September 11, 2007

  • I'm not sure if more British writers are getting published or maybe I'm reading more of their works because I now live in London. Maybe both reasons are valid.  But I seem to feel like every book I read is more or less the same (even some of the American ones have copied the same theme).  I'm sure a lot of other authors have been influenced by McEwan's Atonement 'masterpiece' but since I am just now reading his book - I feel like he is being unoriginal but perhaps he was quite original back in 2001 when the book was published.  Upper middle class English family living in the countryside during the early to mid-1900s.  A restless youth has their world changed by war.  The men may not survive battle but the women are also dealing with their own battles at home.  Family secrets tearing people apart. The surprise twist ending.  It was all there in Atonement along with other books I've read in recent memory.  McEwan's style of writing is meant to set him apart I'm sure.  But I can't appreciate his writing style which to me is over-descriptive and too showy.  When a writer throws words and descriptions around, it makes me feel like they are trying to impress me when their usage of the Oxford English dictionary and this detracts from the story.  I don't feel like McEwan has added much to the pot in terms of storytelling skills but perhaps his writing style is quite widely admired although I am not in agreement. 

    I did some quick five second research on Amazon US and Amazon UK to see if perhaps more people in London do read British authors.  My scan of the top 25 books on each site has yielded the below findings, none of which help solve my mystery.  

    In order of importance to each side of the pond, from most to least important:

    The Brits love cookbooks, want to know how to get rich, and want tips on how to be a good mum.

    The Americans (of course) also want to know how to get rich, need self-help as well (most interesting title being The Mystery Method: How to Get Beautiful Women Into Bed), and then the surprise topic of interest - Mother Teresa: Come Be My Light.  The #5 book on Amazon.com!   You won't find many people interested in that here.  That book is ranked 1,645 on Amazon UK. 

    Anyways, on Atonement, I rate it 3 out of five.