"Cloud Atlas" by David Mitchell is an overwhelming book. It plays upon all your senses, using its interrelated stories to tell a large story of human society and existence that is creative, witty, and engaging on multiple levels.

One of the most challenging aspects of writing a review for this book is to say what it is about. The novel presents six interrelated stories in six different styles (a journal, a series of letters, a pulpy mystery novel, a stream-of-consciousness memoir, testimony of a condemned prisoner, and an oral story). The stories have common elements that are sometimes obvious but sometimes hidden and only become clear as the stories unfold. Each story is a virtuoso performance and read like different creative works all together.

The central theme of the stories (if there is one) is that "human hunger creates civilization, but it also destroys it." It is fascinating to see this theme play out in different time periods and with different individuals in different locations, testifying to the idea that no matter how much our contexts change, the human experience remains the same.

I've added this book to the top of my favorites list for a few reasons. First, its sheer creativity and its narrative power. Second, reading such diverse and divergent stories was a sensory experience that engaged my mind in unexpected ways. Third, it is a book that I found myself noting memorable and well-written quotes and passages. Fourth, it is a book that I plan on returning to again in the near future (well worth multiple reads). But finally, it is now one of my favorite books because it has much to say about our society and what it means to be human. You will not look at time, history, culture, and society in the same way after you read this book.

NOTE: I have seen the 2012 film of the novel and I also recommend it as well. The novel is more detailed and more finely drawn but the film will, I believe, become a landmark in the development of cinema. And like a good film adaptation, it does not attempt to copy the book word for word but provide an "impressionist" view of the narrative, making the film its own creature.