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Atonement | 
| Author: Ian Mcewan
Publisher: Vintage
Category: Book
List Price: £7.99
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Avg. Customer Rating:  48 reviews
Sales Rank: 2128
Media: Paperback
Edition: New edition
Pages: 384
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.7
Dimensions (in): 7.7 x 5 x 1
ISBN: 0099507382
EAN: 9780099507383
ASIN: 0099507382
Publication Date: August 9, 2007
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Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours
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| Customer Reviews: Read 43 more reviews...
 A thrilling read January 6, 2009
We are first introduced to the story through the eyes of a naïve, yet intelligent 13-year-old, Briony, the main character of Atonement and owner of an overly fruitful imagination. It is because of this and her sense of determination to act on her imagination that the story unravels, thus causing such pain and such great tension between members of her family. Having created such a disaster, the central part of the novel sees her returning to the midst of the anguish to atone for the mistakes she made in childhood. By the end of the novel, I had warmed to her; a conclusion I didn't think I would result in at the beginning, where she is portrayed as an unlikable brat.
Atonement is a sensational read, set over three time periods; this novel captures the lifestyle of an upper middle class family pre Second World War, whilst also managing to show the true hardness experienced during the war, in such a graphic, realistic way, it really pays tribute to those who fought in the war in such a way I have never experienced in War films nor books.
A great book is made phenomenal by the excellent writing and use of words so typical of McEwan, the theme of romance throughout the novel is portrayed in a more subtle way than most, although it is still obvious that it is a tale of love. . It has been argued that McEwan goes into too much detail where it isn't necessary. However, I believe that this novel would be enjoyed by anyone who is passionate about literature, of any age. This is a truly worthwhile read and possibly the peak of McEwan's work.
Simply Magnificent January 5, 2009
I've never completely understood how a person can get lost in a book until I read Atonement. Picking up this incredible novel by Ian McEwan changed my dull perception of books. From the start I was hooked. The language McEwan used captured the sense of the era, whilst still relating to the modern audience which made this book easy to read but still to the highest level of excitement. As I got carried away in the book, every detail changed the way I originally saw it in the film. Any questions you have from the film will disappear. This novel reawakens the sense of romance and long life love. If the film captured you imagination then the book will smash it.
This romantic novel explores emotions of love, guilt, shame and anger. Briony Tallis is a young, naïve girl and a perfectionist in everyway. She reads a letter from family friend Robbie Turner addressed to her sister Cecilia; one that Cecilia was never meant to read or receive. This mistake altered Cecilia's perceptions of him and took this seemingly odd couple on a romantic whirlwind which would last their lifetimes. Actions and events lead Briony to believe she saw something that would change the life of Robbie Turner forever.
The romantic twist within the epic war scene, the family dispute and how a person who saw one thing, but which was completely the opposite created somewhat drastic consequences, which McEwan wrote in an extremely believable and remarkable way.
The true meaning of "I'll wait for you, come back" is exceptionally powerful and makes this novel a must read.
 Dissatisfying Ending to a Disappointing Novel January 4, 2009
A muddled read with passages beginning from 1935 and ending in 1999. It is told from various points of view, which explains the story of Briony Tallis who wrongly accuses her older sister Cecilia's lover, Robbie Turner of a crime he didn't commit. Now older she wishes to atone and fix the mistakes she has made.
I feel McEwen doesn't spend enough time or focus on his characters he just flits carelessly from one to another therefore you lack time and content to find any empathy and understanding for them especially Cecilia and Robbie.
The only scenes in the novel that gripped my interest at all were of the protagonist Briony helping the soldiers on the nursing ward. One of the scenes of her and the dying French soldier was quite heart-rending and effectively put across the irony and sadness that they were both alone. Although similar scenes have been done in other war period style pieces and the authors have made them seem more authentic and gut wrenching, this applies to all the War scenes in this novel.
With an even further dissatisfying ending to the novel which closely resembles "It was only a dream" cliché. It was utterly pointless and after reading this book I am surprised that it has been made into a blockbuster film it seems more fitting to an ITV1 drama on a Weeknight. Do you know what I think would be a success? "The Trials of Arabella", I think you really do have a winner there Briony Tallis.
Word Count: 256
 Bit long winded September 24, 2008
I've never not finished a book once I've started it, but to be honest, I struggled with this one. At the start I didn't warm at all to any of the characters except for Robbie and what followed in the book enamoured me to them even less. But struggle I did and although I found the scenes in the lead up to Dunkirk very hard to read as they were so gruesome, I was glad I persevered. The last 100 pages more than made up for what came before. I'd read "On Chesil Beach" so was expecting the one pivotal moment in life aspect but it was so much more life altering in this book. It did stay with me long afterwards but I think the book could have been shortened a great deal without losing any of it's final impact.
 Disappointing and tedious September 21, 2008
I brought this as a holiday read purely on the basis of its hype and the fact that someone had clearly thought it worth investing money in to make a film. I was utterly disappointed; it was one of the most dull and overrated books I have ever read. It took until chapter nine for anything to actually occur, other than lethargic prose labouring the point that it was an awfully hot summer. So what? That was just rubbing the salt in. ;-)
The most annoying section of the book is the description of the evacuation from Dunkirk. It felt like McEwan was trying to raise the reader's consciousness by bringing in some gritty realism about the horrors of war, but this has been done so much more convincingly and sensitively by others (i.e. Sebastian Faulks, Pat Barker etc) that it just felt like a bid for the Booker. Call me a whiny old misery but I won't be reading anything else by McEwan again.
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