The Time Traveler's Wife

Finished The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger. This is Niffenegger's first novel, published in 2003. Regardless of the title, I felt that this book was equally about Clare, the wife of the time traveler, and Henry, the time traveler himself. The narrative perspective jumps back and forth between them both and backwards and forwards in time.

While the book was intense at times (THE most horrific car accident description ever), one must be an intense reader when imbibing this book. That's not to say that you can't pick it up and put it down easily, because the perspective changes often, so that's easy to do. You just have to have your thinking cap on while reading each journal-like entry. I found it interesting that Henry time travels when he is most stressed. I've been feeling pretty stressed myself lately, and am thankful that this is not the result, but it emphasizes Niffenegger's concept of time travel as an ailment, rather than a perk. Sometimes it's a gift, sometimes it's a nightmare.

This is another novel set in Chicago that I was able to follow, street by street. I like that. I enjoyed this book and read it pretty quickly. It was emotionally clever and engaging, not a favorite perhaps, but a good contemporary read.