Kate Atkinson – blending genres

30 day book challenge – #11 Book from your favourite author

‘Started Early, Took My Dog’ is the latest novel from Kate Atkinson, published in 2010. I would say it is my favourite book from the author but it was not easy to come to that conclusion.

I first read a Kate Atkinson novel on holiday in Tunisia. We had booked during Ramadan and knew we’d be spending most of our time reading by the hotel pool. As a literature student I can be a bit of a snob when it comes to which books I’ll read. With opportunities to indulge in a book so rare after graduating I don’t want to waste precious moments on trashy novels with shallow characters and a predictable ending. Kate Atkinson’s ‘Behind The Scenes At The Museum’ appealed to me as soon as I read the title. It promised an intriguing saga combining the past and the present. The story wasn’t what I expected – it was so much better.

What I love about Atkinson’s style is the clever wit and humour she uses to offset the sadness of her stories. Listening to an interview with Kate Atkinson*, she freely admits that she is drawn to tragedy, but her books appeal because of how brilliantly she portrays her characters as they cope and carry on with life. This gives her novels hope, which is why I find them so engrossing.

Atkinson’s most famous character is private investigator Jackson Brodie, and he has definitely coped and carried on despite multiple tragedies in his life. It is through the Jackson Brodie novels** that the interesting question of genre begins to emerge. How do you define Kate Atkinson as an author if she is writing fantastic literary fiction that brings to life diverse and interesting characters, whilst also laying claim to the crime fiction genre with a lead private investigator character unravelling the mysteries behind missing person cases?

So what defines a novel as literary fiction? It must be complex with well-developed characters, it must deal with universal issues and how the characters react emotionally. A literary fiction novel must be elegantly and intelligently written, it needs to keep the reader interested in the characters despite the dark themes it will undoubtedly be exploring.

Many critics and authors argue that the above could apply to all genres, being such a broad definition with infinite plot possibilities. I would definitely agree. Whilst traditional genres such as romance, horror and crime can be written to a formula, what will set them apart for critical literary acclaim will be their deviation from the ‘normal’ focus of genre writing, which is plot, to include a deeper understanding of the characters’ emotional responses to that plot.

So whilst Kate Atkinson’s Jackson Brodie novels could be defined as crime fiction, they offer more than just an intriguing plot and a recurring lead ‘detective’ character. The richness of the supporting cast, their reactions and motivations are all explored in Atkinson’s inimitable way. When interviewed by Jason Isaacs who plays Jackson in the BBC dramatizations, Atkinson explains that Jackson is really herself in masculine form. I doubt that many crime writers would say that their lead character is based on themselves, and this is what gives Jackson the literary edge.

‘Started Early, Took My Dog’ stands out for me because it is more a mesh of the two genres than Atkinson’s previous novels. The novel doesn’t just follow Jackson Brodie, but a former WPC, Tracy Waterhouse and Tilly, an ageing actress suffering from the onset of dementia. Although the reader wants to find out the answer to the mystery that Jackson is investigating, what is more interesting is how the three characters’ stories are intertwined. They all have a past and present spiralling together in what promises to be a wonderfully complex climactic conclusion.

Kate Atkinson has written a new novel called ‘Life After Life’ which is due for release in March 2013. The synopsis promises a literary fiction novel in its truest form, following a lead character as she copes with life’s ups and downs.

* You can see Jason Isaacs’ interview with Kate Atkinson on You Tube at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NyGFbR0CDY0

** ‘Case Histories’, ‘One Good Turn’, ‘When Will There Be Good News’ and ‘Started Early, Took My Dog’.