Time and Time Again

Here we enter the topic of time travel, a concept very dear to me from both a fictional, moral, and scientific point of view. Many novels have attempted to show how one change in the past could change our future. Elton’s novel struck me for its originality in picking a notorious historical event largely ignored by fiction when it comes to time travel and alternate history. The assassination of the Franz Ferdinand of Austria is used not just as the spark of World War I but as the start of the ideological and warmongering terror that would spread through Europe.… show more.

I’m sneaking a novel in amongst all this nonfiction. Ben Elton’s books usually make you think, while also making you laugh. This one dispenses with the laughs and messes with your understanding of time, consequences, and history instead. 

I enjoy time travel stories, and because I’ve read a fair few of them, I felt pretty confident that I understood what was going on: Be careful when you change the past, unintended consequences, and all that. But I had not understood, and the twist at the end really hit home. I won’t give any spoilers, but the significance of a simple… show more.