Have you ever imagined what you would do if you could go back to some poignant moments in history? If you were told the risks of changing things, how would you weigh the pros and cons? What if you couldn’t change anything but just observe … would yous till go? Here are 3 of my favorite reads that explore time travel back to some dark, memorable times in history.
11/22/63, Stephen King
Life can turn on a dime or stumble into the extraordinary, as it does for Jake Epping, a high school English teacher in Lisbon Falls, Maine. Jake’s friend Al, owner of the local diner, enlists Jake to take over the mission that has become his obsession -to prevent the Kennedy assassination. How? By stepping through a portal in the diner’s storeroom, and into the era of Ike and Elvis, of big American cars, sock hops, and cigarette smoke.
Stephen King’s 11/22/63 is a gripping exploration of a pivotal moment in history, and I barreled through its hefty 849 pages in just a few days, which speaks volumes about the sheer enjoyment I found in it. King is undoubtedly the master of suspense, weaving a tale rich with plot twists, action, and intrigue that kept me on the edge of my seat. The central question of the narrative – what if JFK had survived the assassination in Dallas? Would our nation have avoided the Vietnam War, race riots, and the tragic loss of Martin Luther King Jr.? Jake Epping believes a world without these tragedies is possible, yet the story also poses the chilling thought: what if the past fights back against attempts at change? The stakes are high, and King masterfully draws you into this tangled web of history and fate.
While the novel unfolds at a slow burn, allowing King to develop compelling characters like Sadie, Deke, Ellie, and Frank Dunning, I did find it a bit bloated in the middle; a few excess pages could have been trimmed for better pacing. Nevertheless, King’s storytelling shines through, showcasing his talent for characterization.
Kindred, Octavia Butler
Having just celebrated her 26th birthday in 1976 California, Dana, an African-American woman, is suddenly and inexplicably wrenched through time into antebellum Maryland. After saving a drowning white boy there, she finds herself staring into the barrel of a shotgun and is transported back to the present just in time to save her life. During numerous such time-defying episodes with the same young man, she realizes the challenge she’s been given: to protect this young slaveholder until he can father her own great-grandmother.
Kindred took on looking at slavery times through the eyes of a modern day woman, as Dana goes back in time, but also through a slaves eyes. And as you can imagine, in Butler’s brilliant hands, we get a very nuanced and complex story. This review at Goodreads is brilliant at breaking down the themes in the book.
Life After Life, Kate Atkinson
On a cold and snowy night in 1910, Ursula Todd is born, the third child of a wealthy English banker and his wife. Sadly, she dies before she can draw her first breath. On that same cold and snowy night, Ursula Todd is born, lets out a lusty wail, and embarks upon a life that will be, to say the least, unusual. For as she grows, she also dies, repeatedly, in any number of ways.
A sad but beautiful book. Having the same life over and over again can be a joyless endeavor. The writing is astonishingly good, and the audiobook is amazing. This novel explores many possible lives – and deaths – of Ursula: the third of Sylvie and Hugh Todd’s five children. The novel spans two world wars and more than 50 years. It focuses on Ursula and the wars, but relatives, partners, children, friends, staff, and neighbors comprise a big cast of wonderfully vivid characters, with complex relationships between them. Life After Life reads like a classic, and it’s a story you could read over and over and always make new connections.
What are some of your favorite books that tackle time travel?
