Ruby Lennox knew almost from conception that she was unwanted. Her mother Bunty, father George, and sisters Patricia and Gilliam live Above the Shop (a pet shop) that George and Bunty grudgingly own and run. Ruby insightfully narrates their lives, inserting "footnotes" between each chapter that detail the lives of her ancestors.

The story that unfolds of an ordinary family kept me reading primarily because of Ruby's voice rather than my interest in the characters (I was often annoyed with them) or the plot (internal and retrospective even while being narrated in present tense). At times beautifully descriptive, it was an often unsettling story that I found compelling even when I did not exactly enjoy it. ( )

good as usual but my least fave, cos of early work, maybe ( )

I read this book about 10 years ago on a friend's recommendation and can remember thinking it was an amazing debut novel at the time. I decided to read it again recently, and had completely forgotten the story and so it was like reading it for the first time. I still think it's a great read and so well written that I still find it hard to believe it was Kate Atkinson's first novel. It's very funny and insightful. The story of Ruby Lennox's life, although sometimes tragic, is told in a very humourous way and it's the type of book that makes you want to carry on reading to the end to find out what happens to everyone as the characters are so well developed and really seem like real people. I would definitely recommend this novel and I think I'll be reading some more of Kate Atkinson's books. ( )

What a humorous way to let us know that all families are dysfunctional. Atkinson really made we want to know how things ended up, though the use of footnotes was irriating (do I read em now or later?). A 4 1/2 stars without that footnote gimmick. ( )

I never finished this...although I always meant to. Good first person voice and wacky British setting. ( )