A God in Ruins (Todd Family #2) by Kate Atkinson
Summary (from the publisher): In Life After Life Ursula Todd lived through the turbulent events of the last century again and again. In A God in Ruins, Atkinson turns her focus on Ursula’s beloved younger brother Teddy – would-be poet, RAF bomber pilot, husband and father – as he navigates the perils and progress of the 20th century. For all Teddy endures in battle, his greatest challenge will be to face living in a future he never expected to have.
Review: In Atkinson's companion novel Life After Life, the story of Ursula Todd is detailed. In this companion novel, the focus shifts to Ursula's beloved younger brother Teddy Todd. Teddy becomes a RAF bomber pilot in World War II, with little hopes of surviving the war. But in this novel, he does survive and must face the challenge of life as a husband and father, roles he nearly gave up hope that he would ever hold.
The chapters in this novel are arranged almost like a shuffled deck of cards. Rather than any sort of chronological order, the story weaves in and out, jumping from old age to childhood and every phase in between. While this structure is unusual and took some getting used to, it functioned surprisingly well. It almost felt as if the omniscient narrator was roving back through Teddy's memories, filling in gaps and telling his stories in fits and starts, more like one's memory actually operates rather than a clear start to finish narration.
As tremendously likeable and endearing as Teddy is, adored by nearly all those around him, his daughter Viola is overwhelmingly dislikable and unpleasant. It felt like an immense tragedy that such a good man would have such a wretched person as his only child. A major theme of this novel was the lack of respect and dignity offered to the elderly and Teddy definitely falls prey to this phenomenon in old age thanks to Viola. At the same time, she's incredibly cruel in the treatment of her children, especially when they were young, so there's really no happy age to be around Viola. I commend Atkinson on creating a character that is so immensely terrible but yet not exactly evil, which is a tricky nuance that only a talented author can handle.
I was surprised that Ursula had such a marginal role in this book, however, it is very convenient that the novels are companion ones rather than novel and sequel. I truly believe they could be read in any order or appreciated fully on their own. In many ways, Ursula's story was heavily focused on her childhood whereas Teddy's story was more centered on his life after the war, which explains the lack of overlap in the stories shared.
But it is the ending of this novel that earned it the five stars for me. The conclusion is heart-stopping, throw-the-book-across-the-room type moment. I can think of no more profoundly moving way the author could have illustrated the gravity of the loss of life during war than the way this book was written and concluded. An absolutely masterful and heart-wrenching finale.
Stars: 5
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