Please read this whilst listening to either of these 2 pieces of music (cloud atlas sextet for the book) or (cloud atlas sextet for the film)

“Our lives are not our own. We are bound to others, past and present, and by each crime and every kindness, we birth our future.” – Adam Ewing

Cloud atlas is a story about the interconnection of lives. The book takes the form of 6 different stories in 6 different styles from 6 different time periods; I will give a brief summary so that you can understand a bit more.

• The Pacific journal of Adam Ewing – 1849 // The Diary entries of an attorney Adam Ewing, on his voyage to the islands of the south pacific to find the benefactor of a will. The journal details his thoughts and feelings, his illness and his experiences of life at sea. His journal is found in 2 parts by Robert Frobisher.
• Letters from Zedelghem – 1931 // Letters from a composer Robert Frobisher to his companion Rufus Sixsmith detailing his travels to Belgium in search of an old composer Vyvyan Ayrs, from which to make his fortune. His letters are Read by Luisa Rey, given to her in 2 sets by Sixmith in his old age.
• Half-Lives: The First Luisa Rey Mystery – 1975 // A mystery novel about a journalist named Luisa Rey as she gets caught up in a conspiracy with an energy corporation and an unsafe power station. The First script of the book is read by Timothy Cavendish who is a publisher.
• The Ghastly Ordeal of Timothy Cavendish – present day (2004) // A story in first person through the eyes of Timothy Cavendish, his dealings with debt collectors and incarceration in an old folks home. His story is made into a film watched by Sonmi-451.
• An Orison of Sonmi-451 – pre-apocalyptic future // An orison (recorded holographic interview) between Sonmi-451 and an archivist detailing the events before her capture. Sonmi-451 is one of a race of subservient clones who gains sentience outwith the normal clones and is rescued from her slavery. The teachings of Sonmi have ascender her to a religious figure believed in by Zachary’s tribe in the post apocalyptic future.
• Sloosha’s Crossin’ an’ Ev’rythin’ After – post apocalyptic future // A story told by word of mouth from the main character Zachary to his children. His account details his life on his island with his tribe, the coming of a stranger from a different land and his tribe’s destruction.

Like drawing many strings out of different yarns and then weaving them together in reverse order, cloud atlas is told in 11 parts, the first halves of the first 5 stories, the whole of Sloosha’s crossin’ and then the second halves of the stories going backwards down the time line. For some books this would make them wholly unreadable, but for cloud atlas it worked although I must confess to finding my mind stretched to remember all the characters and events of Pacific journal and Letters from Zedelghem by the time the stories re-crossed my path. Also the connections between stories at times just had to be guessed at, the whole novel is at times an effort in keeping all the information in your head and maybe through this some of the finer nuances of the story are lost in transition. The broader aspects of the story connections however are easily followed and very specifically pointed out which whilst a little jarring at times really do deepen the story more. being able to pick out how characters interactions have changed depending upon their knowledge of one of the other time streams is also interesting especially as in most of the stories the character is only given as much of the story as we are in the first half of their books. The Pacific Journal actually ends mid sentence and Robert Frobisher finds the book torn in two. This certainly adds to the experience overall as slightly breaks the 4th wall and includes your own reading in the actual structure of the novel, quite an interesting narrative mechanism and one that works surprisingly well.

“Three or four times only in my youth did I glimpse the Joyous Isles, before they were lost to fogs, depressions, cold fronts, ill winds, and contrary tides… I mistook them for adulthood. Assuming they were a fixed feature in my life’s voyage, I neglected to record their latitude, their longitude, their approach. Young ruddy fool. What wouldn’t I give now for a never-changing map of the ever-constant ineffable? To possess, as it were, an atlas of clouds.”  – Timothy Cavendish

The themes in cloud atlas vary although the main idea is pervasive, the interconnectedness of humanity. This point is made through 2 main ideas; analysing the effect of people’s actions on other people across the course of humanity; and through the souls journey with an idea of re-incarnation. The soul and re-incarnation idea is quite overt, the main characters of each story all having a comet shaped birthmark and so being theoretically linked with the idea that the same soul inhabits each person. I think this is a little hard to see however apart from being outright told it with the birthmarks and characters making specific remarks about how they relate to other characters. The re-incarnation idea comes off as a little forced at times painfully contrived and doesn’t unite the stories together that well even if it that was the intention. However I find this aspect of the novel merely the vector by which the much deeper and more fantastic currents of the story are conveyed. The book, as previously stated, is about the interconnectedness of humanity, how the actions of one may affect the lives of many. The actions, choices and lives of each protagonist have dramatic effects not only by changing the world around themselves but also in the effect that the records of their lives have on their readers in the subsequent chapters. These connections are the really substantial meals for the mind, tracing the actions and effects between stories is both intriguing and at times solemn. The story does well at providing both the consequences of the positive and negative actions of the characters on their surroundings and also the timeline.

I also believe the book to be quite specifically allegorical for as an analysis of different themes and the real impact of decisions on the development of humanity. The book deals with the idea of slavery, first with Adam Ewing who, seeing the treatment of slaves decides that he wants to bring about a different world where people may live free and equal. He also points out at the end of the book that he might have very little impact but that at times the actions of few may affect the world for many. This message is reflected in the Orison of Sonmi-451 where she is a cloned slave, and in the account of Zachary post apocalypse. Ewing says that a humanity that is essentially predatory is a humanity that will one day swallow itself whole; and  indeed humanity returns to slavery, be it under the guise of cloning, only decades before it generates its own downfall. Humanity is seen to become so abusive, and self obsessed that it ceases to function for its own good and slides ineffably into unresistant destruction. Indeed in the time of Sonmi the world has become a ‘corpocracy’ a world entirely devoted to wealth and pleasure, controlled by corporate greed in a way that echoes both the mindless triviality obsessed people of A Brave New world and the chilling brutality of 1984. I’m fairly convinced that the book is intended to hit minds of readers as a caveat for the future and an allegory for how our decisions do matter. In part it feels like an entire novel written to examine John Donne’s ‘for whom the bell tolls’. This is also where the title comes in, the comparison is made that the ever-changing nature of humanity and civilisation is like having an ‘Atlas of Clouds’, a beautiful metaphor that underpins the book well.

“A half-read book is a half-finished love affair.” – Robert Frobisher

Each book is extremely different in style, from the old style language and rhetoric of Ewing in 1849 to the Slang (and yes, the whole account of Zachary is written in slang) of Sloosha’s Crossin’. I feel a mention must be made the astonishing talent of the voice actors of the audio book in this case who brought so much life to each piece that the character became almost tangible in my mind: it seems my love for the spoken word may ever increase. This dear friends, is a book to be listened to, like a cabinet of fine wine for the ears. Anyway, the style varies greatly here I will make comment on each.

• The Pacific journal of Adam Ewing – 1849 // Beautifully written as a period piece, the language, though initially hard to comprehend, possesses incredible richness. Also on a personal note Adam Ewing is a rarity in terms of novel protagonists as an actually interesting, morally good and consistent Christian character, surprisingly rare in modern literature. From brutality to thoughtful and measured passion Ewing’s journal is skilfully constructed and a joy to read, and contains easily my favourite pages in the whole book, which happen to be the last.
• Letters from Zedelghem – 1931 // Frobisher is hilarious, a mischievous, amoral cad but lovable also. This story possesses the second of the 3 saddest moments of the entire novel, it comes suddenly but what is key is that it comes about because Frobisher reads the second half of Ewing’s journal; this is the novels unity at its best.
• Half-Lives: The First Luisa Rey Mystery – 1975 // Odd to read as it is in formal chapters unlike any other part of the book, also you are reading a novel in a novel, 10 out of 10 for intertextuality but it’s a little mind-baking when placed in context of the other stories as it is the only story told as fiction in the canon of the novel. Also I found the characters a little harder to follow here than in other places, especially through conversations.
• The Ghastly Ordeal of Timothy Cavendish – present day (2004) // Fun to read in somewhat a similar way to Letter from Zedelghem, Cavendish is a well portrayed character, not good but still on an adventure and a victim of circumstance. For the genre it is meant to portray it does well; also the descriptions of Cavendish’s experience of the UK transport system are painfully familiar.
• An Orison of Sonmi-451 – pre-apocalyptic future // Chilling and superbly constructed, each question of the Orison giving a new level or excerpt of information about the Sonmi situation. Genuinely intense and never losing pace, I found it very hard to stop listening at any point. Incredibly intriguing with the allegorical nature of the novel heaviest here, the ending is a dramatic twist, both marvellously executed and heart-rendingly sad.
• Sloosha’s Crossin’ an’ Ev’rythin’ After – post apocalyptic future // Written entirely in slang, which impressed me no end, and imparts a really acute feeling of tribalism and personal storytelling to the narrative as if you are just another one of Zachary’s children hearing the story round a fire from him as an old man. Abounding in description and theme, this was excellent.

Despite any criticism levelled at the novel I loved this book, it kept my interest for a long time. It is odd reading 5 half stories twice, but it delivers well and certainly intrigues. Amidst rich and believable characters, is found a fascination of a story that I would whole heartedly recommend. Stories should have the power to affect and shape our emotions not necessarily to make us feel good but just to make us feel. The range of human emotion is indeed a rich one and this book takes the reader from ecstatic and jubilant joy to poignant and solemn sorrow. If anybody reads a book and takes nothing from it, the shape of their life un-altered by concept and character then I would question that they had really read the book at all. To read this book and feel nothing for the characters would be to rob both the self and the novel of its humanity.

Were I to meet David Mitchell (notably not the comedian) I would shake his hand, he is a genius to be able to write so consistently in all 6 styles and construct the meta-narrative so well, he has my utmost admiration.

“If we believe that humanity may transcend tooth & claw, if we believe diverse races & creeds can share this world as peaceably as the orphans share their candlenut tree, if we believe leaders must be just, violence muzzled, power accountable & the riches of the Earth & its Oceans shared equitably, such a world will come to pass.” — Adam Ewing

There is a film (click here for trailer) of Cloud atlas coming out later in February  I will of course be going to see it but as with most films of long or complex novels the film story is a little different to the books including some of the relationships and even some of the locations the events take place.  Also it is being directed by the people who made the Matrix, so i think its going to be a fairly intense interpretation of the book. At present i cant decide if that is a good or a  bad thing, the book was initially called ‘un-filmable’ due to the dramatic genre changes over the course of the film but by the looks of things they coped. Interesting choice to use the same actors for each story, if it’s done well then it will be very good, done badly and it will be an absolute mess. Still the trailer looks good, im glad that its being made into a film, i enjoyed the book so much by audio that by video it may be yet another level of enjoyment of the characters.

I leave you with the last sentence of the book, the last quote of the Pacific diary of Adam Ewing.

“My life amounts to no more than one drop in a limitless ocean. Yet what is any ocean, but a multitude of drops?” – Adam Ewing