Reviews

Not the End of the World by Kate Atkinson

charlotte_3082's review against another edition

3.0

for a children's book, it was pretty dark at times.

melissakuzma's review against another edition

4.0

NOTE: I listened to this on audio

I almost gave up on this after the first couple of stories because I totally wasn't GETTING them and having a hard time following them, but then suddenly they got really good. I love a fantasy element mixed into an otherwise realistic story, and this collection has got lots of that! I suspect this one will stay with me for a long time. Very unique!

booksaremysuperpower's review

2.0

Sadly, this is not one of Kate Atkinson's finest. I'm normally not a fan of short story fiction anyway, but I tend to follow Atkinson to the ends of the earth so I figured this book would be worth a try. Some of the stories are, of course, more interesting than others, and she does make a sort of half-hearted yet valiant attempt to connect a few of the stories together with the odd character popping up again and again, but it's not a cohesive effort and came off as slightly lazy, in my opinion, because none of the characters were ever fully developed. Only one story really piqued my interest enough for me to long for it to turn into a full-length novel.

I am mostly disappointed because she is still such a fantastic writer with a gift (she's truly gifted!) for rich language and humor. Her storytelling skills are usually top-notch. If you are new to the Kate Atkinson canon, please forego "Not the End of the World". A worthy start, but her later books are much, MUCH better.

rebeccarjallen's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

This book was actually much darker than I expected it to be. I was anticipating a relatively light hearted imagining of what it might have been like on Noah's ark. Instead, there are moments of real brutal desperation, and provacative exploration of devour faith. I would really recommend this book to children and adults, as I think you could get very different things out of it depending on your current experiences of the world. 

zoemaja's review

5.0

Is there anything Kate Atkinson can't do better than anyone else, backward and in heels? This book, while not quite as life changing as Life After Life, was really just as brilliant. But its brilliance sneaks up on you. You think you are reading a collection of unrelated but interesting stories, only to have the connections and themes add up until you get to the end and the extent of her brilliance is made apparent.
More than any of her books, this one makes me wish Kate Atkinson was my friend. I want to hang out with her and talk about Buffy. She is clearly a big fan and the twin themes of Greek mythology and Buffy the Vampire Slayer fit so beautifully together I wonder why nobody has written such a thing before. But then nobody else is as clever as Kate. I'm going to call her Kate in my head from now on, I don't think she will mind. There is a bond among Buffy fans after all.

library book, kindle

slipperose's review

reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

This is a collection of short stories, loosely connected to each other and generally gathered around a few common themes. I don’t read a lot of short stories, and I’m not sure I would have picked this collection up if it weren’t by Kate Atkinson. As usual, her writing is top notch, and I ended up very much enjoying it!

siria's review against another edition

4.0

An enjoyable and intertwined collection of seemingly short stories, Not the End of the World looks at exactly that: apocalypses and minor deaths, families and friends and lovers in modern day Britain who are tangled together by myth both classical (Zeus, Artemis, Athene) and modern (Buffy). Atkinson's writing is strong enough to support echoes and reflections of classical and Egyptian myth without ever losing its subtlety. Yet everything is connected to everything else, with the final story leaving you wondering if you've been reading a book of short stories, or a novel. Really good stuff.

jokos's review against another edition

3.0

Quick read. Story was so unflinchingly focused on a few of the main characters that I barely even notice the others, which is probably the point as Noah would normally be the main character. But made for a slightly unsatisfying and biased-feeling story.
Very cleverly written though, enjoyed the animal perspectives. McCaughrean is clearly very talented.

mardy_bum's review against another edition

A ‘bible’ story written from a non-bible point of view. I actually didn’t want to read any more about how horrible a god and people can be. Stopped reading after 30 odd pages.

kdhanda's review

5.0

A quirky collection of short stories: each one a bit strange, some with magical realism and others rather far on spectrum of imagination. Fun read.