Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell

I've been dying to talk about this book! It was assigned to me in the middle of the spring semester for a Brit lit class focused on cosmopolitanism. If you're unfamiliar with the concept of cosmopolitanism, at its most basic level, it is viewing humanity as a whole rather than separate countries/ethnicities/religions. We are all human and therefore all deserving of compassion. It's a really nice ideal, although there are conflicting opinions of what precisely cosmopolitanism means and how it should be implemented.

If you're interested, I would suggested looking into Berthold Schoene, Kwame Anthony Appiah, and Martha Nussbaum to get a better understanding of cosmopolitanism.

David Mitchell's 2004 novel, Cloud Atlas, contains quite a few aspects of cosmopolitanism. There is an overarching theme of inter-connectivity and understanding/accepting differences. The book itself was a joy to read with an interesting format. I've seen C.A. described as a Russian matryoshka, or nesting doll, because of its layout. There are a total of six stories within the novel and they are laid out like this:

• 1. Adam Ewing, a lawyer making a business trip across the Pacific (1800s)
• 2. Robert Frobisher, a musician working as an amanuensis for an ill composer (1930s)
• 3. Luisa Rey, a journalist investigating a nuclear energy company (1970s)
• 4. Timothy Cavendish, a publisher in trouble with shady characters (2000s)
• 5. Sonmi~451, a fabricated clone working in a fast food restaurant (c. 2200s)
• 6. Zachry Bailey, a goat-herder on Hawaii in a post-apocalyptic society (2-400 years later)
• 5. Sonmi~451
• 4. Timothy Cavendish
• 3. Luisa Rey
• 2. Robert Frobisher
• 1. Adam Ewing

Each story is cut in half until you reach Zachry, which is also the furthest point in time, and then returns in reverse chronological order. So you begin and end in the same place, which ties in with a cyclical theme of the novel. The stories span over quite a large period of time, are each written in a different style, and are referenced within each other. For example, Robert Frobisher reads Adam Ewing's travel journal, Luisa Rey reads Robert Frobisher's letters, etc. 

It sounds more complicated than it really is; I promise that it isn't so difficult! Cloud Atlas is a lovely novel. I couldn't stop thinking about it for weeks after reading it. I also highly recommend the film version. The movie didn't do well critically, and there were some issues with actors portraying different ethnicities (which was a little visually jarring at first, I admit), and the format was different (all six stories weaving in and out of each other continuously rather than the nesting doll form), but I found it to be quite enjoyable. Beautiful soundtrack and wonderful acting. That being said, I would read the novel first. :)