Cloud Atlas at 20: What makes a novel tattoo-worthy?

Every author wants to write a book like David Mitchell’s Cloud Atlas. Two decades after it first hit the shelves, the author of Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow celebrates its daring, dazzling appealPity the writer who believes they have written the next Cloud Atlas! A literary agent once told me that when a fledgling writer compares their novel to David Mitchell’s, he invariably knows it will be awful. Once you have written a book like Cloud Atlas, you have not written Cloud Atlas because Cloud Atlas is not like anything.When the novel was published in 2004, critics compared it to everything. AS Byatt in the Guardian invokes Herman Melville, Raymond Chandler, Martin Amis, George Orwell and Ursula K Le Guin among others. Tom Bissell in the New York Times adds to the mix Cervantes, Defoe, Isherwood, William S Burroughs, and, in a last paragraph twist, James Joyce’s Ulysses. Theo Tait of the Telegraph writes in a rare negative review that “Cloud Atlas spends half its time wanting to be The Simpsons and the other half the Bible.” This line is funny more than apt, but had I read it at the time, it would have sold the book to me. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2024-04-06 10:00:31 UTC ]
News tagged with: #david mitchell #dazzling appealpity #critics compared #raymond chandler #martin amis #george orwell #le guin #tom bissell #mix cervantes #paragraph twist #james joyce #theo tait #telegraph writes #literary agent

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Microsoft inks another cloud gaming deal after the UK blocked its Activision takeover

Despite suffering a significant blow this week in its attempt to take over Activision Blizzard, Microsoft still believes it can get the job done. The company has signed a 10-year agreement with Spain-based cloud gaming provider Nware to make PC games it builds in-house available to stream on... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2023-04-28 17:25:18 UTC ]
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Practice Makes Perfect, and Also Nothing Matters: Emily St. John Mandel on Revision and Recklessness

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[ Literrary Hub | 2023-04-27 08:53:45 UTC ]
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Definitive proof that publishing your novel won’t make you happy.

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[ Literrary Hub | 2023-04-24 15:32:12 UTC ]
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Gadgets that make great Mother's Day gifts

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[ Engadget | 2023-04-24 13:15:33 UTC ]
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[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-04-17 04:00:00 UTC ]
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[ Book Riot | 2023-04-11 10:36:00 UTC ]
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[ The Guardian | 2023-04-05 05:00:25 UTC ]
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[ Literrary Hub | 2023-03-31 11:47:44 UTC ]
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Making Books Come Alive: Close-Up on Hardie Grant North America

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[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-03-31 04:00:00 UTC ]
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[ Book Riot | 2023-03-20 13:42:08 UTC ]
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[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-03-17 04:00:00 UTC ]
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This Week's Bestsellers: March 20, 2023

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[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-03-17 04:00:00 UTC ]
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[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-03-17 04:00:00 UTC ]
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[ Book Riot | 2023-03-16 10:31:00 UTC ]
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[ ABC News | 2023-03-06 02:32:30 UTC ]
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[ Fast Company | 2023-03-02 07:00:00 UTC ]
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[ Book Riot | 2023-02-20 16:40:35 UTC ]
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[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-02-17 05:00:00 UTC ]
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