I just finished Station Eleven, by Emily St. John Mandel.
(screen shot from Amazon.com)
It’s post-apocalypic fiction, and I really liked everything about it. I liked how she shifted around, in time and between characters, and the way the shifts felt more like a relief than like a distraction or gimmick. I liked the way she built the story, and I liked the connections that were gradually revealed. I liked the particular assortment of story lines. I liked the omniscient stuff, when she’d suddenly tell us that character x would die two days later on the road out of town or whatever. I thought about it whenever I wasn’t reading it. I wanted MORE; I was very sad when it ended.
I just read A Constellation of Vital Phenomena by Anthony Marra. It is terribly good. Oddly, the favored traits you are describing about Station Eleven are very similar to the ones I liked about A Constellation of Vital Phenomena; lots of omniscience, hopping around between characters, and moving back and forth in time over about 10 years. It’s not post-apocalyptic, but it is set in Chechnya in the early 2000’s and there is a lot of pain and death and destruction.
I found it unique, except that now you’re describing your recent enjoyable read in the same way I felt about mine! Humph. Oh well. Now maybe I’ll read Station Eleven to make it feel like Constellation didn’t end!
I think Station Eleven was my favorite book of the year. Adah, for what it’s worth, A Constellation of Vital Phenomenon was one of my favorite books of last year. Station Eleven might appeal to you, as well. I hadn’t really thought of them together before, but I can see some similarities now.
Ok, two posts today mentioned this book–I’ve got the e-book on my library hold list. Maybe it will shake me out of my rut of re-reading really trashy books.
I’m reading it now and really enjoying it. Yours is a perfect description.
Best book of the year, in my opinion. I have thrust it upon three people already who loved it. I met the author at the American Library Association conference this year and, in retrospect, I would have had no idea a book like this could come out of a soft spoken, petite, polite young lady like St John Mandel. The book is awesome. Read it, peeps!
Oh good, I got this for Christmas. You and I like many of the same books, so this is a good sign that I will like it.
I juuuust finished this book and absolutely adored it. I thought it was incredibly beautiful. I am sad it’s over.