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3.91 AVERAGE
3.91 AVERAGE
Sweet and loving without being sentimental and cloying. That is hard to do and Straub does it well. This is a love letter to the parent-child connection, to friendship, and to NYC. The central character, Alice, is turning 40, a time when many of us begin to look back at our life choices and to wonder "what if." At the same time Alice's beloved father is coming to the end of his life and Alice cannot let go. On her actual birthday Alice discovers a time travel portal. Can she/should she change the future? What happens if she does one thing differently? Can she prevent her father's death? Can she find (and does she want to find) a life partner? Is papaya really the best drink flavor at Papaya King? (spoiler -- the answer to that is yes.) Like Straub's other books this is a light beach read, but it is smart and not formulaic like other books that get that designation (see Jennifer Weiner, Abby Jimenez, Elin Hildebrand, etc.) If you are looking for a light but also really meaningful read this is great choice.
The more time I spent with this book the more I loved it (pun intended a bit). I almost always love a time-travel book, and this one was no exception. I enjoyed the twist, and appreciated the seriousness of the narrative. I found the audio book reader to be very sad sounding, which makes some sense with the topic.
My favorite book of 2022. This was refreshingly different from anything else I have read this year, and I loved the science fiction element (I would call this sci-fi realism, with the only sci-fi element being a little time travelling).
I am excited to read more by this author and have already checked out All Adults Here.
I am excited to read more by this author and have already checked out All Adults Here.
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Emma Straub has woven a beautiful time travel novel that hits so many emotional notes.
I loved the meta references to all the time travel works that have gone before (Back to the Future, Peggy Sue, 13 Going on 30) and found her attempts at changing the future fascinating.
Because what would you do... and how would you change things... if you had one day to do over again. And again. And maybe again.
The ending was beautiful and brilliant and so emotionally incredible. I loved pretty much everything about this novel.
I loved the meta references to all the time travel works that have gone before (Back to the Future, Peggy Sue, 13 Going on 30) and found her attempts at changing the future fascinating.
Because what would you do... and how would you change things... if you had one day to do over again. And again. And maybe again.
The ending was beautiful and brilliant and so emotionally incredible. I loved pretty much everything about this novel.
This is a probably a skewed review. I don't know how enthralled I was with the story b/c I was overwhelmed had how precisely Emma Straub captured New York city in the late 90s. My four starts are because it felt like she opened a window into a specific time in my life and I was grateful for that trip.
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Loved so so much of this book, although I’m still reeling from the thought that my niblings will never know the sound of a dial tone.
The middle of the end was a little too disjointed for me, and while I loved - LOVED - the Sam relationship, it felt a little too… optimistic?
Anyway it was great and I’m so glad I read it.
The middle of the end was a little too disjointed for me, and while I loved - LOVED - the Sam relationship, it felt a little too… optimistic?
Anyway it was great and I’m so glad I read it.
This was a quick and compelling read for me. I’ve seen many versions of time travel done before, but this is less in the spirit of sci fi adventure and more focused on the core question of how to build a life, and the anxiety that comes with questioning whether there’s a way to get that “right.” It’s also a beautiful exploration of the protagonist’s relationship with her aging father, and on a lesser note, other relationships and brief interactions that shake out unexpectedly over the course of a life. A fun read, and there’s a lot here if this is something you, like me, spend a lot of time thinking about.