Friday, May 20

Book Review: The Time Keeper by Mitch Albom

Author: Mitch Albom
Titles: The Time Keeper
Genre: Fiction, Inspirational, & Fantasy
Pages: Ebook
First Published: September 2012
Where I Got It: Borrowed from friend


In this fable, the first man on earth to count the hours becomes Father Time. 

The inventor of the world's first clock is punished for trying to measure God's greatest gift. He is banished to a cave for centuries and forced to listen to the voices of all who come after him seeking more days, more years. Eventually, with his soul nearly broken, Father Time is granted his freedom, along with a magical hourglass and a mission: a chance to redeem himself by teaching two earthly people the true meaning of time.

He returns to our world - now dominated by the hour-counting he so innocently began - and commences a journey with two unlikely partners: one a teenage girl who is about to give up on life, the other a wealthy old businessman who wants to live forever. To save himself, he must save them both. And stop the world to do so.




"Once we began to chime the hour, we lost the ability to be satisfied."

That…that sentence, I feel, is the whole meaning of this book. With the measurement of time, we have lost of appreciation for every second. Some want more time, some want less, some are not grateful, and some do not take half a moment to smell the roses. Especially with our modern society. I find myself time-watching and begging time to hurry up or slow down (depending on the day). 

Dor is obsessed with counting and measuring things out. He then makes a fatal mistake to count and measure time. This leads the world down a horrible path. He is “punished” to have immortality and be all alone in a cave with the voices of the miserable people begging for more time or less time. Poor guy. However, redemption would come when he is tasked to make two people see the light and make them realize time means nothing and to enjoy what you have. 

There is Sarah…suicidal and heart-broken over a silly boy. 

And then there is Victor….he is dying of cancer and he wants more time. 

These are two souls that Dor needs to save and open their eyes. I felt really bad for Victor. Dying is sucky especially if there if that means leaving behind the one you love and when you feel there is still so much to do. Yeah…I kinda felt bad for Sarah, but not really. Having a broken-heart is crappy, but (even though I’ll sound like an a-hole) I wanted her story to sadder. They went one like one or two dates….c’mon. 

This was really good. Not the best of the author’s books. But it was really good. SUPER quick and easy. I literally flew by in a matter of minutes. I really do love how he explained the creation of marking time. It was certainly creative. 

I went back and forth on how I liked the format of the book. It was different and helped break-up the book easy. There was an obvious shift of POV and time jumps. However, sometimes I felt like it was unnecessary and it cut the story up too much. 

In the end, I really do recommend this if you want a book that makes you think. It did have a couple of moments that made me feel (not as much as some of his other books), but it was a good lesson enforcer. I get being busy….just take a moment to not care about time and smell the roses. Don’t get mad if a friend is late. Just be happy they made it. Don’t beg for the day to end at work (a tough one), because that means you lost LOTS of times to live in the moment and actually try and enjoy yourself. Good book. Out of five stars, I stamp this with 4. 



















7 comments:

Reece Darlene said...

I'm glad you liked it! :D I'm very happy to see that glittery 4 ;)

*****SPOILERS*****

"Try to imagine a life without timekeeping. ... all around you, timekeeping is ignored. Birds are not late. A dog does not check its watch. Deer do not fret over passing birthdays. Man alone measures time. ... And, because of this, man alone suffers a paralyzing fear that no other creature endures. A fear of time running out."

"...he begged the most high gods ... to stop everything, to keep the world dark, to let his water clock overflow. But when he allowed his eyelids the slightest lift, he saw what he dreaded, the first change of colors on the horizon. ... He saw that his measures were accurate, and he hated that they were accurate...”

"'...In this cave, you will not age a moment.' ... 'I deserve no such gift' 'It is not a gift,'"

“...until the counting consumes him, and the wonder of the world he has been given is lost.”

"...a desperate heart will seduce the mind."

"Sometimes, when you are not getting the love you want, giving makes you think you will."

"...common sense has no place in first love and never has."

"'Everyone in this time can live longer than we imagined,' Dor explained. 'They fill every waking minute with action, but they are empty. To them, you are an artifact. And your memories are rare. You are a reminder of a simpler, more satisfying world. One they no longer know.'”

Anachronist said...

Sounds really nice, thank you for this review!

Carole Rae said...

Reece, I was worried! No idea why. But yes - the glittery 4 does it justice.

Ana, :) It was nice! And thank you for stopping by ^_^

Blodeuedd said...

*waves*

Carole Rae said...

B, *waves slowly*

Melliane said...

It's great to see you had a good time with this one. it's a new one to me but it looks interesting

Carole Rae said...

Melliane, thanks! It was an interesting read.