet’ Shortlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction 2013. 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. Click below to listen to an extract from the audiobook edition of this title. Life After Life by Kate Atkinson by Random House Audiobooks
Winner of the Specsavers UK Author of the Year 2013. Shortlisted for the Costa Novel Award 2013. Chosen by the prestigious Kirkus Reviews as one of 10 titles in 2013 that ‘will sweep you off your feet’ Shortlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction 2013. 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.
One of our Great Reads you may have missed in 2011. February 2011 Book of the Month. Shortlisted for the Galaxy UK Author of the Year 2010.Another outing for Jackson Brodie in Atkinson's next crime novel. She seems to really be getting in to her stride with this series and as each book can be read as a stand alone has not tied herself down to any set rules, but then when does she ever? Told with all her usual quirkiness and entertaining characters this is another must read.
Shortlisted for the Galaxy UK Author of the Year 2010. Another outing for Jackson Brodie in Atkinson's next crime novel. She seems to really be getting in to her stride with this series and as each book can be read as a stand alone has not tied herself down to any set rules, but then when does she ever? Told with all her usual quirkiness and entertaining characters this is another must read. September 2010 Good Housekeeping selection. The Goodhousekeeping view... The fourth title in the bestselling series sees former detective Jackson Brodie on the trail of thebirth family of an adopted girl who officially doesn’t exist. Atkinson’s novels have so far sold two million copies in the UK and this is another sharply observed piece of storytelling.
Shortlisted for the CWA Gold Dagger 2009. CWA Judges’ comments: ‘A multifaceted and thought-provoking exploration of the aftermath of a savage family killing.’ Winner of the Richard & Judy Best Read 2009. Reviewed on Richard & Judy's Book Club 2009 on Wednesday 11 February. When this literary author turned crime writer something very special happened to her work. The Guardian believes it has made her a better writer, I feel that her lovely style adds an extra dimension to a fascinating tale. Characters intercept and react, there are many coincidences, twists and turns and it all comes racing together at the end, a bit like a runaway train except, of course, Jackson and Louise’s stories which remain open for the next book. Comparison: Ian McEwan, Morag Joss, Hilary Mantel.
Atkinson’s crime novels just keep getting better and better. Great characterisation, brilliant plotting and an excellent story teller. One of the best crime novels you’ll read this year.
A queue at the Edinburgh Festival witness a supposed act of “road rage” so begins a wonderfully convoluted plot with twists and turns, humour and surprises which, very satisfactorily, goes round and round. It is the second outing for Jackson Brodie (Case Histories being the first) and it is irresistible, really very good indeed. Intelligent, addictive, beautifully written and thrilling.Similar this month: None.Comparison: Charlotte Mendleson, Donna Tartt, Susanna Jones.
A 2011 World Book Night selection. Wow! You are in for a treat here. Kate has a tremendous reputation but in my mind she has never really lived up to Behind the Scenes at the Museum, her Whitbread winner. Well now she has, and surpassed it. More plot-driven than is her norm, it has her expected trademark of glorious language and subtle humour, here all wrapped in the cloak of a literary detective story with a warm, original and totally believable private investigator, Jackson Brodie. It was shortlisted for the recent Whitbread Best Novel prize and was only pipped to the post by Small Island (you must definitely read that too). Our Editorial Guru, Sarah Broadhurst, has suggested others book and authors that would be perfect for you to read next or to pass on the recommendation - so your gift will keep on giving enjoyment. Her selections for this title are: Louise Welsh, Reginald Hill
Kate Atkinson readers will devour this departure in her writing and a new audience will love it as well. Jackson Brodie, former police investigator, explores three previously unsolved case histories – and finds they reflect upon his own life, as he faces a mid life crisis.
Another story of family and telling stories. Effie and her mother Nora (who it turns out is not her mother) tell their tales to each other on a remote Scottish island. Full of humour and warmth and the usual quirkiness of her novels.
Follow the weird and wonderful history of the Fairfax family in this thoroughly enjoyable quirk novel from Kate Atkinson. Nothing is ever predictable in Atkinson’s novels but there is always plenty to feed your imagination.
March 2014 Guest Editor Jojo Moyes on Behind the Scenes at the Museum. I would, frankly, read Kate Atkinson's shopping list. This was the first book which really made me understand the importance of 'voice'. She's a writer who inspires as she's brave, and inventive, and you never know where her novels are going to go next, all too rare a trait, in my opinion. The Lovereading view... This is very special. Even with all she has written since and with her change of direction into crime mysteries this, her first novel, in my mind still stands out as her best. It is simply just the life of Ruby and her dysfunctional family. It’s warm, addictive, quite wonderful – and quite unlike anything else she has written. A "Piece of Passion" from the publisher... ‘I have a vivid memory of the first time I read the first page of Kate Atkinson’s first novel. It was nearly 10 years after I’d left York and in a page I was back there, in the streets around the Minster – transported by the voice of an unborn child to a world that was familiar but warped. Never mind its unusual developmental stage, the voice was immediately distinct, a little mad, a little caustic, and yet brilliantly true and completely hilarious. It was delicious. Behind the Scenes at the Museum is in a class of its own. The odd structure, tone, cast of characters all made it unique, exciting , a bit disturbing and utterly captivating. It made me laugh and it made me cry. I think it is a masterpiece.' Susanna Wadeson, Publishing Director at Transworld
WINNER OF THE 2015 COSTA NOVEL AWARD A God in Ruins relates the life of Teddy Todd - would-be poet, heroic World War II bomber pilot, husband, father, and grandfather - as he navigates the perils and progress of the 20th century. For all Teddy endures in battle, his greatest challenge will be to face living in a future he never expected to have. This gripping, often deliriously funny yet emotionally devastating book looks at war - that great fall of Man from grace - and the effect it has, not only on those who live through it, but on the lives of the subsequent generations. It is also about the infinite magic of fiction.Those who loved the bestselling Life After Life will recognise Teddy as Ursula Todd's adored younger brother - but for those who have not read it, A God in Ruins stands fully on its own. Few will dispute that it proves once again that Kate Atkinson is one of the most exceptional novelists of our age.
Kate Atkinsons groer Roman uber das Drama des 20. Jahrhunderts - Platz 1 der Times-Bestsellerliste. Was bleibt von einem Menschen und seinen Mglichkeiten? Zwischen den Weltkriegen erlebt Teddy Todd, geboren 1914, eine idyllische lndliche Jugend auf dem Anwesen seiner Familie nahe London. Mag sein, dass er, der charmante Naturfreund und Mchtegern-Poet, mit seiner Sandkastenliebe Nancy einst eine Tochter haben wird (die er nicht versteht und die ihn nicht versteht). Und vielleicht wird die Tochter ihm eine Enkelin schenken, die alle Enttuschungen wettmacht. Zuvor aber kommt der Krieg ins Spiel, und Teddy Todd hat als todesmutiger Kampfpilot fast tagtglich die Stdte Hitler-Deutschlands zu bombardieren Ein Roman ber den heroischen Alltag eines wunderbar normalen Mannes; ein Buch voll hintergrndigem Witz, das sich anfhlt wie vier Generationen gelebtes Leben. "e;Fr mich ist diese feinsinnige, dramatische und bewegende Familiensaga aus England eines der besten Bcher des Jahres."e; Brigitte
One of the Best Books of 2015--TIME, NPR, Washington Post, The Chicago Tribune, The Christian Science Monitor, The Seattle Times, The Kansas City Star, Kirkus, Bookpage, Hudson Booksellers, AARPThe stunning companion to Kate Atkinson's #1 bestseller Life After Life, "e;one of the best novels I've read this century"e; (Gillian Flynn)."e;He had been reconciled to death during the war and then suddenly the war was over and there was a next day and a next day. Part of him never adjusted to having a future."e; Kate Atkinson's dazzling Life After Life explored the possibility of infinite chances and the power of choices, following Ursula Todd as she lived through the turbulent events of the last century over and over again. A GOD IN RUINS tells the dramatic story of the 20th Century through Ursula's beloved younger brother Teddy--would-be poet, heroic pilot, husband, father, and grandfather-as he navigates the perils and progress of a rapidly changing world. After all that Teddy endures in battle, his greatest challenge is living in a future he never expected to have. An ingenious and moving exploration of one ordinary man's path through extraordinary times, A GOD IN RUINS proves once again that Kate Atkinson is one of the finest novelists of our age.
Que Ursula Todd muera a las pocas horas de nacer en una casa de campo inglesa a principios de 1910 y que, a la vez, el medico llegue a tiempo para salvarla son dos hechos perfectamente compatibles enUna y otra vez, una novela que ofrece siempre dos alternativas a su protagonista.As, Ursula tendr varias oportunidades de cambiar su destino, el de su familia e incluso el de toda Europa. Y no se trata solo de vivir una nueva vida, sino de hacer algo con lo que la mayora hemos soado alguna vez: borrar los episodios del pasado que hablan mal de nosotros.Gracias a un perfecto dominio en la creacion de ambientes y personajes, Atkinson consigue varias novelas en una. Trgica en ocasiones, divertida en otras pero siempre intrigante, la gran autora inglesa cuenta una historia y es como si contara cientos de ellas.
Ruby Lennox was conceived grudgingly by Bunty and born while her father, George, was in the Dog and Hare in Doncaster telling a woman in an emerald dress and a D-cup that he wasn't married. Bunty had never wanted to marry George, but here she was, stuck in a flat above the pet shop in an ancient street beneath York Minster, with sensible and sardonic Patrica aged five, greedy cross-patch Gillian who refused to be ignored, and Ruby...Ruby tells the story of The Family, from the day at the end of the nineteenth century when a travelling French photographer catches frail beautiful Alice and her children, like flowers in amber, to the startling, witty, and memorable events of Ruby's own life.
Once it had been the great forest of Lythe - a vast and impenetrable thicket of green.And here, in the beginning, lived the Fairfaxes, grandly, at Fairfax Manor, visited once by the great Gloriana herself.But over the centuries the forest had been destroyed, replaced by Streets of Trees.The Fairfaxes have dwindled too; now they live in 'Arden' at the end of Hawthorne Close and are hardly a family at all.But Isobel Fairfax, who drops into pockets of time and out again, knows about the past. She is sixteen and waiting for the return of her mother - the thin, dangerous Eliza with her scent of nicotine, Arpege and sex, whose disappearance is part of the mystery that still remains at the heart of the forest.
In rural Devon, six-year-old Joanna Mason witnesses an appalling crime. Thirty years later the man convicted of the crime is released from prison. In Edinburgh, sixteen-year-old Reggie works as a nanny for a G.P. But Dr Hunter has gone missing and Reggie seems to be the only person who is worried.Across town, Detective Chief Inspector Louise Monroe is also looking for a missing person, unaware that hurtling towards her is an old friend -- Jackson Brodie -- himself on a journey that becomes fatally interrupted.
Kejt Atkinson - odin iz samyh uvazhaemyh i populyarnyh avtorov sovremennoj Britanii. Ee debyutnyj roman poluchil prestizhnuyu Uitbredovskuyu premiyu, obojdya mnogih imenityh kandidatov - naprimer, Salmana Rushdi s ego "e;Proshchal'nym vzdohom mavra Odnako nastoyashchaya slava prishla k nej s publikaciej "e;Prestuplenij proshlogo - pervoj knigi iz cikla o kembridzhskom chastnom detektive Dzheksone Broudi. Roman vyzval buryu vostorga i u kritikov, i u kolleg po cekhu, i u shirokogo chitatelya, odnim iz naibolee yaryh propagandistov tvorchestva Atkinson sdelalsya sam Stiven King.V romane "e;Prestupleniya proshlogo chastnomu detektivu Dzheksonu Broudi predstoit zanyat'sya delami, kotorye policiya davno spisala v arhiv: o tainstvennom nochnom ischeznovenii malen'koj devochki iz roditel'skogo sada; o nemotivirovannom ubijstve docheri izvestnogo advokata, pomogavshej emu v ofise; i o krovavom ehpizode domashnego nasiliya v molodoj sem'e, zhivushchej na ferme. Kazalos' by, mezhdu vsemi nimi net nichego obshchego, da i sledy prostyli davno, odnako nitochki, perepletayas', tyanutsya v nastoyashchee i samym neozhidannym obrazom svodyat geroev - kazhdyj so svoimi skeletami v shkafah...
Winner of the Costa Novel Award 2013. Winner of the Specsavers UK Author of the Year 2013. Chosen by the prestigious Kirkus Reviews as one of 10 titles in 2013 that ‘will sweep you off your feet’ Shortlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction 2013. 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. Click below to listen to an extract from the audiobook edition of this title. Life After Life by Kate Atkinson by Random House Audiobooks
Was ware, wenn man sein Leben wieder und wieder leben konnte, bis man schlielich alles perfekt gemacht hatte? Ware man dann ein glucklicher Mensch? Ursula Todd ist eine fur ihre Zeit ganz besondere Frau: unabhangig, modern, realistisch. Mit Humor begegnet sie nicht nur ihrer skurrilen Familie, sondern auch den seltsamen Ereignissen in ihrem Leben. Wie jeder erlebt sie Situationen, in denen sie sich fragt: Was ware, wenn? Was ware geschehen, wenn sich ihre Teenagerliebe erfullt hatte? Was ware geschehen, wenn sie studiert hatte? Oder was ware aus ihr geworden, wenn sie nicht in England, sondern in einem anderen Land aufgewachsen ware? Ware ihr Leben schrecklicher oder besser verlaufen? Doch anders als anderen Menschen bleibt es fur Ursula nicht bei diesen Fragen. Ihr ist es gegeben, ihr Leben immer wieder zu korrigieren und damit jeden Fehler zu beseitigen. Dennoch erlebt sie Verlust, Verrat, Krieg und Tod. Was also soll diese Gabe? Ist es uberhaupt moglich, sein Leben fehlerlos zu leben?
Einst belegte die erste Lady Fairfax alle nachkommenden Generationen mit einem Fluch. Die junge Isobel spurt diesen noch immer. Ist ihre Mutter tatschlich fortgegangen, oder hat der Vater seine schne Frau aus Eifersucht umgebracht? Tapfer versucht Isobel, die Geheimnisse in ihrer Familie zu lften.
What if you could live again and again, until you got it right? On a cold and snowy night in 1910, Ursula Todd is born to an English banker and his wife. She dies before she can draw her first breath. On that same cold and snowy night, Ursula Todd is born, lets out a lusty wail, and embarks upon a life that will be, to say the least, unusual. For as she grows, she also dies, repeatedly, in a variety of ways, while the young century marches on towards its second cataclysmic world war. Does Ursula's apparently infinite number of lives give her the power to save the world from its inevitable destiny? And if she can -- will she?Darkly comic, startlingly poignant, and utterly original -- this is Kate Atkinson at her absolute best.
Winner of the Specsavers UK Author of the Year 2013. Shortlisted for the Costa Novel Award 2013. Chosen by the prestigious Kirkus Reviews as one of 10 titles in 2013 that ‘will sweep you off your feet’ Shortlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction 2013. 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.
Jackson Brodie is a private investigator in Cambridge. A former soldier and policeman, he makes his money working from investigating infidelity and finding missing cats. But Jackson's tough-guy exterior belies a deeply empathetic heart. He's unable to resist coming to the rescue and increasingly he becomes a magnet for the bereaved, the lost and the dysfunctional. Surrounded by death, intrigue and misfortune, his own life haunted by a family tragedy, the Jackson Brodie series begins as the investigator attempts to unravel three disparate case histories. He soon realizes, however, that in spite of apparent diversity, everything is connected. . .Now, with this four-volume eBook bundle, you can discover the novels that the New York Times has called ';deliciously underhanded . . . and well worth waiting for.'';Atkinson's detective novels are masterworks of character-driven plots and leisurely observation. But they are primarily triumphs of tone: sardonic, faithless, and dark as the inside of a cow. As a reader, you might come for the mystery, but you'll return for the prose.' The Globe and MailThis bundle includes:CASE HISTORIESONE GOOD TURNWHEN WILL THERE BE GOOD NEWS?STARTED EARLY, TOOK MY DOG
Fur ihren ersten Roman "e;Familienalbum"e; hat Kate Atkinson viele internationale Preise erhalten. Mit ihren weiteren Buchern hat sich die bekannte Autorin eine Fangemeinde erschrieben. June ist schwanger und wei dass sie bald mit ihren Kindern allein dastehen wird. Addison, uneheliches Kind und von seinem Vater nie anerkannt, stellt bei dessen Begrbnis fest, dass er es letztlich ohne den Vater besser hatte. Die praktische Amerikanerin Meredith muss erfahren, dass es fr das Altern kein Patentrezept gibt. Kate Atkinsons Figuren widerfhrt nichts Ungewhnliches, sie erleben das, was das Leben fr jeden bereit hlt: Altern, Einsamkeit, Liebe, Tod. Doch die Geschichten, die sie erzhlt, enden nie in Hoffnungslosigkeit. Kate Atkinsons scharfer und illusionsloser Blick richtet sich stets auch auf den Ausweg aus dem scheinbar unvernderbaren Dasein. Mit ihrem neuen Buch blttert sie ein weiteres Familienalbum auf.
Alles beginnt im Jahr 1888, als Rubys Urgromutter Alice, obwohl mit ihrem siebten Kind schwanger, den Verfuhrungskunsten eines durchreisenden Fotogra-fen erliegt und bald mit ihm fur immer verschwindet. Zuruck bleiben die Kinder und die Generationen, die auf sie folgen - und die Fotos, an die sich vor allem die Traume und Sehnsuchte der Frauen knupfen. Die heiteren wie traurigen Geschichten, die sich um diese Fotos ranken, werden von Ruby erzahlt. Und sie besitzt die Gabe, noch im Tragischen das Komische zu entdecken, eine Gabe, die ihr die Kraft gibt, zu uberleben und ihr Gluck zu finden.
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