Title: How to Stop Time
Author: Matt Haig
Published: 6th July 2017, Canongate Books
Pages: 325
Source: Library
Format: Hardback
Rating: 5/5
A love story across the ages - and for the ages - about a man lost in time, the woman who could save him, and the lifetimes it can take to learn how to live.
Pages: 325
Source: Library
Format: Hardback
Rating: 5/5
A love story across the ages - and for the ages - about a man lost in time, the woman who could save him, and the lifetimes it can take to learn how to live.
Tom Hazard has a dangerous secret. He may look like an ordinary 41-year-old, but owing to a rare condition, he's been alive for centuries. Tom has lived history - performing with Shakespeare, exploring the high seas with Captain Cook, and sharing cocktails with Fitzgerald. Now, he just wants an ordinary life.
So Tom moves back to London, his old home, to become a high school history teacher - the perfect job for someone who has witnessed the city's history first hand. Better yet, a captivating French teacher at his school seems fascinated by him. But the Albatross Society, the secretive group which protects people like Tom, has one rule: never fall in love. As painful memories of his past and the erratic behavior of the Society's watchful leader threaten to derail his new life and romance, the one thing he can't have just happens to be the one thing that might save him. Tom will have to decide once and for all whether to remain stuck in the past, or finally begin living in the present.
How to Stop Tome s a bighearted, wildly original novel about losing and finding yourself, the inevitability of change, and how with enough time to learn, we just might find happiness.
How to Stop Time is my second Matt Haig book and I think he's becoming one of my faves. Two for two at 5/5!
How to Stop Time tells the story of Tom Hazard who ages at a much slower rate than normal so he is over 400 years old. He has to keep swapping lives so people don't get suspicious. This book is a combination of historical, contemporary, romance, and sci-fi and it melds together so well.
It is a fun, quick read with some humour. But it also leaves you thinking a lot. I spent a lot of time reading this thinking about death and the shortness of life and what happens after... and I can't say I liked it at all. But I love that this book made me think like this!
How to Stop Time is told via a dual timeline across 400 years and many countries, including UK, Australia, USA, France, etc. This makes sense as Tom wants to keep his secret so of course, he's going to travel around trying different places.
I really liked Tom. Sure he could be a bit pessimistic, but I also kind of found him relatable. I wanted him to have the happy ending he deserved. And Abraham was the perfect cranky old dog. The only character I didn't like was Hendrich. He really gave me the creeps from the moment he appeared.
I didn't predict the ending really. It was a slight cop-out, but it didn't take away from my enjoyment. Just a bit convenient. It was dramatic, but I'd have liked more. I could kind of sense the big plot twist too. I just had a feeling by how the character was throughout the whole book.
I absolutely loved How to Stop Time. There's just something about Matt Haig's writing that seems to captivate me. I can't wait to pick up another one. I'd definitely recommend it to those that have enjoyed The Midnight Library and enjoy a bit of magical realism.
Lovely review. I need to go back and read more of his backlist.
ReplyDeleteI definitely recommend this one! Matt Haig is such a brilliant writer.
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