Cloud Atlas is a giant puzzle that spans the space of centuries. It's told via six short stories.
'The Pacific Journal of Adam Ewing' introduces the readers to a 19th century notary from San Francisco who has travelled to a small island in the pacific to conduct business on behalf of his employer. In the journal, Mr. Ewing speaks of his devotion to his religion and of the ills of the societies that he is visiting. His story stops mid-sentence approximately 30 pages in.
From Adam Ewing's stories, we jump to 1931 in 'Letters from Zedelghem', and the story of a young composer by the name of Robert Frobisher. Frobisher tells his stories via a series of letters to his dear friend Rufus Sixsmith. Frobisher starts off his narrative running out on a hotel bill. He makes his way to Belgium where he secures employment with a well-known composer by the name of Vyvyan Ayrs. Ayrs has lost his sight and requires Frobisher to write down his compositions. Frobisher winds up involved in an affair with Ayrs' wife, Jocasta. Frobisher's narrative ends just as his affair with Jocasta has ended its honeymoon phase.While staying with the Ayrs, Frobisher comes across the pacific journal of Adam Ewing.
'Half-Lives: The First Luisa Rey Mystery' takes the reader to Buenas Yerbas, California in the 1970s. Luisa Rey is a young reporter who makes the acquaintance of a 66-year-old Rufus Sixsmith in an elevator and earns his trust almost immediately. Sixsmith is a British scientist with a critical report about the hugely powerful Seabord Corporation's Swannekke Island power plant. After her encounter with Sixsmith, Luisa gets on the trail of the story. When Sixsmith is found dead Luisa gets a hold of his letters from Robert Frobisher. Having just gotten hold of Sixsmith's report, Luisa's car is driven off the road, and so end her section.
In 'The Ghastly Ordeal of Timothy Cavendish' we move forward and across the Atlantic to London in the early 21st century. Timothy Cavendish is a 60-something-year-old vanity press publisher who gets himself into some trouble when one of his authors winds up in prison for murder. The author's thug brothers threaten Cavendish with bodily harm in order to secure their brother's share of the profits from the novel that has become a best seller. Not having enough money to pay off the brothers, Cavendish leaves his office with his briefcase and a manuscript titled 'Half-Lives: The First Luisa Rey Mystery', seeking help from his own brother. Cavendish's brother tricks him into committing himself to a nursery home. The section ends as Cavendish suffers a stroke trying to escape from the nursery home.
'An Orison of Sonmi -451' takes the reader to Korea in the distant future to a corpocratic world where clones (fabricants) do all of the jobs that humans (purebloods) find undesirable. Somni -451 is a fabricant who ascends the limitation set by her creators. Sonmi was designed to work in a diner but ends up working at a University after disguised union members identify her as having the potential to achieve ascention. Union is a group bent on revolt from the totalitarian society by aiming to give fabricants the same rights as purebloods while putting a stop to the over-consumption that is on track to destroy their society. Sonmi's section ends as she and a pureblood friend and mentor are forced to flee a movie theatre where they are watching an old film titled 'The Ghastly Ordeal of Timothy Cavendish.'
'Sloosha's Crossin' An' Ev'rthin' After' takes the reader to a post-apocalyptic future. The legend of Sonmi -451 has survived and she is revered as a god in the backwards world of Hawaii in the future. Our narrator this time around is a young man by the name of Zachry. Zachry watches Sonmi's story through a futuristic recording device that he sneaks from Meronym, a visitor from an alternate society that is technologically advanced.
After this section, the story reverts back into itself with a conclusion to each of the previous sections.
4/5
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