Thursday, September 10, 2009

The Time Traveler's Wife

(review by Deanna)
The Time Traveler's WifeI just finished The Time Traveler's Wife and I really enjoyed it. I found it evocative without being depressing ("depressing" is at the top of my list of things I don't want in entertainment, which, unfortunately, rules out a lot of high-quality literature). It was touching and puzzling and well-written. It's funny to me that I spent half the book tensed up and not enjoying it for fear of a bad ending because, well, there is a lot of that theme woven into the book.

I'm attending a book club next week and the book choice was The Time Traveler's Wife. I would not have chosen this book on my own; there was too much chance of it being sad. But I am excited about the book club so I went for it. It was so enjoyable. The characters were intense and compelling, shaping themselves and each other in the paradox of what they knew and didn't know. It was powerful without being moralizing. I liked how the plot fit itself together like a puzzle. I definitely recommend it, though I am not sure if it's something other people will like. My friend who loaned it to me didn't care for it (which surprised me at first though I get it a little now), so I guess I have a copy to loan if you are local and interested!

Disclaimer: the language and content are not PG-13 - Probably more like R. And some would say it did end depressing, though I didn't think so. Just so you know!