Lessons

Lessons is easily McEwan's most accomplished novel since Atonement... he offers intelligent reflection on his novel's evergreen themes. * The Times *
I loved Lessons... Deep, life-affirming and A-grade storytelling. * The Times *
Thoughtful, tender and both universal and timeless in its depiction of the follies of the human heart... Ian McEwan is a masterful storyteller who weaves destiny and self-determination, the past and the future, youth and age, and above all, the loss and memory of love. -- Elif Shafak
Captures youthful lust and late-age regret with equal power. * Financial Times *
Superb... another mesmerising, memorable novel. * Independent *
Irresistible and a joy to read. -- Antony Beevor * Spectator, Books of the Year *
McEwan's writing is as elegant and ideas-packed as ever. * The Times *
Elegant and moving, it's his best work in 20 years. * Sunday Times, *Summer Reads of 2023* *
McEwan returns with his best work since the Booker- and NBCC-winning Atonement...Throughout, McEwan poignantly shows how the characters contend with major historical moments while dealing with the ravages of daily life, which is what makes this so affecting. He also employs lyrical but pared-down prose to great effect . . . Once more, the masterly McEwan delights. * Publishers Weekly [starred review] *
McEwan deftly explores the interplay of will and chance, time and memory. * Washington Post *
Lessons should have made the Booker longlist (and shortlist) but no matter. It marks a significant new phase in McEwan's already astonishingly productive career - and may well be remembered as one of the finest humanist novels of its age. * New Statesman *
Magnificent and moving, Lessons is up there with McEwan's greatest works. -- Independent
The Booker-winning author has woven multiple versions of himself into Lessons, his 500-page masterpiece. -- Andrew Billen * The Times *
Superb... A wonderful author has delivered another mesmerising, memorable novel. * Independent *
A tour de force of breadth...McEwan writes with invigorating alertness about social and political shifts over the past 70 years. * Sunday Times *
McEwan's prose always goes down like a cool drink, and its content is often trenchant...I'm delighted to have added this thoughtful, touching and historically grounded novel to my bookshelf. -- Lionel Shriver * Financial Times *
A moving and masterful work that captures the essence of McEwan....The book's psychological astuteness and elegant prose, is a thrill to behold. * Irish Independent *
Compassionate and gentle, and so bereft of cynicism it feels almost radical.... -- Beejay Silcox * Guardian *
Lessons has the wonderful freshness that comes when an author tries something new - along with McEwan's customary wit, insight and compassion. * Sunday Express *
McEwan's deft, descriptive prose charts the complexity of growing up and finding one's place in an ever-shifting world * Cultur Whisper *