Awards
2015 Costa Book of the Year
Staff Pick
Atkinson's companion to Life after Life lives up to that fantastic novel (a tall order indeed). A God in Ruins tells the story of Teddy, the beloved brother of Ursula and a pilot in WWII. His family, loves, struggles, and dreams are detailed with Atkinson's penetrating prose and inventive vision. Recommended By Jill O., Powells.com
Synopses & Reviews
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.
Review
"Only as the book unfolds is each character more fully revealed. Ms. Atkinson's artistry in making this happen is marvelously delicate and varied." New York Times
Review
"She also continues to write, as she did in Life after Life, about the savagery of war in clarion prose that is graphic in detail and possessed of a singular melancholy. And whether it is the stoic Teddy, his practical wife, his unbelievably selfish daughter, or his neglected grandchildren, every one of Atkinson's characters will, at one moment or another, break readers' hearts." Booklist
Review
"A grown-up, elegant fairy tale...a humane vision of people in all their complicated splendor." Kirkus
Review
"Atkinson isn't just telling a story: she's deconstructing, taking apart the notion of how we believe stories are told. Using narrative tricks that range from the subtlest sleight of hand to direct address, she makes us feel the power of storytelling not as an intellectual conceit, but as a punch in the gut." Publishers Weekly
About the Author
Kate Atkinson is the internationally bestselling author of eight novels, including Case Histories, One Good Turn, When Will There Be Good News?, Started Early, Took My Dog, and Life After Life.
She lives in Edinburgh.