Reviews
Praise for Station Eleven : "[An] ambitious take on a post-apocalyptic world where some strive to preserve art, culture and kindness . . . Think of Cormac McCarthy seesawing with Joan Didion . . . Mandel spins a satisfying web of coincidence and kismet . . . Magnetic . . . a breakout novel." - Kirkus (starred) "A movie star who's decided to pound the boards as King Lear collapses and dies mid-performance, and shortly thereafter civilization collapses and starts dying as well. The narrative then moves between the actor's early career and a journey through the blasted landscape 15 years after the book's opening events. Indie Next darling Mandel breaks out with a major publisher." -- Library Journal " 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. It is a brilliant novel, and Emily St. John Mandel is astonishing." -- Emma Straub, author of The Vacationers " Station Eleven is a firework of a novel. Elegantly constructed and packed with explosive beauty, it's full of life and humanity and the aftershock of memory." -- Lauren Beukes, author of The Shining Girls "Disturbing, inventive and exciting, Station Eleven left me wistful for a world where I still live." -- Jessie Burton, author of The Miniaturist, Praise for Station Eleven : "Station Eleven is a magnificent, compulsive novel that cleverly turns the notion of a "kinder, gentler time" on its head. And, oh, the pleasure of falling down the rabbit hole of Mandel's imagination -- a dark, shimmering place rich in alarmingly real detail and peopled with such human, such very appealing characters." -- Liza Klaussmann, author of Tigers in Red Weather "Following three smart, voicey thrillers published with a small press, Mandel makes the leap ... to ambitious, fantastical storytelling." -- Boris Kachka, New York Magazine "Her best, most ambitious work yet. Post-apocalyptic tales are all the rage this season, but Mandel's intricate plotting and deftness with drawing character makes this novel of interlinked tales stand out as a beguiling read. Beginning with the onslaught of the deadly Georgian flu and the death of a famous actor onstage, and advancing twenty years into the future to a traveling troupe of Shakespearean actors who perform for the few remaining survivors, the novel sits with darkness while searching for the beauty in art and human connection." -- Most Anticipated: The Great Second-Half 2014 Book Preview, The Millions "[An] ambitious take on a post-apocalyptic world where some strive to preserve art, culture and kindness . . . Think of Cormac McCarthy seesawing with Joan Didion . . . Mandel spins a satisfying web of coincidence and kismet . . . Magnetic . . . a breakout novel." - Kirkus (starred) "A movie star who's decided to pound the boards as King Lear collapses and dies mid-performance, and shortly thereafter civilization collapses and starts dying as well. The narrative then moves between the actor's early career and a journey through the blasted landscape 15 years after the book's opening events. Indie Next darling Mandel breaks out with a major publisher." -- Library Journal " 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. It is a brilliant novel, and Emily St. John Mandel is astonishing." -- Emma Straub, author of The Vacationers " Station Eleven is a firework of a novel. Elegantly constructed and packed with explosive beauty, it's full of life and humanity and the aftershock of memory." -- Lauren Beukes, author of The Shining Girls "Disturbing, inventive and exciting, Station Eleven left me wistful for a world where I still live." -- Jessie Burton, author of The Miniaturist "A unique departure from which to examine civilization's wreckage . . . [a] wild fusion of celebrity gossip and grim future . . . Mandel's examination of the connections between individuals with disparate destinies makes a case for the worth of even a single life." -- Publishers Weekly, Praise for Station Eleven : "Station Eleven is a magnificent, compulsive novel that cleverly turns the notion of a "kinder, gentler time" on its head. And, oh, the pleasure of falling down the rabbit hole of Mandel's imagination -- a dark, shimmering place rich in alarmingly real detail and peopled with such human, such very appealing characters." -- Liza Klaussmann, author of Tigers in Red Weather "Following three smart, voicey thrillers published with a small press, Mandel makes the leap ... to ambitious, fantastical storytelling." -- Boris Kachka, New York Magazine "[An] ambitious take on a post-apocalyptic world where some strive to preserve art, culture and kindness . . . Think of Cormac McCarthy seesawing with Joan Didion . . . Mandel spins a satisfying web of coincidence and kismet . . . Magnetic . . . a breakout novel." - Kirkus (starred) "A movie star who's decided to pound the boards as King Lear collapses and dies mid-performance, and shortly thereafter civilization collapses and starts dying as well. The narrative then moves between the actor's early career and a journey through the blasted landscape 15 years after the book's opening events. Indie Next darling Mandel breaks out with a major publisher." -- Library Journal " 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. It is a brilliant novel, and Emily St. John Mandel is astonishing." -- Emma Straub, author of The Vacationers " Station Eleven is a firework of a novel. Elegantly constructed and packed with explosive beauty, it's full of life and humanity and the aftershock of memory." -- Lauren Beukes, author of The Shining Girls "Disturbing, inventive and exciting, Station Eleven left me wistful for a world where I still live." -- Jessie Burton, author of The Miniaturist "A unique departure from which to examine civilization's wreckage . . . [a] wild fusion of celebrity gossip and grim future . . . Mandel's examination of the connections between individuals with disparate destinies makes a case for the worth of even a single life." -- Publishers Weekly, Praise for Station Eleven : "[An] ambitious take on a post-apocalyptic world where some strive to preserve art, culture and kindness . . . Think of Cormac McCarthy seesawing with Joan Didion . . . Mandel spins a satisfying web of coincidence and kismet . . . Magnetic . . . a breakout novel." - Kirkus (starred) "A movie star who's decided to pound the boards as King Lear collapses and dies mid-performance, and shortly thereafter civilization collapses and starts dying as well. The narrative then moves between the actor's early career and a journey through the blasted landscape 15 years after the book's opening events. Indie Next darling Mandel breaks out with a major publisher." -- Library Journal " 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. It is a brilliant novel, and Emily St. John Mandel is astonishing." -- Emma Straub, author of The Vacationers " Station Eleven is a firework of a novel. Elegantly constructed and packed with explosive beauty, it's full of life and humanity and the aftershock of memory." -- Lauren Beukes, author of The Shining Girls "Disturbing, inventive and exciting, Station Eleven left me wistful for a world where I still live." -- Jessie Burton, author of The Miniaturist "A unique departure from which to examine civilization's wreckage . . . [a] wild fusion of celebrity gossip and grim future . . . Mandel's examination of the connections between individuals with disparate destinies makes a case for the worth of even a single life." -- Publishers Weekly, Praise for Station Eleven : "A movie star who's decided to pound the boards as King Lear collapses and dies mid-performance, and shortly thereafter civilization collapses and starts dying as well. The narrative then moves between the actor's early career and a journey through the blasted landscape 15 years after the book's opening events. Indie Next darling Mandel breaks out with a major publisher." -- Library Journal " 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. It is a brilliant novel, and Emily St. John Mandel is astonishing." -- Emma Straub, author of The Vacationers " Station Eleven is a firework of a novel. Elegantly constructed and packed with explosive beauty, it's full of life and humanity and the aftershock of memory." -- Lauren Beukes, author of The Shining Girls "Disturbing, inventive and exciting, Station Eleven left me wistful for a world where I still live." -- Jessie Burton, author of The Miniaturist, Praise for Station Eleven : "A movie star who's decided to pound the boards as King Lear collapses and dies mid-performance, and shortly thereafter civilization collapses and starts dying as well. The narrative then moves between the actor's early career and a journey through the blasted landscape 15 years after the book's opening events. Indie Next darling Mandel breaks out with a major publisher." -- Library Journal