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• Henry DeTamble is the time traveller of the title. He's a man with a genetic disease that will come to be known as Chrono-Displacement Disorder; he unexpectedly and randomly slips through time, always arriving naked and confused. His wife is Claire Abshire, who first met Henry when she was six (and he was thirty-six). He visits her throughout her childhood, coming from a range of dates in her future, knowing what is going to happen to her but refusing to tell her in advance. Henry on the other hand, first meets Claire when he is thirty-one (and Claire is twenty-three) and this time it is she who knows his future and he who must live it. This is the story of their marriage; their joys and heartbreaks, their trials and their happiness and through it all, their love which remains first and strong despite everything. I found a website where Niffenegger says "I wanted to write a book about waiting. ... I wanted to write about a perfect marriage that is tested by something outside the control of the couple." These are indeed the fundamental things that this book is about. Claire is always waiting, always waiting for Henry. From when she first meets him at six, to when she is an old woman, long after Henry has died, she is waiting for him to come to her, either slipping through the cracks in time or walking up to her in their own, shared chronological space. There have been a huge number of rave reviews about this book. That is something that always makes me nervous, especially for something that is a mainstream novel (and this is, despite the time travel) as generally those sorts of books aren't my kind of books. But the more I heard about this one, the more I decided it might be "my kind of book" after all. I'm so very glad I decided to try it out. This is a book that is both down-to-earth and highly lyrical. It is a pleasure to read, even when your heart wants to break for Henry and Claire. Niffenegger helps the reader out, by giving the date for each section as well as Claire and Henry's ages at the time, but it is still possible to get a little confused as time keeps shifting. I found that it was best simply to "go with the flow" and let the story seep into me, rather than trying to keep close track of the time shifts as that distracted me from the essence of the story which is far more important. This seems to be a short review for such a good book, but for me The Time Traveler's Wife is a book to experience rather than try to analyse in detail. It is by turns funny, beautiful and heart-breaking and a delightto read. I recommend getting hold of a copy, settling back and sharing Henry and Claire's entwined lives.

  5.00 out of 5

  rocalisa

• I loved this book. Original, great characters, touching, thought provoking. Made me think about the value of commitment. Audrey Niffenegger is just a fabulous writer.

  5.00 out of 5

  ritagad

• When I first began reading this book, I was under the impression that upon finishing it I would surely give it 3 out of 5 stars. I am pleased to announce that after reading the book, I have changed my mind and given it a 5 out of 5 stars. This book was amazing, albeit, sad, but still amazing. I found myself getting lost in this romantic story. I'll admit that at times it was hard to keep track of everything, due to the fact that Henry comes and goes a lot. There were so many different dates in the book that I found myself replaying it in my head to try to understand what exactly was going on. I didn't like that at first but after a while of doing this, I realized that it made me enjoy the book more because it made me think. I also loved the fact that Henry worked in a library and that when he moved into a house with Clare, he brought along over 70+ boxes of books (I believe). That sounds a lot like me, although I haven't quite made it to 70+. Mine is more like 3+ and it doesn't go much higher than that. All in all though, I loved this book and I highly recommend it.

  5.00 out of 5

  jshepherd929

• I read this book years before the film and fell in love with it. It's such a beautiful story and when they made the film I was a bit dubious. However, the film portrayed the book in the exact way that I imagined it. It is written so well that even though a little confusing at first, I grew to love it as it made me feel like Henry in the sense that it was very broken and torn from one thing to the next. I have read lots of books since, but this will always be my favourite =)

  5.00 out of 5

  LittleBookWorm17

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