This is the story of Ursula Todd, or rather, it is the many stories of Ursula Todd - for in Life After Life by Kate Atkinson, we see the central character live her life, again and again, but in a kaleidoscope of different variations. She is born during a snowstorm in England in 1910, and in one version, she dies before she even takes her first breath, and in others, she lives. Many of the core events are the same, it's how she reacts or is affected by them that changes. In the lives where she gets older, she often gets a feeling of deja vu, or sometimes dread, and this can influence what she does - either resulting in saving herself or saving others - or occasionally, both! Inevitably, at the end of each story, Ursula dies. It's how long it takes her to get there, and what she does in the meantime that leads the reader to start pondering a deep question. What if you got the chance to live your life over and over again - what might you do to change the course of your life? This is an intriguing book, and it almost like a series of short stories - it's just that each story has the same character and the same starting point ... that snowy night in 1910. Beautifully written, with some heartbreaking moments, it was a book I raced through, but didn't want to end. I almost wish that I hadn't read it, so that I would be in a position to read it for the first time again! This was not the feeling I thought I would have at the start, as I found the repetition of "going back to the start" a bit jarring, but it didn't take me long to be pulled into Ursula's many lives and start rooting for her to take different turns along the road. Well worth the effort of reading, this book is one that seems to be staying with me for some time after turning the last page.
POPSUGAR Challenge 2018 prompt 35: A past Goodreads Choice Awards winner.
My STAR rating: FIVE.
Length: 640 print pages.
Price I paid: FREE, borrowed from my husband.
Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, audio CD, ebook.
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