I liked this book somewhat in spite of myself - the main character is a character thoroughly convinced of his own rightness, who never engages in introspection or suffers doubt about his ability to do something the way he wants - and that kind of character always drives me crazy. So I kept wanting to be able to roll my eyes and say, "ugh."

But I just couldn't. Edwards' clever plot was engaging and surprising - even for someone who's read a bunch of time travel stories. And the prose, though it reflected some of the protagonist's character, could be unexpectedly charming. It's an engaging read, and a clever story - you won't be sorry you picked it up. ( )

Wheeler Burden is a lot of things:

• son of a revered athlete and war hero


• a successful - if not ambitious - high school and college baseball pitcher


• a rock & roll superstar


• heir to a mentor's collection of writings about fin-de-siecle Vienna which he publishes into a book


• a time traveler

I do love a time travel adventure and this is a pretty good one as the protagonist Burden suddenly arrives in Vienna in 1898. Armed with the knowledge provided by his teacher "the venerable Haze" he successfully navigates a time half-a-century before his birth and becomes acquainted with the intellectual socialites of the time. More surprisingly he meets quite a few people he already knows. The novel jumps between Burden's story in Vienna and biographical stories of three generations of the Burden family. Along the way, Sigmund Freud, Mark Twain, Winston Churchill, Adolf Hitler and Buddy Holly among others play a part.

It's not a perfect book as Edwards' dialogue and characterization is kind of week, and there's no end to the superlatives he lays on the characters we're supposed to like. But there's enough of a cracking adventure to make it worth a read. File it under higher-level brain candy. ( )

I enjoyed the book and liked most of the characters. It got bogged down a bit in Freudian psychology, and by the end I had lost track of the details that contributed to the paradox, but it was still a good read. ( )

Although set almost entirely in Vienna in 1897, this is definitely an American novel. It deals with those two most important themes: the American as hero; and, the American heritage – where did I come from? Every character in this book appears to be the very best at whatever they do, feted, praised and honoured almost beyond measure. Every character in this book presents himself or herself as someone they are not and many discover themselves to be someone other than they thought they were.

The two heroic loners in the book are presented almost as caricatures; so heroic, so lonesome. When they find that they are both not the sons of their illustrious fathers is the message that heroes are made not born? Or those legends are made from the flimsiest of materials? Frankly, I was too busy with my plot scorecards and family tree to think too deeply about this.

Time travel stories involving incest (technical, if not actual), closed repeating loops in time and the prospect of never-ending reincarnation in various gardens of delight I find hard to swallow. The narrator, a character we want to learn more about, but never do, is the one who never enters this relativistic maelstrom.

Selden Edwards has spent a lifetime writing this book and from his included notes looks like he may never write another. I am unsure whether this warms me or not. On balance, this is a good first novel, although in need of editing (repeated descriptions of events and characters, mainly. Oh, and thanks for telling me Mick Jagger is the lead singer with a rock group called The Rolling Stones).

If you believe America won the Second World War single-handed, this book is for you. Even if you don’t, it is an interesting and complexly plotted read. ( )

An interesting read, a bit slow in the start, but overall, one I couldn't put down. Great for those interested in 19th and early 20th century history - just be prepared to give in to the story and suspend reality a bit! ( )