Rating: 
Summary: Ouch
Review: There are some very odd things about this interesting book. We don't really have a protagonist that you can identify with. What we have is an immature young girl who unintentionally "bears false witness", incriminating an innocent man and sending him to jail. Because of this, it is a dark book. There are no heroes. Just a big OH NOOOOOOOOOOOOO.Another oddity of the book is that we are given two completely different endings, which reminds me of Life Of Pi. First we get the ending that we are prepared to accept. Then in a sort of afterward, we are told that the ending we just read is not the real one, and that the real one is in fact much worse, much less satisfactory. As I said before, this is an interesting book. But it is also an exercise in banging your head against the wall.
Rating: 
Summary: A writer's look at what has meaning and what is reality
Review: I am perhaps too close to having finished this book to be able to write with acuity about it. But before the first impressions fade, let me say flatly that McEwan is a great traditional novelist. His understanding of character, place and plot puts him among the best I've read. Many of the 358 other reviewers have described the action of the book, so I won't. My admonition to all potential readers is simply this: make no judgments until you've finished. The levels of truth, fiction, fantasy and conscious, convenient revisionism in the narration will give you a lot to think about. This is book to be reread. Don't miss it.
Rating:
Summary: Master of prose and plot
Review: Seldom do I find a book that is as intriguing as this one to just lose oneself in. I was reminded of Jane Austen in the long descriptive passages that so clearly invoked the individual personalities of the characters. Without going into any details of the plot (I wouldn't want to spoil it for anyone), I would like to state that I was not entirely surprised by the ending. The part that puzzled me the most, although I was grateful for the apparent accuracy, was Briony's experience as a student nurse and her performance when the soldiers arrived from Dunkirk. Briony was imaginative and unpredictable. Her behavior during the stern discipline and harsh reality of the hospital wards was not in keeping with her nature. I found it difficult to believe that she could be so structured. It was easy, however, to believe that she could not find the courage to admit the wrong she had committed against her dearest friends and relations. As for the wrong itself, I think everyone was guilty--the adults for not questioning her more closely, the police for taking a child's testimony verbatim, Lola for not speaking the truth, painful as it might have been. Briony was not the only one to seek atonement; she was surrounded by a conspiracy of silence. Perhaps the theme is that there is no atonement, only the struggle to live with guilt. In the end, MacEwan is writing about writers and, along the way, showing us how it is done.
Rating:
Summary: Needs no atonement, a novelist's delight
Review: Just about anyone who has written a novel, or has ever wanted to, will easily identify with the main character in Atonement. In the beginning, in 1935, the creative thirteen-year-old Briony Tallis is enjoying a childhood filled with private imaginings, which are sometimes converted into public performances. Her story is told in three stages: at thirteen, eighteen, and seventy-seven. The essence of the story is what motivates a novelist -- why do we write? In many cases, we share Briony's insoluble passion: the search for atonement. The word "atone" is a compounding of the phrase "at one," and, following her offense, this is Briony's goal, to be once more at one with the loved ones she has harmed. But even with all her talent, commitment and skills, how can she bring about the outcome for which she so desperately yearns? How can she bring together the lovers she has parted, and thereby regain their love as well? In Ian McEwan's books, the villans sometimes get off the hook, at least in this life. So the reader should not be too surprised that in Atonement, the guilty are either enjoying a life of successful bliss, or trying to find atonement for irreparable damage to loved ones. The first half of the book is evocative of Remains of the Day in that the "battles" are all social, while the second half of the book switches back and forth between Briony, as she tries to atone for her crime, and Robbie Turner, the son of a family servant, as he flees from the Germans, toward Dunkirk, holding on to his hope of being reunited with his lover, Briony's sister, Cecilia. The writing is deep and rich, the images of war unforgettable. The ending is both surprising and haunting. Atonement is more than worthwhile, it is a must read for thinkers and imaginative people, especially novelists.
Rating: 
Summary: A beautiful book
Review: This is a lovely story that does suffer from a certain preciousness. The characters and situations may not always ring true, but I still found myself caring immensely about them. The first and third parts stand out from the middle, which seems a bit convoluted and muddled.
Rating: 
Summary: Manipulative and Mean
Review: The beginning and ending of the book were manipulative and mean. In the end the decent people were trashed. One might say this is reality. The problem is that the beginning was a mass of artifice to create a "realistic" ending. The hints of "a crime" and the intimations of disaster were drawn out page after page. The middle of the book, telling of the retreat to Dunkirk and the description of Briony as a nurse in the hospital were the redeeming features of the novel. The rest was aggravating and maybe a wee bit pretentious.
Rating:
Summary: Unique and compelling
Review: Atonement is one of those novels that takes you to another place and leaves you there, long after the cover is closed. These characters will linger in your thoughts as you work out their choices and consequences and fates. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to be so entraced!
Rating:
Summary: McEwan's best book to date
Review: I find reviews from readers who find this book "slow" quite amusing. I think TV might be more their speed. And I *really* love the reviews from people who didn't understand the ending! Wow! Poor Ian McEwan, forced to please the "loving mommies" and others out there who should stick to romance novels. This is one of the most well-crafted works of literature in recent years, with a heartbreaking twist at the end. Highly recommended.
Rating: 
Summary: Atonement
Review: I selected this book because of the rave reviews and numerous awards it received. HOW?????? I could NOT get through it. Too many words to describe too little of anything. I will never pick up another Ian McEwan novel.
Rating:
Summary: Atonement Is a Thinking Person's Novel
Review: Despite the mixed reviews on amazon.com, I really enjoyed Atonement by Ian McEwan. I think that the mixed reviews are due to the different expectations people have when they decide to read a novel. Some people expect to be entertained and carried along by a story from start to finish. Others readers like a book that unfolds for them and are willing to "work" a little bit for the opportunity to experience something unique. I believe that people with the former expectations do not and will not enjoy Atonement. However, if you fall into the latter category, you will appreciate this book. McEwan's main character Briony is a writer (albeit a young one at the start of the novel). The sub-plot of the novel addresses the god-like powers, for better or for worse, a writer has over reality. Any writer (professional or dabbler) will empathize with Briony as she discovers the pleasures and wrestles with the consequences of twisting reality. I refuse to discuss the main storyline (although other reviewers have if you are really curious) because it is better to go into the book "blind". However, you should know that based on plot alone, Atonement would be considered average. The praise that has been heaped upon this book is due to the way McEwan tells the story and the resulting sub-plot. Thus, to appreciate this novel one must be prepared do some independent thinking and not expect to be spoon fed. Definitely a thinking person's novel, but well worth the "work".
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