Tim Null's review of Time and Again (Time, #1) (original) (raw)

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Tim Null's Reviews > Time and Again

Time and Again by Jack Finney

Time and Again (Time, #1)
by

151211428

Tim Null's review

Read 2 times. Last read February 3, 2023 to February 8, 2023.

You know Clement Clarke Moore's classic poem Twas the Night Before Christmas, and you remember the line: "And mamma in her 'kerchief, and I'm in my cap." Well, that line reminds me of a time travel book I read half a century ago. In that book, there's a bedroom scene I recall on almost every cold, wintery morning.

In that scene, our trusty time traveler is laying in bed with his wife on a cold, cold night. He thinks about how lucky he is to be able to live in the past with the woman he loves. He does admit to himself that the cold nights are truly a downside. He mentions that in addition to having to use lots and lots of blankets, his wife wears a bonnet on her head. He says that most men also wear a hat in bed, but since he's a macho 20th century man living in the 19th century, he'd rather be cold than wear a hat to bed. Whenever I think about this scene, I think to myself, "I'd rather wear a hat to bed than be cold, but then I'm a neo-macho 21st century man."

This winter has been colder than usual, so I've been thinking about that scene a lot. So much so I decided I needed to reread that time travel book. The only problem was I couldn't remember either the name of the author or the title of the book. The only thing I could remember was that the story took place in New York City.

No problem. I'm a modern 21st century man. I just Googled: great 1970s nyc time travel novel. Google said the book I wanted was Time and Again by Jack Finney. I thanked Google and ordered myself a copy of the book.

I've now finished Time and Again, and it was thoroughly delightful, but it ain't the book I was looking for. I'm hoping From Time to Time by Jack Finney will be the book I'm searching for. While we're waiting for a copy of that book to arrive, let's go ahead and talk about Time and Again. No point in wasting our time here together.

I don't know if you've ever gone on a Sunday drive. Well, if you haven't been on a Sunday drive recently, let me refresh your memory. Moms and Dads love Sunday drives, but kids think they're boring. Some kids will even pretend they're car-sick just so they can go home and play kickball. Time and Again is like a Sunday drive. Some folks will love it, others won't, and some will even DNF the book just so they can read the latest thriller.

Personally, I think Time and Again has everything a book needs. You've got government spooks and scientists. You've got friends and relatives like in Mad About You and Friends. You've got numerous trips around New York City in 1882 that are educational, eye-opening, and every bit as exciting as Rick Steve's Europe. You've got nourishing and informative breakfasts and suppers just like Check Please! Bay Area. You've got corrupt New York cops and one of the best chase scenes in American literature. And to top things off, you've got the Statue of Liberty. 🗽 Oh, did I forget to mention that the book is illustrated? And there are mysteries. And let's not forget the impostor, the burning buildings, and the heroic firemen. There are also feminists and former slaves. Lastly, but not leastly, there are shoeshine boys and newspaper reporters. There's even some genealogy thrown in. What more could you want?

Even given all the above, numerous reviewers have given this book a 3 rating. I guess they're just not fans of a Sunday afternoon drive around New York City.

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Reading Progress

January 20, 2023 – Shelved as:to-read

January 20, 2023 – Shelved

January 31, 2023 –Started Reading

January 31, 2023 –3.0% ""You don't know it, and you won't believe it; but it means you've already decided.""

February 1, 2023 –8.0% ""Have you ever given someone a book you enjoyed enormously, with a feeling of envy because they were about to read it for the first time, and experience you could never have again?""

February 1, 2023 –8.0% ""Have you ever given someone a book you enjoyed enormously, with a feeling of envy because they were about to read it for the first time, an experience you could never have again?""

February 2, 2023 –16.0% ""Why do you want to [travel through time]?..
...
Why did the Wrights want to build an airplane?..
...
..to see if they could.""

February 3, 2023 –Started Reading

February 3, 2023 –21.0% "A room in the Dakota building in New York City plays a pivotal role in Time and Again. I first read this novel prior to John Lennon's murder, so I wasn't familiar with the Dakota building when I first read about it in this novel.

From Wikipedia: "The Dakota was constructed between 1880 and 1884 in the Renaissance Revival style and was designed by Henry Janeway Hardenbergh for businessman Edward Cabot Clark.""

February 3, 2023 –30.0% "Oscar Rossoff said, "I'm going to give you a final, irrevocable instruction; you will hear it, you will obey it."
* * *
I know you all will be delighted to hear that on page 123 the doorbell "jangled"."

February 3, 2023 –Finished Reading

February 4, 2023 –40.0% ""...before I could hesitate I reached out and twisted the polished brass knob at the center of the door, a bell jangled on the other side, and then I heard steps. I'd done it now; for better or worse, I'd joined this time.""

February 6, 2023 –47.0% "On page 171 we met Julia Charbonneau. I immediately skipped ahead to the last chapter to confirm Julia is the one. It seems she is. As soon as I confirmed that, I closed the book. I didn't want to learn something I didn't yet know or remember.

Yes, Time and Again is about time travel. And yes, it's historical fiction, too. But it's also about romance: the love affair between Simon and Julia.

Will Kate find love?"

February 8, 2023 –81.0% ""I discovered there was no standardization of times anywhere in the country or world" in the early 1880s. There were over 144 local times in North America. Timezones were created in 1883."

February 8, 2023 –Finished Reading

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