Apparently I've become a lazy reader

[ladymercury_10]

So I borrowed The Time Traveler's Wife from the library, and all it's done is sit on my parents' coffee table.  I got about a chapter in and gave up.  I just can't muster up the interest.  Which feels odd to me, since there are so many reasons that I should love it.  It has time travel, the fantasy/science fiction element, lovely local details (I'm from Chicago), etc.  It comes to me highly recommended by one of my favorite teachers ever.  And it's supposed to be well-written; literary fiction and whatnot.  But I just can't get into it.  I wonder if it's just long, and that puts me off, or if it has too much sex for my taste, or if I've read one too many bad reviews. 

Anyone a TTTW fan or hater and want to tell me why I should/shouldn't just get on with it? 

Comments

[kaffy_r]

It's been ages since I read the book, but I think the time travel conventions are the sole SF tropes that she misuses. It's just that she does so in such a bloody spectacular way.

The emotional resonance of the story is affecting only up to a point, and then I start wondering about the insularity and self-satisfaction of the characters involved (said self-satisfaction being an underlying feel rather than something outright. It just lies there, making the "oh lawsy, what a terrible fate is dealt us two star-crossed lovers" more than a bit irritating.

If you ever do finish the book, or see the movie, I'd be interested in your thoughts on decisions the couple make after they are married. (Further deponent saith naught, because ... spoilers ....)

[ladymercury-10.livejournal.com]

Hmm. Thanks. And yes, if I manage to finish it, I will certainly let you know. Right now I am leaning towards...not reading it *right now* because I have library books I need to finish before heading back to school, and TTTW is so popular I know I can get it from the library out there.