By Adriana Ungerleider, ’12, Contributor
It’s rare that I enjoy a book recommended to me by someone else. It’s even rarer that I am inclined to write a book review about it. The Time Traveler’s Wife is one of those books. Last summer, I saw the movie and was, to say the least, unimpressed. The plot was lazy and the characters were one-dimensional, leaving me with a general feeling of depression that a storyline with so much potential could be wasted on a mediocre chick-flick that felt like a sci-fi version of The Notebook. However, this year, I was persuaded to read the book, hoping that it would at least be better than the movie adaptation. I expected a run-of-the-mill tragedy filled with regret and self-loathing, and I could not have been more wrong. The Time Traveler’s Wife is a smart, well-organized love story that uses a hackneyed plot twist as the driving force behind a love story that truly works.
This book, while its plot can be a bit meandering, is driven by a dream cast of characters. The unconventional chronology allows the author to introduce the protagonists, Claire and Henry, at different ages, and keeps the reader interested in the constant ebb and flow of their relationship. A scene in which Henry meets a younger version of himself in the Chicago Field Museum really showcases the author’s talent for character development. In most novels, this would have been a clichéd moment of soul-searching and reunion. However, Audrey Niffenegger handles the scene beautifully. young Henry is completely oblivious to the identity of older Henry, and the two have a conversation about their favorite exhibits in the museum. The dynamic between Henry and Claire is constantly fluctuating as they meet at different ages, and some of the best scenes of the novel come when a grown-up Henry visits Claire as a young girl, acting as a friend and mentor until she is old enough to understand that they are truly meant for each other.
In a way, The Time Traveler’s Wife is much like a reimagining of Homer’s The Odyssey from Penelope’s perspective. While the book’s first-person narrative is shared between Henry and Claire at different ages, the story centers on Claire’s struggle to come to terms with the jarring disappearances and returns of her husband. However, while the focus is on the star-crossed lovers, Audrey Niffenegger uses her mastery of funny moments and witty dialogue to keep the plot from becoming overly depressing. A great cast of supporting characters, especially Claire’s friend Gomez, lend both comic relief and perspective to situations that could easily have become melodramatic and overdone. In a particularly funny scene, Gomez is forced to smuggle Henry into his own wedding after he has a panic attack and time travels just minutes before the ceremony.
While this book might seem a bit dull to those who prefer tightly-plotted novels, the masterful character development and interesting timeline makes up for any plot weaknesses, and by the end of the book, readers will forget that they ever had any complaints about the storyline. If you didn’t like the movie, I highly recommend you give the book a chance. This is truly a love story to rival the classics, and one of the best books I’ve read this year.
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