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_rachellock's review against another edition
2.0
I skimmed through the entire book. Some parts where interesting and other parts bored me to death.
kleonard's review against another edition
1.0
Simple and trite, telling stories we've mostly heard before about timepieces and time zones and so on. Nothing new, and nothing told especially well. Skip this one.
ansl's review against another edition
4.0
3.5. Als luisterboek, waardoor ik sommige dingen niet heel erg goed heb gevolgd, maar kom.. Wel interessante stukken erbij! Alleen het cijfermateriaal was te veel (zeker wanneer dat moet worden voorgelezen), en vaak overbodig.
patchworkbunny's review
4.0
Rather than an in-depth study of time or a chronological history, Timekeepers is more like a collection of essays inspired by timekeeping in one way or another.
I already knew a little about how the railways forced Britain to nationalise time and the chapter concerning them filled in some gaps for me. I wonder if the act stating that clocks on public buildings must be kept accurate is still in force? Elsewhere Simon explores how artists have portrayed time and used clocks in their work, branching off to tell us about some of the more unusual calendars people have tried to adopt in the past.
I particularly liked the chapters regarding time in film and photography. There’s Muybridge (best known for his photographs of a horse galloping) and Nick Ut (famous for a single photo from Vietnam) and it talks about how photography manages to stop time. The early cinematographers could change the speed of time by their hand-cranking of the films…and then the projectionists could change it again when they showed the film. I had never realised that early film reel was turned by hand, no wonder it sometimes looks out of time.
I didn’t know that the Doomsday Clock was actually the cover of Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, introduced in 1947 to symbolise how close we are to nuclear disaster. The minute hand has moved back and forward ever since, showing how at peace the world is. You can check out the current time on their website if you’re intrigued…
Like many of these sort of books, there’s parts that appealed to me more than others. I skimmed over some of the bits describing Swiss watches, it was more about their appearance, materials and marketing than how they actually go about keeping time. The parts about modern time management just made me glad I wasn’t one of those kind of people (and some of the mantra’s seemed a bit too similar to puppy training to be taken seriously).
Review copy provided by publisher.
I already knew a little about how the railways forced Britain to nationalise time and the chapter concerning them filled in some gaps for me. I wonder if the act stating that clocks on public buildings must be kept accurate is still in force? Elsewhere Simon explores how artists have portrayed time and used clocks in their work, branching off to tell us about some of the more unusual calendars people have tried to adopt in the past.
I particularly liked the chapters regarding time in film and photography. There’s Muybridge (best known for his photographs of a horse galloping) and Nick Ut (famous for a single photo from Vietnam) and it talks about how photography manages to stop time. The early cinematographers could change the speed of time by their hand-cranking of the films…and then the projectionists could change it again when they showed the film. I had never realised that early film reel was turned by hand, no wonder it sometimes looks out of time.
I didn’t know that the Doomsday Clock was actually the cover of Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, introduced in 1947 to symbolise how close we are to nuclear disaster. The minute hand has moved back and forward ever since, showing how at peace the world is. You can check out the current time on their website if you’re intrigued…
Like many of these sort of books, there’s parts that appealed to me more than others. I skimmed over some of the bits describing Swiss watches, it was more about their appearance, materials and marketing than how they actually go about keeping time. The parts about modern time management just made me glad I wasn’t one of those kind of people (and some of the mantra’s seemed a bit too similar to puppy training to be taken seriously).
Review copy provided by publisher.
daniellewalsh's review against another edition
2.0
I am fascinated by time, and spend a lot of time thinking about how it controls our lives.
Some of the chapters were interesting, some vaguely interesting and some that I skipped because I really wasn’t interested.
The theme of ‘time’ throughout the chapters is very loose fitting - from the length of time a CD, how long The Beatles spent recording an album, how to make a watch and the creation of the train timetable.
I hate not finishing books but unfortunately this will not be finished.
📀📽⏳🕰
Some of the chapters were interesting, some vaguely interesting and some that I skipped because I really wasn’t interested.
The theme of ‘time’ throughout the chapters is very loose fitting - from the length of time a CD, how long The Beatles spent recording an album, how to make a watch and the creation of the train timetable.
I hate not finishing books but unfortunately this will not be finished.
📀📽⏳🕰
linesuponapage's review against another edition
4.0
I wanted to read this book because the cover was fantastically intriguing. Like the cover the book itself was fascinating and a good read. I appreciated the fact that the book was not like other books I had read about using my time wisely. It was not a self-help book, it was factual, filled with interesting tidbits of history, not advice-driven. It was just great writing. I enjoyed Timekeepers by Simon Garfield. my only critique is that it might have been a little long for the average person, however, I am not the average reader. :)
_rachellock's review
2.0
I skimmed through the entire book. Some parts where interesting and other parts bored me to death.
ftideman's review against another edition
3.0
Very eye opening and made you more self aware. Took a while to get into it and some parts could use finer writing. But loved the concept and range of examples and discussions. The ideas stuck with me long after I finished.