Time and Again by Jack Finney Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Time and Again
Book Review: A True Classic
Summary: 5 Stars
Finney created a classic time travel story in this novel which may never be equaled. One of my favorite books of all time and one I return to with fond memories and eager anticipation. A story that will capture your imagination and heart.Book Review: A Unique Read
Summary: 5 Stars
After checking out some of the contradictory reviews, I think I have a test to distinguish if you will like this book or not. Have you ever stared mesmerized into an old photograph waiting to see an eyelid flicker or a curl stir in the breeze, feeling that if you could just hold your breath for a second it could happen? If you can answer yes, then you'll insanely love this book. If not, perhaps it's not your cup of tea. Of course, I'm not saying you need to be crazy to love this book, just that it helps if you come hardwired already with an awe for the sturdy reality of the past.
I stumbled onto this book in a pile at a thrift shop in the early 90s, absolutely loved it and still have my tattered copy. I almost never hang onto a book as I usually lose interest after I've finished it. This is one of the few I've held onto and reread quite a few times (along with Boy's Life by Robert McCammon and Anne Tyler's Breathing Lessons).
As an aside, I have always loved science fiction, including the time travel classics some of the negative reviews mention, but those books are in a completely different category than Time and Again and not suitable replacements for it, in my opinion.
The book itself is incredibly romantic, but the love story contained within it is a very low-key one, so if you're looking for a highly passionate and erotic ride, I think there are many better options. The real romance of Time and Again lies in its vivid recreation of another place and time that has you feeling its reality in your very bones. I've never experienced anything quite like this book. The fact that the time-traveling main character has his camera along and is actually taking photographs that he shares with us along the way is a contrivance that brought me real thrills when I first encountered it.
As another reviewer described (paraphrasing wildly here as I don't have it in front of me) the early part of the book: the darkness, the silently falling snow, the quietness, is Si still in the 1970s or has he slipped into the past? I too found the first part of the book, which many others have described as incredibly boring, to be most satisfying and almost excruciatingly suspenseful. If you even think you might be one of the people who stare at photographs that I mentioned in my opening, give this book a try. It's quite unique.
Book Review: A classic of time travel, romance, and history
Summary: 5 Stars
Author Jack Finney (1911-1995), among his other writing accomplishments, penned two great, influential science-fiction novels: the 1955 alien invasion story "The Body Snatchers," the source for three great movies (with "Invasion of..." usually tacked onto the front), and this 1970 subtle romance about time travel. It's a novel that many people hold close to their hearts, and like the movie "Somewhere in Time," has the magic to allure you with the wonder of traveling back to a simpler time -- 1880s New York in this case -- and exploring in depth a world so unlike your own. Finney, with meticulous detail and the support of numerous old photographs and drawings from the period (this is referred to as an "illustrated novel") recreates New York in 1882, letting us and the main character, Si Morley, marvel as we walk over the old streets, see places where one day great skyscrapers will stand, gaze on a traffic jam of hansom cabs, discover the arm of the Statue of Liberty sitting in Madison Square awaiting the rest of its body, play old parlor games in a boarding house, and look at Fifth Avenue when it was a thin street of trees and apartments. People who have lived in New York will especially adore these decriptions of the vanished city and the comparision Finney makes between the "modern" city (1970; vanished now to us as well) and the 1880s city. However, even if you've never been to New York in your life, you'll feel like you have after reading this. That's an incredible compliment to pay to a writer."Time and Again" won't please readers looking for quick action and thrills. It is a leisurely book that takes its time to build up the central situation: the U.S. government has found a possible method to travel back in time through purely mental means, and believes that young artist Si Morely fits the profile of the person who can achieve it. Once the books moves to the actual time traveling, the focus is mostly on the experience of being in another time and Si's discovery of how it affects him...especially when he feels he may be falling in love with a girl from the time. There is, however, a mystery simmering inside the story, and Si sets himself out to unravel it. What will the consequences be for history itself if he interferes? And what does the government really want to achieve with this project?
The last third of the book is tense and suspenseful, and contains an incredible and lengthy description of a disastrous event that ranks with the most vivid visual writing I've ever read. And the resolution is nothing short of perfect; Finney delivers the most satisfying conclusion. However, the book takes patience. Let Finney's prose, his wonderful main character Si, and his ability to pull you back in time with him sweep you away -- you won't regret it when the journey is over. Even if you never read science fiction or claim to dislike it, this is one book you'll find it difficult not to fall for.
Book Review: A fascinating journey colored with historic NYC imagery.
Summary: 4 Stars
I had heard about this book for several years after I became a fan of the 1980 film "Somewhere In Time" (based on Richard Matheson's novel "Bid Time Return"). Since this book preceded Mr. Matheson's, and time-travel romances interest me greatly, I dove into this story with high expectations. And I'm glad I did! While I do feel that Mr. Finney spends a little too much time detailing certain events, once I got over these little humps the plot moved forward nicely. And I would have like to have seen Sy Morley accidentally reveal more future events to his 1882 family than the few that do occur (this type of conflict always creates amusing scenarios). But I was absolutely charmed by the young woman "Julia", and his drawing of her (along with many other portraits throughout the book). All in all, I found this story to be wonderful escapism while raising some curious questions about the actuality of willing one's self back in time. I look forward to reading the sequel!Book Review: A favorite, even when re-reading!
Summary: 5 Stars
I loved this book the first time I read it, and thought perhaps it wouldn't hold up under re-reading, but to my delight it was just as wonderful.