This novel was a less a novel and more series of whimsical vignettes. There were a few chapters describing the life of a young Einstein and his colleague. Other than that there was not a real plot or story arc.
Most chapters contained a creative idea about how time might be structured and how the human experience would react. I felt that the book went on a bit too long for what it was. However, I found the description of Albert Einstein, the young man, and his dear friend Besso to be endearing.
I enjoyed the Dr. Seussesque moving buildings and houses on stilts. I appreciated the touching wish to be frozen in time in your most perfect moment and the thoughts on the shifting perception of the past. What I found profound were the statements each vignette made. How would one act differently if there were infinite time? If life lasted a mere day, how would you spend it? The thoughts on love when there is no past were soul-stirring. Lovers’ attraction never waned. They stayed up all night as if each night was the first. The chapter describing people who receive a revelation about their future was interesting as some tried to fight what they knew what must be.
What was said about the human experience in these fantastic stories speaks loudly to why we act the way we do. How do we each chose to spend what is more valuable than any currency? We each have an unknown allotted amount and when it has run out, you cannot buy, bargain or beg for more.
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1 comment:
Yes! I remember reading this in a philosophy class, not a literature class, which says a lot -- it's a little book of gorgeous ideas much more than it is a story. I liked it, though, in its way.
~S
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