Article Summary #3

Joe Regal sees the time travel/romance being the theme much like others, but unlike some critical articles he sees the execution performed well and the story being very tasteful. Though the certain parts are overdone.

Henry, 36 Clare, 6

            He feels the storyline is creative and very simple to follow. He goes through explaining the storyline, and how the two main characters hearts meet and learn to need the other. Henry was always the protective “boyfriend” throughout all of Clare’s life and many emotional scenes through the book draw us as readers into it. Everything about the characters is laid out in front of the reader. The events have technically already occurred and we’ve read through those with the child Clare and middle-aged Henry. Regal feels some of this could have been cut-out without losing the substance and fairytale aspects the book held true.

Movie Cover

            However it is not a read for everyone, it is better suited towards upper-middle class tastes. And is soon to become a motion picture. 

Regal, Joe. "Niffenegger, Audrey The Time Traveler's Wife.." Kirkus Reviews. August 1, 2003.  . undefined. <http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/LitRC?vrsn=3&OP=contains&locID=ko_k12hs_d21&srchtp=athr&ca=1&c=41&ste=18&stab=2048&tab=2&tbst=arp&ai=U16829218&n=10&docNum=A107489676&ST=audrey+niffenegger&bConts=2191>.

Article Summary #2

            In the beginning of her article, Stephanie Merritt summarizes the story line of The Time Traveler’s Wife, while also offering her thoughts towards a movie, and comparison to popular book The Lovely Bones. She feels the movie will be a good contribution to the boast of the novel. Merritt also feels glad for a small time author (Niffenegger) to get such high praise and earn the rank of a bestseller at the beginning of her literary ventures. 

The Lovely Bones

            She first feels of course the story is a great idea, it tugs on your heart and makes you feel the emotions throughout and similarly to my first article the thoughts are the same. It’s a modern fairytale that people would like to live in. There are many relatable back and forth banter, which would likely come up in the lives of many readers. She also feels the use of proper scientific wording and knowledge adds a sense of realistic disbelief for the reader, and commends her on the studying and self-understanding of the science. However Merritt feels the relation between miscarriages and time travel is unlikely, and not appropriate to those suffering from infertility and miscarriages on a day-to-day basis.

            Overall it is a good read, and perfect for those with the sense of imagination and want to believe in the unbelievable. But for those with a sense of reality and understanding of the events which take place, it will not suit your reading likes.

Merrit, Stephanie. "A modern fairy tale: Audrey Niffenegger's first novel, a runaway success in America, fails to work its magic on Stephanie Merritt." New Statesmen. January 19, 2004.  . undefined. <http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/LitRC?vrsn=3&OP=contains&locID=ko_k12hs_d21&srchtp=athr&ca=1&c=35&ste=18&stab=2048&tab=2&tbst=arp&ai=U16829218&n=10&docNum=A112794075&ST=audrey+niffenegger&bConts=2191>.

Article Summary #1

    The first article I found starts off with the author Olivia, Glazebrook speaking about an event that happened in 2002 with a supposed time traveler. This time traveler believes he came from the year 2256, but does not share the location of his “time craft”. This story holds an interesting truth about it… there is not any proof of his existence prior to the date he was interrogated, also how could someone turn $800 into $350,000,000 in 2 weeks? In the end he was tried as mentally unstable and arrested for insider-trade charges.

Shows that time is always in your hands
Under your control and can always be changed

    Olivia follows her retelling of a “time travelers” story by adding her thoughts on the newest time travelling fiction The Time Traveler’s Wife. She feels Niffeneger hit the time travelling/romance story head on; it was exactly as one would wish there life would be like in Clare and Henrys’ position. However that is the not the likely series of events and she does not touch strongly enough on the negative aspects of living that life. Everything is predetermined as far as Clare’s life is concerned, and Henry’s is guided by what Clare says. “A nightmarish idea” is the words of this critic. She enjoyed the book; it was a fairytale romance, but a very strange and weird topic.

    Olivia looks at it much differently than the common reader and she breaks down the story line, as a person who is living in this life. Always feeling worried, expecting death, unhappiness, and always knowing what will happen next, until the preset path alters.

Glazebrook, Olivia. "Forward to the past.." infotrac.galegroup. January 31, 2004.  . undefined.

<http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/LitRC?vrsn=3&OP=contains&locID=ko_k12hs_d21&srchtp=athr&ca=1&c=34&ste=18&stab=2048&tab=2&tbst=arp&ai=U16829218&n=10&docNum=A113378192&ST=audrey+niffenegger&bConts=2191>.

Survey of Authors and Secondary Sources

1.     Author: Audrey Niffenegger Title: The Time Traveller's Wife

2.     I became interested in this author because I originally saw the movie The Time Traveller's Wife, I have not read any other book written by Audrey Niffenegger. Although through my reading of the book I have enjoyed her writing styles and use of imagery, it makes me interested in finding other texts by her.


3.     Niffenegger was born in the summer of 1963. Her first publishing was, The Spinster in 1986. Following this first publishing she attended the Institute of the Arts of Chicago in 1991, and received her Master's in Fine Arts. Throughout her years following her Master's she has been a speaker at many institutions and currently works as a professor at Columbia College Center for Books and Paper Arts. She's also received an award for the book I am currently reading The Time Traveller's Wife, this reward is; the Popular Fiction Award in 2006.

4.     Niffenegger has written a series of books, including her popular book,  The Time Traveller’s Wife. Her book range from 1986-2010, with not only novels but also 2 graphic novels.

Audrey Niffenegger

Novels:

·      The Spinster – 1986

·      The Time Traveller’s Wife – 2003

·      The Three Incestuous Sisters – 2005

·      Her Fearful Symmetry – 2009

Graphic Novels:

·      The Adventuress – 2006

·      The Night Bookmobile – 2010

5.     Niffenegger is not a full time author, as she is also a teacher/ professor of the arts in University. She has influences from artists who have inspired her in her arts but she also has influences from authors. She does not choose to write similarly to the authors she admires, simply enjoys their work. And these authors are: Richard Powers, Dorothy Sayers, Rainer Maria Rilke, Henry James, David Foster Wallace, Edgar Allan Poe, and Anne Rice. Another influence that would I could see relating her life to The Time Traveler’s Wife is family. The families seen in the book are not necessarily the closest but are there for each other when needed; perhaps her real life families are similar or guided her to seeing a different view upon lives of others. The family aspect of a story can sometimes be the most relatable. She also demonstrates her artistic ability through her writing everything flows smoothly, like paint on a canvas.

When love overcomes all...
Even a disappearing husband

6.     Throughout Niffenegger’s writings her novels all carry a very similar and prominent theme; love. Her novels are not the same perspectives or storylines of love each time, rather she shows a different view each time. The main character are not the same, they have their own backgrounds, emotions, feelings, and lives. She shows how they love separately in each book, while some author’s will have a very similar character type through their texts.

Cassandra Clares
Mortal Instruments:
City of Bones

Suzzane Collins:
The Hunger Games

7.     In my mind I have not read another book with a similar writing style as Niffenegger’s. The closest comparison I could make is either The Mortal Instrument series by Cassandra Clare, or The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins. Though these two books share a sense of adventure and excitement, the relationship between the main characters and emotions passed between the two are very similar to that of Henry and Clare. Of course the main characters haven’t known each other, since 36 and 6, they share a deep bond which draws them together and just seems right. The relationship between Gale and Katniss is more similar because they had known each other since childhood, looked out for one another and were best friends. But the difference was they were not the same “romantic” that Henry and Clare were, who only wanted to be with each other once they first met, the first time Henry actually meets Clare at age 20.

Critical Article #1:

Glazebrook, Olivia. "Forward to the past.." infotrac.galegroup. January 31, 2004.  . undefined.

<http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/LitRC?vrsn=3&OP=contains&locID=ko_k12hs_d21&srchtp=athr&ca=1&c=34&ste=18&stab=2048&tab=2&tbst=arp&ai=U16829218&n=10&docNum=A113378192&ST=audrey+niffenegger&bConts=2191>.

Critical Article #2:

Merrit, Stephanie. "A modern fairy tale: Audrey Niffenegger's first novel, a runaway success in America, fails to work its magic on Stephanie Merritt." New Statesmen. January 19, 2004.  . undefined. <http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/LitRC?vrsn=3&OP=contains&locID=ko_k12hs_d21&srchtp=athr&ca=1&c=35&ste=18&stab=2048&tab=2&tbst=arp&ai=U16829218&n=10&docNum=A112794075&ST=audrey+niffenegger&bConts=2191>.

Critical Article #3:

Regal, Joe. "Niffenegger, Audrey The Time Traveler's Wife.." Kirkus Reviews. August 1, 2003.  . undefined. <http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/LitRC?vrsn=3&OP=contains&locID=ko_k12hs_d21&srchtp=athr&ca=1&c=41&ste=18&stab=2048&tab=2&tbst=arp&ai=U16829218&n=10&docNum=A107489676&ST=audrey+niffenegger&bConts=2191>.