Overview Published in 2014, Station Eleven is the fourth novel by Emily St. John Mandel. Known for its natural beauty, laid-back feel, and thriving arts community, the island is home to just over 1,000 inhabitants. From here, the narrative jumps 20 years into the future to a region around the Great Lakes when the worst is over and hints of culture and society are beginning to reemerge amidst a scattering of small settlements of survivors. 1 THE KING STOOD in a pool of blue light, unmoored. Animals? The prophet discusses death: “I'm not speaking of the tedious variations on physical death. What point is Mandel making? In a letter to his childhood friend, Arthur writes that he's been thinking about a quote from Yeats, “Love is like the lion's tooth.” What does this mean, and why is he thinking about it? At the age of 18, she left home to study dance at The School of Toronto Dance Theatre, and worked with a number of independent choreographers after graduation. Photo courtesy of Santa Barbara Public Library. It won several major awards, was an NPR Books Concierge pick, and it's just come out in paperback. "Station Eleven" was written by Arthur's first wife Miranda. Book Review: Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel Emily St. John Mandel’s fourth novel Station Eleven recently made the National Book Award’s shortlist for fiction. What items do you think you’d strive to preserve? There she finds order, stability, and the time to work on her project, which is a constant throughout her life. Interior Chinatown (Vintage Contemporaries). There are no countries and no borders, and "ferals" still leap out from behind bushes, but there are pockets of tranquility and order. What is the metaphor of the Station Eleven comic books? Tattooed on her arm is the phrase "Because survival is insufficient." In their place, what do you think you'd remember most? Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 3, 2018. The Station Eleven graphic novel serves as a motif that crosses over from the pre-flu world to the post-flu world. Presenting the Big Read was truly a collaborative effort that allowed us to work together and promote reading, literacy, and libraries in a unified way. To get the free app, enter your mobile phone number. Photo courtesy of the Santa Barbara Public Library, “November 1st was an exciting night as we came together as a community and kicked off our NEA Big Read for Station Eleven. Prime members enjoy FREE Delivery and exclusive access to music, movies, TV shows, original audio series, and Kindle books. Jeevan's understanding of disaster preparedness was based entirely on action movies, but on the other hand, he'd seen a lot of action movies. While that process was occurring, Mandel moved from Toronto to New York to Montreal and back to New York in less than a year. Why did Mandel choose to end the novel with him. The Testaments: A Novel (The Handmaid's Tale). If you're a seller, Fulfillment by Amazon can help you grow your business. Station Eleven, Emily St. John Mandel's fourth novel, won the Arthur C. Clarke Award, was a finalist for the National Book Award and PEN/Faulkner Award, was an Amazon Best Book of the Month, and was named one of the best books of the year by more than a dozen publications. But you never do. Inspire a love of reading with Amazon Book Box for Kids, Previous page of related Sponsored Products. It seems that people expected to read a post-apocalyptic novel, and that is it, but although of course although this story does fall into that category, there is a lot more to it, meaning that this is more of a genre crossing tale. I'd been recommended this book by a number of people, however I'm cautious of this genre as I often find them too unrealistic for my taste. Long rambling narrative with a scattered plotline that doesnt deliver. There was a moment of doubt on the way to the cash registers, straining against the weight of the cart—was he overreacting?—but there was a certain momentum now, too late to turn back. There's a museum in the airport that could have been a great source for some interesting plot development but nothing happens. WHAT!?!?!? In two weeks, most the human race will be dead. Reviewed in the United States on September 7, 2019. Here is an excerpt from the library’s interview with Arts Midwest describing inventive programming and the immediacy of its impact on the community. How does the impending publication of those letters affect Arthur? Photo from the Santa Barbara Reads Program guide. Station Eleven is a 2014 novel by Emily St. John Mandel. Set in the days of civilization's collapse, Station Eleven tells the story of a Hollywood star, his would-be savior, and a nomadic group of actors roaming the scattered outposts of the Great Lakes region, risking everything for art and humanity. Her agent found the manuscript for her first novel, Last Night in Montreal (2009), in a slush pile and shopped it around to editors for almost three years before Unbridled Books picked it up. The prophet's dog, Luli, has the same name as a fictional dog that belongs to a comic book character named Dr. Eleven, a physicist who lives on a space station called Station Eleven. It drifts, as though the author themself lost interest while writing it. Our payment security system encrypts your information during transmission. Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 2, 2018. Within the week, civilization as we know it is wiped out. Station Eleven The question boards sparked community conversations and interactions throughout the month. Thus, shortly after our NEA Big Read concluded our communities were immediately faced with considering the questions of emergency preparedness, disaster response, and community recovery. Our most participatory activity was one of the more simple implementations of the month. Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 8, 2020, I feel I need to apologise for not enjoying this book, considering the rave reviews for it. This book makes you feel like you'll eventually get to somewhere important, Reviewed in the United States on August 4, 2017. Jeevan’s understanding of disaster preparedness was based entirely on action movies, but on the other hand, he’d seen a lot of action movies. has been added to your Cart. "I had a job in Montreal where I had to unload a truck at 7 a.m. in the winter.". Like other books in the genre, it highlights the fragility of our existence, our violent nature, and our capacity to survive despite the inevitable hardships of starvation, loneliness, and chaos. Boards with the questions “What is your post-apocalyptic skill?” and “What would you miss?” were placed inside the entrance to the Central Library. They live in the Undersea, an interlinked network of vast fallout shelters under Station Eleven’s oceans. What's that all about. (Prices may vary for AK and HI.). Fields of corn? Answers ranged from the poignant to the amusing, but all were meaningful and had our patrons thinking about how Station Eleven relates to their own lives.”, The Santa Barbara Reads Museum of Civilization. “ Station Eleven is the kind of book that speaks to dozens of the readers in me—the Hollywood devotee, the comic book fan, the cult junkie, the love lover, the disaster tourist. Published by Knopf in 2014, it tells the story of a small band of actors and musicians 20 years after a flu pandemic has wiped out 99% of the Earth's population. “Station Eleven is the kind of book that speaks to dozens of the readers in me—the Hollywood devotee, the comic book fan, the cult junkie, the love lover, the disaster tourist. You know a book is a slog when you'd rather do anything else other than reading it. She is an artist from Delano Island who, to support an abusive boyfriend, enters the corporate world. The clerk raised an eyebrow but said nothing. I expected her to go there and then we could get an explanation about how they figured out how to turn on the lights, thereby providing a civilized for people to live - but there was nothing more said about this interesting subject. He goes out of the theatre. If you appreciate good sci-fi then you will also find this is full of holes. Does the novel have a main character? I persevered to the end but it really was not worth it. Printed text is extremely important within Station Eleven. We meet the BAD guy half way through the book and then he shows up near the end of the book and a kid we've never met before simply kills him and commits suicide. This was act 4 of King Lear, a winter night at the Elgin Theatre in Toronto. You're listening to a sample of the Audible audio edition. In Emily St. John Mandel's newest novel, Station Eleven, the Georgia flu has decimated the world's population, leaving survivors to adapt, or die. "I kept putting the book down, looking around me, and thinking, 'Everything is a miracle'" (National Public Radio). But this is where the similarities taper off, for the story Emily St. John Mandel chooses to tell is not one of horror and mayhem that even she admits would befall the survivors in the immediate aftermath of a complete societal collapse. Emily St. John Mandel's book about the survivors of a devastating plague is a thoughtful and original take on the post-apocalyptic genre. As is, she will tell you, heading back home to her husband and daughter and office where she writes. She’ll carry his gifts to her in a backpack: a glass paperweight and two exquisitely illustrated comic books titled Station Eleven. However, it also set the tone for our after — a community drawn together in shared experience.”, Photos of Emily St. John Mandel visiting Santa Barbara Reads. This is a very unsatisfying story. It's been translated into 27 languages. One small letter, lost in the system for sixty years, is about to change the entire world. Brief content visible, double tap to read full content. How did the people feed themselves? Survivors of a devastating flu pandemic try to rebuild their lives after losing everything. The post-apocalyptic novel has grown popular enough to warrant its own genre, and one could argue that Station Eleven fits well within that category. Enjoyed it much more than expected - gave me lots to think about, Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 15, 2017. What do you think happened during the year Kirsten can't remember? A woman moves between the settlements of the altered world with a small troupe of actors and musicians until they encounter a violent prophet who threatens the tiny band's existence. In less than two years, she has participated in more than 125 book tour events in seven countries. Full content visible, double tap to read brief content. The Atlantis Gene: A Thriller (The Origin Mystery, Book 1), The Lost Colony (The Long Winter Trilogy), Shadows: An EMP Survival Thriller (American Midnight Book 1), Station Eleven by Emily St John Mandel (November 19,2014), Emily St. John Mandel was born in British Columbia, Canada. . Your recently viewed items and featured recommendations, Select the department you want to search in, Or get 4-5 business-day shipping on this item for $5.99 Enter your mobile number or email address below and we'll send you a link to download the free Kindle App. Instead, our system considers things like how recent a review is and if the reviewer bought the item on Amazon. — Emily St. John Mandel in an interview with Bustle. The novel begins on a snowy night in Toronto during a theater production of Shakespeare's King Lear, where eight-year-old actress Kirsten Raymonde sees the famous Hollywood actor Arthur Leander suddenly struck by a fatal heart attack. – from a final report by the Juneau Public Library, an NEA Big Read grant recipient in FY 2016-17. But we will never know. This book makes you feel like you'll eventually get to somewhere important. "I was constantly reordering the book and moving chapters around" (BookPage). "Equal parts page-turner and poem" (Entertainment Weekly), the novel is set 20 years after a devastating flu pandemic destroys civilization as we know it. In 2014, Mandel published Station Eleven, her fourth novel, with Knopf and her writing career took off at rocket speed. Throughout the novel, those who were alive during the time before the flu remember specific things about those days: the ease of electricity, the taste of an orange. A “gripping” dystopian novel about a woman fleeing Los Angeles as America spirals into chaos (The NYT Book Review). And Clark's Museum of Civilization turns what we think of as mundane belongings into totems worthy of study. “We also developed new partnerships with Bartlett Regional Hospital, the Public Health Center, the Juneau Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC) and the Juneau Symphony. There was a problem loading your book clubs. I really wanted to like it, after so many great reviews, but the best part about it was finishing it, and moving on to another book. Although exhausted, this girl gets dragged - along with us - up into the tower to see that there seems to be electric lighting in the distance. What does it mean? Time is measured from before and after the pandemic with Year 0 corresponding to the time of the Georgian Flu Outbreak and continues until Year 19 post-Pandemic. After viewing product detail pages, look here to find an easy way to navigate back to pages you are interested in. The concept of it, for me was wonderful, and although throughout the story there was the odd part that I enjoyed, I found our more of a chore to read, than anything. In fact, the night of our author talk, the lights were flickering on and off until right before we began. Station Eleven is ultimately and intentionally a hopeful book, says Mandel. Caught far from home as a deadly virus spreads across the globe, Ellie fights to get home to her kids as her ex-husband Nick fights to protect them. It is Mandel's fourth novel. A nice change from the frantic cliches of the endless crop of zombie apocalypses, Reviewed in the United States on January 31, 2018. Please try your request again later. What none of them know is that this is the night that the Georgian Flu begins its death march across the human world. Station Eleven Page 1. The girl who should have been the main character pops in and out of the story and I kept wondering why the author didn't develop her story as a lead character. This author's constant need to jump back to the early days of Arthur's life is tiresome and of very little value to the whole story - unless you just want to know about the life of this person who died in the first chapter. When the Travelling Symphony returns to a settlement to reunite with a couple and their baby who were once part of the troupe, their lives are threatened by a dangerous prophet and head of a doomsday cult. Something we hope you'll especially enjoy: FBA items qualify for FREE Shipping and Amazon Prime. He promoted the library throughout the night and library staff were on-site to answers questions about the book and give copies of the book away. As you can see there are a number of lower starred reviews on this site, and there is probably a good reason for this. Bring your club to Amazon Book Clubs, start a new book club and invite your friends to join, or find a club that’s right for you for free. There are three hundred of them now. At each stop, Kirsten scavenges abandoned homes looking through old magazines for mention of Arthur, who—unlike almost everyone and everything else about the old world—is still vivid in her memory. Station Eleven Metaphors and Similes The Shock Around Arthur's Death (simile) Similes are used to describe Arthur in his dying state; Jeevan notes that the actor watching Arthur's heart attack is in shock, his mouth "opening and closing like a fish" as he expires. 2014 National Book Award FinalistA New York Times BestsellerAn audacious, darkly glittering novel set in the eerie days of civilization’s collapse, Station Eleven tells the spellbinding story of a Hollywood star, his would-be savior, and a nomadic group of actors roaming the scattered outposts of the Great Lakes region, risking everything for art and humanity. Station Eleven Publisher: Knopf On page 62, the prophet discusses death: "I'm not speaking of the tedious variations on physical death. Photo by Beth Weigel. Mandel settled in New York and wrote, working part-time as an administrative assistant at a cancer research lab at a university to pay the bills. 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