After a week of not posting, I’m diving back in with my thoughts on the first half of David Mitchell’s Cloud Atlas. My brain just might explode from the effort.
So Care and Melissa organized a readalong of Cloud Atlas, and since the book was sitting on the Shelf of Doom, I figured it was meant to be that I join in (if I was a more poetic person, I might use the word serendipity). We were to read the first half of the book by March 15th (which I did…I’m just a wee bit behind in the posting). And okay, I’ve finished the book already, but you’ll just have to wait until the end of the month for the rest of my thoughts. Hah!
The book: Cloud Atlas is often described as a series of nested stories. In the first half of the book, we’re introduced to five of our six characters and the first half of their stories. The stories are chronological, and fair warning, I’m about to give it all away:
The Pacific Journal of Adam Ewing
Adam Ewing, an American notary, recounts his experiences in the Chatham Islands (near about New Zealand) and his voyage home. This section is godawful boring (Adam is a priggish boor), which explains why I’ve quit this book before. But Care assured me that it gets better, so I soldiered ahead. And found:
Letters from Zedelghem
Robert Frobisher is a bisexual, gambling, scheming young composer cast out from his family and the family money (daddy is a religious man, hence the casting out). Desperate for some money and a place to stay, he flees London for Belgium and talks himself into a position helping a syphilitic composer continue to compose. Robert writes letters home to his former lover (my conclusion based on the Luisa story that comes later), Rufus Sixsmith. After the priggish ramblings of Mr. Ewing, Robert is great fun. He also stumbles across Adam Ewing’s journal. Inexplicably, he finds it entertaining.
Half-Lives: The First Luisa Rey Mystery.
Next up we have Luisa Rey, a young journalist living in Buenas Yerbas (a mythical city somewhere in California). Luisa is trapped in an elevator with Rufus Sixsmith (see above), who sets her on a story of corruption and cover-ups in the nuclear power industry. Luisa also stumbles upon a rare recording of the Cloud Atlas Sextet, composed by, you guessed it, Robert Frobisher. A note on Buenas Yerbas…I got the impression it was big, like LA, but also set between LA and San Francisco, which puts it in the vicinity of San Luis Obispo (my stomping grounds). Did you know we have a nuclear power plant here? Diablo Canyon (seriously, that’s the name). We also have an earthquake fault. Genius, no? Moving on…
The Ghastly Ordeal of Timothy Cavendish
Timothy Cavendish is a broke indie publisher who strikes it rich when his client offs a reviewer who pissed him of. And by offed, I mean chucked him over a balcony at a party, which turns out to be a sure-fire way to have your book make the best-seller list. After his client lands in jail, the client’s brothers come after Cavendish for money. Which he doesn’t have. After he appeals to his brother for help, his brother sends him off on vacation to escape the heat. However, it turns out the brother has him committed to a retirement home. And because we need some connection to Luisa, Cavendish has in his possession the manuscript “Half-Lives: The First Luisa Rey Mystery.” Are you starting to see how this works?
An Orison of Sonmi~451
Suddenly we’re in the future with Sonmi~451, a clone who works as a server in a cafeteria (evidently, it’s meant to be McDonald’s, but I missed that). I did finally figure out that the setting was Korea (aka Nea So Copros). Turns out Sonmi is quite the rebel. Her orison (speech or prayer) is the tale of how she became enlightened and tried to speak out for the rights of clones everywhere. In the midst of her enlightenment and rabble-rousing, she watches part of a movie: “The Ghastly Ordeal of Timothy Cavendish.” It was at this point that I was both 1) enthralled by Sonmi and where the story was going (because the world is in a world of hurt in Sonmi’s future) and 2) disturbed by the possibility that everyone’s story was just a story.
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So that’s the first half of Cloud Atlas. With the exception of the first story, I absolutely loved it. Robert and Luisa were initially my favorites, but Timothy grew on me, and Sonmi was great in a baffling, “what the hell is going on here” kind of way. I ended the first half and had to keep going…I wanted to find out what happened to everyone!
And in true softdrink fashion, I was less concerned with the themes. There are some recurring themes and symbols in the book (birthmarks and reincarnation, clouds, the fate of the planet…you know…serious shit like that), but I was just in it for the story.
Check back in later this month to see how that worked out for me in the end.
APPLAUSE! Loved your explanation of what’s happened so far! We have another readalonger from California who was picky (maybe not the right word) about the mythical-Buenas Yerba.
How did you figure out Korea? I was thinking Japan (cuz of the PapaSong = papa-san) but needed Meronym (who I am (unfortunately?) seeing as Halle Berry when she speaks) her explanation of Somni so these ARE real stories and not just ‘stories’ to fuel the next story. I want to assume it is all ‘real’.
I also see a theme of FALLING. Falling off cliffs, balconies, the endoftheworld called THE FALL, Adam into the pit climbing the mountain? I bet there are others I’m not thinking of yet. GOOD ONE, Softdrink.
And why oh why is Slooshin Crossing section so LOONNNNGGGgggg. ugh. I can’t wait to get to Somni again.
If you go back in the Cavendish section, he makes an offhand comment about the Korean’s and a cloning experiment. I have a different edition than everyone else (the reddish pink cover from the UK) so the pages might not be the same, but it’s on page 170 of mine, so it’s probably a couple of pages before or after.
Thx, I missed that.
I somehow missed that Frobisher was bisexual. I didn’t pick up on the relationship between him and Sixsmith. I just assumed that they were close friends. It is inexplicable that he finds Adam Ewing’s journal interesting especially as he seems to be a pretty interesting guy himself. They were sooooo boring.
I missed the McDonald’s thing the first time I read it also. It just mentioned golden arches once. I didn’t see any other references to it, but I may have missed them. Like you, I get more wrapped up in the story and don’t always try to tease out themes and ideas.
Glad you liked it! I’m excited to hear what everyone’s thoughts when they finish.
Regarding the bisexuality: Recall the ‘spud-faced young steward’, when Frobisher boarded the boat across the channel? ~page 46, He came a-knocking on the door after his shift was over in the end of the next paragraph… And then another ‘encounter’ where he went into town to sell a book, approx page 74: ‘…smiled that smile and put his hairy paw on my knee.’. And then later: ‘Left (him) asleep an hour later and his wallet starved.’
I only looked briefly at your review- I don’t know why, as I don’t really mind spoilers at all. But it seemed like the right thing to do. But THANK YOU for explaining this book to me- I totally thought it was one massive novel.
Holy Update Batman! This is awesome. I’m tempted to just read your next update instead of making my way through Sloosha.
I’m also a bit worried that everyone’s story is just a story. I sure hope not…
I read this with my book club and THANK GOD I did. I would never have been able to do this alone, so it IS serendipitous that you read it for a readalong. That was the definite way to go.
So, even after reading this all and discussing, I still don’t think I really GOT it all. I think it’s way too advanced for my simpleton brain. And I mean “simpleton” in the way that I’m not an idiot but just don’t really CARE enough to get super involved in a complicated, thematic story. So while I wasn’t completely miserable with this book and did really enjoy discussing it, I don’t think my reading interests are intellectual enough to really delve deep and truly enjoy this one as the “contemporary masterpiece” it has been deemed.
PS, I just found this and it made me think to come back and show you. I am skeptical on how this will translate on film…but I do love Tom Hanks probably more than most 26-year-olds. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1371111/
I am so grateful I’m reading this with all of you. Otherwise I would miss SO much! I missed the McDonald’s thing, Robert being bisexual, the fact that Sonmi is Korean (I thought Japanese too), etc. It’s amazing to be able to compare notes with everyone and see what stood out to people.
Like you, I’m enjoying the story and sometimes I think I’m not focusing on the BIG PICTURE stuff as much as I should. I think it’s interesting that the very first section (Adam) and the middle section (Sloosha) and by far the most boring. It’s like Mitchell wants us to work to “earn” the rest of the book. I’m hoping Adam’s final section is better. Can’t wait to hear your thoughts on the rest of the book!
Thanx for all the comments about Cloud Atlas. I first ear-read it as an audio and found it puzzling with the interrupted narratives. I bought the book and found it easier to read as a series of complete stories, i.e, read both halves of Ewing, then read both halves of Frobisher, then read both halves of Luisa Rey, et al. I’d enjoy reading comments about any added enjoyment anyone gets from reading it as printed, i.e, the 5 first halves, Sloosh, the 5 second halves in reverse.
also, I tried to read Yerbas Buenas as an abstraction of San Francisco because of the takeoff on SF’s first Spanish name [it was Chut=Chi before the Spanish invasion]. I’ve never been to San Luis Obispo Is Yerbas Buenas a version of SLO?
I find puzzling through CA similar in experience to working out the geographical details in the two novels featuring Barcelona by Ruiz Zafon [CITY OF ANGELS, SHADOW OF THE WIND]
and also V by Pynchon
Softdrink: I couldn’t locate your comments on the second half of CA. Are they available?
anyone else’s?