Ian McEwan is one of the “ruling triumvirate” of contemporary British fiction (along with Julian Barnes and Martin Amis) and the Booker Prize winner for the novel “Amsterdam.” “Atonement” is a story of obsession—a survival guide for people whose comfortable lives have been invaded by a dangerous, unreal mania. After witnessing—and in a certain sense, being involved in—a terrible incident during the launching of a balloon, the novel’s hero tries to cope with another person’s love—for it is unrequited, unfounded, and boundless. How do you keep the remains of your own sanity under control when, in the battle for your soul, dark demons of madness clash with the pull toward an unreachable deity?
In 2004, the novel was adapted for film.