Who Would Like This Book:
Time and Again is a lush, immersive journey back to 1882 New York, told with remarkable detail and illustrated with vintage photos and sketches. Jack Finney doesn’t just write about time travel - he makes you feel like you’re there, seeing, hearing, smelling the city as it was. If you’re a fan of historical fiction, love New York City, enjoy a dose of gentle mystery or romance, or are fascinated by thoughtful explorations of the past (with a touch of science fiction), you’ll enjoy the ride. This is also a perfect pick if you like stories that linger on atmosphere and place, rather than just racing through plot twists.
Who May Not Like This Book:
Some readers found the pacing slow, especially early on, with plenty of pages devoted to the minutiae of 19th-century life and the city’s landscape. If you're looking for high-octane action or a rigorously scientific approach to time travel, this might not hit the mark for you. The narrative can also feel dated, with some outdated social attitudes, and the method of time travel (essentially self-hypnosis) doesn’t satisfy readers who want a more plausible or tech-based explanation. Also, if you prefer tightly-plotted stories over descriptive writing, you might find yourself skimming.
About:
"Time and Again" by Jack Finney is a time travel novel set in New York City, where the main character, Si Morley, travels between the 1970s and the 1880s. The story combines elements of mystery and romance as Si navigates the ethical dilemmas of time travel and the consequences of altering history. The book is praised for its detailed descriptions of both time periods and the immersive experience it provides for the reader.
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Has Romance?
The novel contains a medium level of romantic elements, primarily through the relationship between Si and Julia.
From The Publisher:
When advertising artist Si Morley is recruited to join a covert government operation exploring the possibility of time travel, he jumps at the chance to leave his mundane 20th-century existence and step into the past. But he also has another motivation for going back in time: a half-burned letter that tells of a mysterious, tragic death and ominously of "fire which will destroy the whole world."
Traveling to New York City in January 1882 to investigate, he finds a Manhattan teeming with a different kind of life, the waterfront unimpeded by skyscrapers, open-air markets packed with activity, Central Park bustling with horse drawn sleighs-a city on the precipice of great things. At first, Si welcomes these trips as a temporary escape but when he falls in love with a woman he meets in the past, he must choose whether to return to modern life or live in 1882 for good.
"Pure New York fun" (Alice Hoffman, New York Times bestselling author), Time and Again is meticulous recreation of New York in the late nineteenth century, exploring the possibilities of time travel to tell an ageless story of love, longing, and adventure. Finney's magnum opus has been a source of inspiration for countless science fiction writers since its first publication in 1970.
Ratings (23)
Incredible (6) | |
Loved It (9) | |
Liked It (5) | |
It Was OK (1) | |
Did Not Like (2) |
Reader Stats (123):
Read It (22) | |
Currently Reading (1) | |
Want To Read (71) | |
Did Not Finish (1) | |
Not Interested (28) |
1 comment(s)
If you don't think too much about the technical details of the time travel aspect of this book (which is always problematic), it is really a compelling story. Liked it a lot.
What can you read after
Time and Again?
About the Author:
Jack Finney (1911-1995) was the author of the much-loved and critically acclaimed novel Time and Again, as well as its sequel, From Time to Time. Best known for his thrillers and science fiction, a number of his books-including Invasion of the Body Snatchers-have been made into movies.
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