This Time Tomorrow

Earlier this summer I read This Time Tomorrow, by Emma Straub. I dogeared a couple of pages, which is a good sign. But overall the story was more "eh" than enlightening. The novel centers on Alice (aged 40) time traveling back to age 16. I should've known to be wary of a time travel plot, but I was intrigued by the father-daughter storyline and by the book being called "remarkable" by Oprah Daily. Yes, even the most vigilant of us can fall for marketing tactics.

I had started another book by Staub earlier in the summer. That novel was also kind of eh, and it included scenes set at a SAT prep course. Same with This Time Tomorrow! Staub really loves the SAT prep course plot point. In this particular book, the juiciest parts were outside of SAT prep class. I enjoyed reading about the 40 year old Alice's job and romantic relationship. The 16 year old scenes were less interesting. There was a big focus on the main character's best friend, and a lot of attention paid to Alice's high school fling. Much of it didn't further the story. My dogeared parts did contain some welcome wisdom:

"Maybe that was the trick to life: to notice all the tiny moments in the day when everything else fell away and, for a split second, or maybe even a few seconds, you had no worries, only pleasure, only appreciation of what was right in front of you."

"Mothering seemed like downhill skiing, or cooking elaborate meals from scratch--sure, anyone could learn how to do it, but it was much easier for the people who had seen other people do it first, and well, from a very young age."  

"You see what changes and what doesn't. Not to sound too Buddhist about it, because I'm not a Buddhist, and I'm sure to get it wrong, but everything outside of you is window dressing, you know?... There's the stuff that changes, and there's the stuff that doesn't. We're all trying to sort out our inner messes--no one has it any better... It's not about the time. It's about how you spend it. Where you put your energy."

I also appreciated Staub's descriptions regarding grief. But overall, this book dragged on and had some gaps, and the time travel element was a bit too far-fetched for my liking.

AES