One of my favorite movies is Sliding Doors with Gweneth Paltrow. In the movie, she's a young woman coming home unexpectedly in the middle of a work day. In the first scenario, she misses her train, but in the second, she just jumps on the train in time. From there, the story breaks into two entirely different plots - one that follows her life after she misses the train but eventually gets home, and the second one in which she makes the train. What I love about it is it shows how a seemingly insignificant event can make a life altering change.
I was reminded of this movie as I read Life After Life. Ursula is born in 1911 in England. She dies but then begins her life again. And again. And again. Each time, she has a sense that there is danger so she makes a change that will keep her alive. For example, one death occurs when their maid comes home from London with influenza and gives it to Ursula. So in several lives after that, she does what she has to do to keep the maid from going... sometimes just a small thing but it will change their lives.
As Ursula becomes an adult, the story gets a little confusing and I admit I often had to look back to see what year she's in as I was reading. But the stories are fascinating, and she has a wide variety of lives (marrying an abusive man, marrying a Nazi, remaining single and working during the London Blitz).
As I think more about it, I believe that Ursula was not the only character who was reliving his/her life. There were some clues that made me believe that they changed as Ursula's life changed, and this would only be the case if they were altering their lives too. Just a thought I've been mulling over.
This is a book that has stayed with me for a while. And I think that I'd like to re-read it someday - which I almost never do. Highly recommend. -June
1 comment:
As always, am so glad June said she would read this book again AND that she gave us a peek into how the story was woven. I think my confusion might have gotten the best of me, otherwise, as I consulted the TAble of Contents every now and then to keep my timeline straight (crooked?). I agree that the lives are fascinating and it is almost thrilling to contemplate "the butterfly effect" as it might relate to one's life. I would recommend this book.
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