Timequake A science fiction written by Kurt Vonnegut in 1997 Reviewed edition by Berkley from 1998 A paperback has 250 pages ISBN 0-425-16434-9 Click to rate this book from worst 1 2 3 4 5 to best.

On February 13, 2001, the Universe suddenly decides it had enough expanding for a while, and shrinks back to February 17, 1991. And makes everyone go through the last ten years of their lives all over again. Everything that has happened is repeated verbatim once more, and people just watch, unable to change a single event ... Has potential, no ? (I would have written that the plot is pregnant, except I've had a linguistic discussion recently which made me wary of the word :-). But (there is always a but :-). The timequake itself is pretty much in the background throughout the book, which is in fact an autobiographic reflection on, for lack of a better term, the Life, Universe, and Everything.

Sure, this book is not what a science fiction fan would expect given the title for a hint. But do not let that discourage you, because what you get in place of time paradoxes, villains trying to change the course of history, and other prerequisites, is a thoughtful view of life in an intertwining series of episodes well worth reading. Best of all, the author manages to do all that without sounding overly serious. The book does not get overly cynical, and even if you do not agree with all of what it says, you will still appreciate its wisdom. Rated very good, read it.

Rated as very good by Ceres on 1999-11-21

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