11/22/63, by Stephen King

I'm what you'd call a "closet" Stephen King fan. I read his work, but you probably wouldn't know it if you know me. My personal favorite will always be "IT," even though the mere thought of Pennywise is sure to induce a nightmare for a few nights. (But I do love a good scare like that.)

In 11/22/63, King addresses an age old question that we all consider at one time or another--"what if?" What if you could go back in time and change a major event, or a minor event. Would you? Would the ends justify the means? Would the means justify the end? If you messed it up the first time, would you try again? Or would you leave it alone?

Jake Epping is a divorced English teacher (who can't love an English teacher?) in small town Maine. In an evening GED class that he teaches on the side, his students are asked to write personal narratives. One, written by the school's custodian, blows him away with its gripping story of the night he survived his family's murders at his father's hand. A few years later, the owner of the local dive diner calls Epping, and changes his perspective on the world when he shares his discovery of a "rabbit hole" to 1958....and it's possibilities.

This, in my mind, is as masterfully written a cultural, political, and historical study as you can get. The details, as expected, are phenomenal and so very accurate. Time travel, even from the best science fiction writers, is tough for me to swallow because it never really rings realistic in my mind. In 11/22/63, I soon found myself forgetting, like Jake Epping, that he wasn't from 1963, instead of 2011. I found myself devouring this book, but also needing to take a break from the sheer amount of everything I was taking in.

Just awesome.



Disclosure of Material Connection: I purchased this ebook of my own volition and was neither asked nor required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”