Transcription

John Yorke takes a look at Transcription by Kate Atkinson.
First published in 2018, Transcription tells the story of three different time periods in the life of our protagonist, Juliet Armstrong. The interweaving timelines take us from 1940 to 1981, telling of her experiences working in wartime for MI5, working in peacetime for BBC Radio, up to the end of her life in the moments between life and death.
Transcription is a spy novel but it’s the work’s thematic depth that raises it above standard fare. There is gripping action but it’s a trojan horse for wider, darker themes. Each chapter is…