Book Review: The Time Traveler's Wife

The Time Traveler's Wife has been on my to-read list for a some time now.  Knitting, blogging and not having 'dead time' meant that it's been a while since I've committed myself to a good read.  The catalyst for me to begin the book was seeing the movie promotion poster on a bus and the release date.  I decided "Dammit!! I have to read the book before I can watch the movie!" 

From the first page in, I understood why the book was a bestseller.  Audrey Niffenegger writes fluidly and the style makes for addictive reading.  The short-ish segments makes it easy for readers who are constantly interrupted by things or people (Hi Smee!) or who can only devote thin slices of their day to reading.

It is essentially a love story with a twist, centred around Henry and Clare.  Each has their turn in first person recalling the ins and outs of the events.   Henry suffers from a genetic disorder which allows him to travel through time albeit uncontrollably.   As the summary goes: - Clare first meets Henry as a 6 year old girl.  Their timelines intersect when Henry (in his own chronological timeline) first meets Clare as a 28 year old man.  The story continues through their adulthood with the typical milestones of marriage, buying a house, conceiving a child and of course, death.  The book could have turned out to be a literary mess but Niffenegger copes with well to ensure the audience remains on track.
 
I was a bit worried that this would be light, fluffy chick lit (ugh) and that it would disgust me (hello Maggie Alderson) but it proved to be quite the page turner.  It is most definitely not a literary breakthrough but rather just an easy read with enough emotional depth to stop it from being airy-fairy.

I couldn't help but read this book without critiquing it.  My main gripe is that it is 'too tragic'.  It was tragic for the sake of being tragic.  Not just your everyday 'tragedy' either.  I mean, Clare's mother HAD to have bipolar disorder.  Henry's mother HAD to die in a car accident.  Not just any old car accident, she HAD to be decapitated in the accident.  Henry didn't just have frostbite on one foot, he HAD to lose both feet.  But I guess, if it wasn't tragic, then there would be no story to tell.  He time travels and they live happily ever after?  Pffffffttttt.... please - the book would have never been published!

The other thing that bothered me slightly was the subliminal pretentiousness, artsy fartsy-ness in the  lead and supporting characters.  It's hard for me to elucidate but there was some kind of 'air' about some of them. It probably didn't help that I read the bio about the author who 'dyed her hair Clare-red to say goodbye to the novel'.  I'm sorry, I dunno why but that quote made my eyes roll.  But hey, again, it's a book, they can be as artsy-fartsy they want, have jobs which in real life pay peanuts (Henry - librarian, Clare - artist) and yep, they'll still be successful.  Oh wait, Henry bought their house by winning the lottery after obtaining the correctly drawn numbers. 

I can see why some people would just hate this book if you can't get past the affected characters and I can agree with parts of the negative reviews.  However, I still stand by that she writes well and that it is engaging.  It's not strenuous on the brain but not fluffy like a marshmallow either.  Some of the negative reviews mention that it is difficult to follow.  Errrr... I (along with the majority) didn't find it confusing at all and I actually think that kind of comment reflects more about the reader (you dumbass) than the author.

Most importantly - yay! - I've finished in time to see the movie! 

Quality of Content: 3.5 - 4
Readability: 4
Would I recommend this book: Yes
To who: Mainly women, especially those who don't enjoy chick lit but prefer something with a bit more depth but not too 'heavy'.