Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell
This novel is a unique blend of six different stories, each set in a different time and place, spanning from the 19th century South Pacific to a post-apocalyptic future. Each tale is written in a different style, reflecting the time and setting it represents, and they are all connected through shared themes and recurring motifs. The stories are nested within each other, with each interrupted by the next, only to be concluded in the second half of the book. The novel explores themes of predacity, civilization, reincarnation and the eternal recurrence of the same behaviors throughout history.
The 547th greatest book of all time
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Total Points: 727
This book was first published in 2004
18 Lists
- score: 92 -- The Ideal Library - 2024 (Weight: 172)
- score: 79 -- 200 Books That Shaped 200 Years of Literature - 2021 (Weight: 168)
- score: 79 -- 222 Best Books of All Time That Deserve a Spot on Your Bookshelf, With Picks from Bestselling Authors and Indie Booksellers - 2024 (Weight: 152)
- score: 52 -- 70 Classic Booker Prize-Nominated Novels, Recommended by our Readers - 2024 (Weight: 100)
- score: 47 -- Bill Gate's Book Recommendations - 2024 (Weight: 92)
- score: 44 -- 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die - 2006 (Weight: 192)
- score: 44 -- The 100 best books of the 21st century - 2019 (Weight: 96)
- score: 37 -- The Millions: The Best Fiction of the Millennium - 2009 (Weight: 112)
- score: 37 -- Harvard Book Store Staff's Favorite 100 Books - 2011 (Weight: 120)
- score: 35 -- 1000 Novels Everyone Must Read - 2009 (Weight: 128)
- score: 35 -- A Century of Reading - 2018 (Weight: 84)
- score: 27 -- 25 Books to Read Before you Die: 21st Century - 2018 (Weight: 64)
- score: 26 -- From Zero to Well-Read in 100 Books - 2013 (Weight: 76)
- score: 24 -- As if You Don't Have Enough to Read, Fiction Edition - 2011 (Weight: 80)
- score: 24 -- The 50 Best Sci-Fi Books for Every Kind of Reader - 2024 (Weight: 48)
- score: 22 -- Books of the Decade - 2009 (Weight: 80)
- score: 9 -- The New Classics - 100 Best Reads from 1983 to 2008 - 2008 (Weight: 36)
- score: 5 -- The 100 Best Books of the Decade(2000) - 2009 (Weight: 20)