Reviewed by Monique Prince, Undergraduate Services Librarian
Atonement begins in England during the time period between the first and second World Wars. It is centered on three characters: thirteen-year-old Briony, an aspiring writer, her older sister Cecilia who recently returned home after three years at Cambridge, and their next-door-neighbor and Cecilia's childhood friend, Robbie. From an upstairs window, young Briony observes a surprising encounter between Cecilia and Robbie: they appear to fight and then Cecilia submerges herself in a large fountain. Briony feels threatened by this and wonders about Robbie's motives. Later that evening, she falsely accuses him of a crime, as she is convinced that he is a dangerous maniac. The story then jumps forward to World War II, as Briony tries to atone for what she now realizes was a case of mistaken identity, while struggling with the guilt she feels about forever altering the lives of Cecilia, Robbie, and the rest of her family.
Atonement was a 2003 ALA Notable Book and won the WH Smith Literary Award (2002) and the National Book Critics' Circle Fiction Award (2003).
