Atonement?

Have you ever read a book that your mind's eye cannot dismiss? Ian McEwan wrote Atonement in 200l, and I have found it unforgettable. Atonement is the story set in the English countryside and the main character, Briony, is, at the start of the story, a young girl of 13. She has a childish crush on a servant's son, Robbie, who, in turn, is in love with Briony's older sister, Cecilia. Briony's jealousy leads her to tell a vicious lie about Robbie which leads to his arrest and a choice between jail and the army.

He and Cecilia, although much in love, never see one another after this, and he dies a terrible death at Dunkirk prior to WWII. Cecilia is killed in a London bombing incident, and so, although she wishes to atone, or make amends, for her lie, Briony is unable to do so, and she knows that her selfish action as a young woman absolutely ruined the lives of two young people. In the end, Briony becomes a writer, and writes a story in which the two do not die, but come together in love and happiness.

Atonement is a simple story of human jealousy later regretted, and we forgive Briony saying, "She was only a child!" "She didn't know what she was doing!" True, but what has haunted me from the time I read this, (and later saw the movie in 2007) is the undeniable fact that sometimes we cannot atone for wrongs we have committed even though we might want to do so. Writing a story in which everything comes out roses just doesn't make up for the wrong done. Our actions can be indelible on the lives of those around us.