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knerbbie's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
lauracrawford823's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
This was a really fun read. I found myself really emotional as I thought of my parents aging. It provided a lot of reflection on living in the moment and appreciating your choices. It was really fast paced and I loved it!
Moderate: Death of parent and Grief
jesslolsen's review against another edition
5.0
I loved this story, it was exactly what I needed to read at the right time.
I definitely get the references to The Midnight Library. And I think the blurb on the back cover sums it up perfectly. Fiendishly clever, nostalgic and tender about adolescence and middle age, expectations and anticipation, and how easily life could turn out differently. It reminds us of the importance of cherishing what we have while there’s still time.
I definitely get the references to The Midnight Library. And I think the blurb on the back cover sums it up perfectly. Fiendishly clever, nostalgic and tender about adolescence and middle age, expectations and anticipation, and how easily life could turn out differently. It reminds us of the importance of cherishing what we have while there’s still time.
caoxtina's review against another edition
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Graphic: Grief
jesstbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
literarycrushes's review against another edition
4.0
This Time Tomorrow by Emma Straub is not a book about illness, but it is about grief – specifically a very strange subset of pre-grief that deals with the emotional toll of losing a person who is still physically with you. It is also a love letter to city kids and the specific nostalgia for growing up in New York City when you still live there, and how it is (or you are) the same, but also totally different.
On the surface, it’s a time travel novel that begins on the night of Alice’s 40th birthday. After a few too many shots, she inadvertently discovers a portal that can transport her to the day of her 16th birthday. Rather than immediately freaking out about this, it comforts Alice, because if she’s 16 that means her father is 49 and healthy rather than the comatose version that exists in her future reality. Without sounding overly sentimental or cheesy, Straub creates characters who are both pragmatic yet tender. I haven’t read many excellent books that focus on father-daughter relationships until this one.
The other theme it deals with is a popular one in recent media (done so well in the movie Everything, Everywhere All at Once and less so in Marvel’s Multiverse), is this idea of our alternate selves and how, over time, your life is affected by all the decisions you’ve made. Everyone wonders what their life might be like if they hadn’t quit that job, or stayed with that person, or whatever, and I think this book was a refreshing mediation on those questions because Alice doesn’t really view the choices she made with regret. This book will probably make you cry, but it's also beautiful because it ultimately leaves you (or left me, anyway) feeling hopeful!
And bonus points because it reminded me of Altoid Sours, the smell of Hot & Crusty, and the massive burgers at Jackson Hole for the first time in years!
On the surface, it’s a time travel novel that begins on the night of Alice’s 40th birthday. After a few too many shots, she inadvertently discovers a portal that can transport her to the day of her 16th birthday. Rather than immediately freaking out about this, it comforts Alice, because if she’s 16 that means her father is 49 and healthy rather than the comatose version that exists in her future reality. Without sounding overly sentimental or cheesy, Straub creates characters who are both pragmatic yet tender. I haven’t read many excellent books that focus on father-daughter relationships until this one.
The other theme it deals with is a popular one in recent media (done so well in the movie Everything, Everywhere All at Once and less so in Marvel’s Multiverse), is this idea of our alternate selves and how, over time, your life is affected by all the decisions you’ve made. Everyone wonders what their life might be like if they hadn’t quit that job, or stayed with that person, or whatever, and I think this book was a refreshing mediation on those questions because Alice doesn’t really view the choices she made with regret. This book will probably make you cry, but it's also beautiful because it ultimately leaves you (or left me, anyway) feeling hopeful!
And bonus points because it reminded me of Altoid Sours, the smell of Hot & Crusty, and the massive burgers at Jackson Hole for the first time in years!
lindle983's review against another edition
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
leonor_g_s's review against another edition
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
raehillzreads's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
emilyb_chicago's review against another edition
5.0
Just when I was settling into the gentle, interesting walk with a modern 40 year old in New York City… thinking maybe this is not a fantasy book at all and I misremembered? There it is! Time travel!
How I fell in love these people as the story evolved. The setup was needed to truly understand how comfortable she is as herself, the progression was perfectly done without wasting too much time in repetition (which can sometimes be annoying with time travel).
I spent the last 30 minutes crying for and with these people - I love the ending. I love the realness (except for how she never buys Apple stock). I love that relationships with friends and family are more central than romance. I love this depiction of time travel - how well it sits in our world of popular culture.
I listened and enjoyed the narrator, though it would be as good in print.
Quotes I liked:
“We are all lobsters in a pot” ~Chapter 14
“Teenaged girls are half bones and half secrets” ~ chapter 22
“No one talks about… How it feels to love someone so much and then have them change into to someone else. You love that new person, but it’s different. And it all happens so fast, even the parts that feel like they just last for fucking ever while they’re happening.” ~ chapter 56
“The day that you were born, that’s when I became the best version of myself.” ~ chapter 56
How I fell in love these people as the story evolved. The setup was needed to truly understand how comfortable she is as herself, the progression was perfectly done without wasting too much time in repetition (which can sometimes be annoying with time travel).
I spent the last 30 minutes crying for and with these people - I love the ending. I love the realness (except for how she never buys Apple stock). I love that relationships with friends and family are more central than romance. I love this depiction of time travel - how well it sits in our world of popular culture.
I listened and enjoyed the narrator, though it would be as good in print.
Quotes I liked:
“We are all lobsters in a pot” ~Chapter 14
“Teenaged girls are half bones and half secrets” ~ chapter 22
“No one talks about… How it feels to love someone so much and then have them change into to someone else. You love that new person, but it’s different. And it all happens so fast, even the parts that feel like they just last for fucking ever while they’re happening.” ~ chapter 56
“The day that you were born, that’s when I became the best version of myself.” ~ chapter 56