Atonement by Ian McEwan

9/10

I'm usually not a big fan of newer books, books written recently, for whatever reason. I am forever unable to get with the times. I think it's because newer books seem to always be pretty risque and push the envelope in lame ways to shock the reader or something. I loved this book, however. And I guess it was risque in it's own right, but there was something to it that made it not so lame. I think McEwan's writing style is what won me over. He is very descriptive and doesn't write like a 21st century author. In fact, he has a very Jane Austen feel to him, and yes, that is a compliment.

The book is about a young, imaginative girl who accuses her sister's new boyfriend of a crime he may or may not have committed. She convinces herself that she clearly saw what she saw, and it is her testimony that eventually leads to some serious life-changing events in the young man's life, as well as her sister's. The way the story unfolds is all very interesting and makes one wonder how clearly some past events actually unfolded.

The book is tremendously fascinating, almost perfectly written, and contains one of the most surprising and cool plot twists I've seen. Sorry to give away that there is a plot twist, now you, dear reader, will be looking for it. But I confound you to see it coming.

This book was also adapted into a very well-done movie.

Some quotes:

"Self-pity needed her full attention."

"It wasn't only wickedness and scheming that made people unhappy, it was confusion and misunderstanding; above all, it was the failure to grasp the simple truth that other people are as real as you."

"He was happy and therefore bound to succeed."

"Truth was strange and deceptive, it had to be struggled for, against the flow of the everyday."