Author: Audrey Niffenegger
Publisher: Vintage Books

THIS book by Audrey Niffenegger was published in 2003 and is re-released to tie in with the release of the movie based on it, starring Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams.

The story is one of the strangest I have read in a long time. Time travelling is not an uncommon subject in fiction – but not when it is involuntary.

The book details the ‘adventures’ of Henry and his extraordinary love story with Clare whom he met when she was six and he was 36. They were married when Clare was 22 and he was 30. Strange? You bet.

Henry suffers from a rare condition where his genetic clock periodically resets and he finds himself pulled suddenly into his past or future.

Unfortunately, he has no control over this and he and Clare struggle to lead normal lives.

With all the travelling back and forth and with the protagonists at different ages when they meet, things can be a tad confusing at times but nonetheless interesting.

Niffenegger manages to paint a mesmerising picture and, in the end everything clicks into place. This book is worth a read. – Sharyn Yap


The Magicians

Author: Lev Grossman
Publisher: Arrow Books

THE book starts off pleasantly enough with school nerd Quentin Coldwater and his nerdy friends on their way to be interviewed for a place at Princeton University.

Then Quentin and his friends find out that the professor who is supposed to interview them has died moments before.

The paramedic at the scene seems to know more about the situation than she initially lets on. She hands Quentin an envelope addressed to him where he finds a mysterious letter and a manuscript which catapults him into a secret world.

Quentin discovers that he has been chosen to attend Brakebills, a school for those who are gifted in magic.

At the school, he encounters student rivalry and potential romance. However, when the college comes under attack by a powerful beast and one of Quentin’s classmates gets eaten alive, the story takes on a whole new twist.

As a hero, Quentin lacks that certain charisma that readers can relate to. And the language is more suitable for young adults than children.

The book may remind you of the first Harry Potter book but the pace here is slower and the story plods on quite a bit. But Grossman does weave an interesting tale, even if it isn’t entirely original. – S. Indra Sathiabalan