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Normal Rules Don't Apply

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About this listen

Brought to you by Penguin.

The first story collection from Kate Atkinson in twenty years, Normal Rules Don't Apply is a dazzling array of eleven interconnected tales from the bestselling author of Shrines of Gaiety and Life After Life

In this first full collection since Not the End of the World, we meet a queen who makes a bargain she cannot keep; a secretary who watches over the life she has just left; a man whose luck changes when a horse speaks to him.

With clockwork intricacy, inventiveness and sharp social observation, Kate Atkinson conjures a feast for the imagination, a constantly changing multiverse in which nothing is quite as it seems.

‘What really binds these stories is their underlying theme, which has perhaps always been Atkinson’s true subject: the nature of storytelling itself’ Times Literary Supplement

‘Life in all of its surreal, tragic and comic glory is perfectly captured within these pages’ Red

‘Sublime’ Good Housekeeping


©2023 Kate Atkinson (P)2023 Penguin Audio

 Anthologies & Short Stories Fantasy Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Magic Magical Realism Short Stories Witty Funny Mind-bending Thought-Provoking

Critic reviews

What really binds these stories is their underlying theme, which has perhaps always been Atkinson’s true subject: the nature of storytelling itself. She can be very funny, but she is highly serious about the idea that human existence is bound up with words… If you’re thinking about what fiction means, no invocation could be more thought-provoking or ironically complex
What joy! A loosely connected collection of short stories from Kate Atkinson. Life in all of its surreal, tragic and comic glory is perfectly captured within these pages.
Sublime … showcases her superb storytelling and the wit of her writing
All kinds of stories are inside these tales – fairy stories, creation myths, fantasy, Bible stories, tabloid headlines, soaps, movies and crime. Atkinson’s sly humour percolates all the way through, but there’s also humanity, hope and forgiveness... The simplicity of the short story form belies the book’s multi-layered approach. As soon as you get to the end, you’ll be tempted to just start at the beginning again to see the nuances you missed first time round, and tease out the threads that run between each tale.
Hilarious, breathtaking, horrific, irresistible ... [Atkinson is] always in command ... Heart in mouth, I never wanted this book to end
Atkinson has the happy knack of capturing the nature of her characters with arch aplomb
Dazzling ... Most striking of all is the abiding sense of infectious, slightly bonkers fun.
A deftly interconnected short-story collection [that is] varied and inventive
Funny, erudite and profound
Here you will find lots of tricks, lots of playfulness, clever narrative engineering.
All stars
Most relevant
I am a huge fan of KA ever since ‘ Behind the Scenes at the Museum’ . I love her style- always original and flowing- and her intelligent observation and wonderful wit. The stories are engaging and sometimes bizarre but always well crafted and pacy. The narrator is quite superb and really does capture the author’s wry asides.

Different!

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Such a beautiful set of linked stories. Gorgeous writing as you'd expect from this author. an utter delight

i inhaled this

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Someone else has written a wonderful review that I feel I could just copy! But here goes..

This is delicious-a potpourri of wit, clever observation, wonderful threading of themes, through a series of short stories and sort of ending up at the beginning, leaving you feeling that you need to re-read to really appreciate how everything sticks together. It’s actually a relief to have something quite so short, and I think I may just re-listen all over again straight away.

Excellently read - characters brought to life

Perfection from Kate Atkinson 👏🏻👏🏻

Fabulous

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My favourite author has written another fantastic book. I’m not usually a fan of short stories but there is a satisfying connectedness to these.
Narrator is very good, bringing the characters to life

Superb

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Each story is beautifully written, clever, funny and intriguing. I enjoyed the links between the stories and it was superbly read by Paterson Joseph.
I would highly recommend.

Superb.

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