This Time Tomorrow, a time travel trope that will make you feel big things, is about all those “perennial decision[s],” like relationships and love, and what we choose to do with all those tiny moments made up of the lifespan we have. One of the things I loved about this story—besides the fantastic nostalgia of Alice’s 16-year-old self in the ‘90s—is how all stages of life are represented, even death as part of life: “Alice saw it now: all her life, she’s thought of death as the single moment, the heart stopping, the final breath, but now she knew it could be much more like giving birth, with nine months of preparation. Her father was heavily pregnant with death, and there was little to do but wait—“ (5).

Even though Alice vacillates between 40 and 16, Alice at 40 really resonated with me—that restlessness that comes when you’re suddenly (and anxiously) both looking behind you with regret and looking forward with fear. It’s in some of Alice’s transports between past and present, trying to piece together the puzzle of her life, that lost a bit of the momentum for me. But it’s in the heavy moments with Leonard and the full moments with Sam and the quiet moments with herself that enraptured me. And it’s the message of hope that inspired me, understanding that no matter the life, no matter the circumstance: “Joy is coming…. You just gotta keep your eyes open and look for it’” (232).

This poignant read is definitely worth your time if any of this appeals to you: father-daughter relationships, the setting and social norms of a New Yorker, ‘90s nostalgia, time travel, seeing yourself at 16, resetting your life to counter that restlessness because: “Any story could be a comedy or a tragedy, depending on where you ended it. That was the magic, how the same story could be told an infinite number of ways” (306). ( )

I think I might have found a new favorite author! I just loved how Emma Straub writes and I think we are struggling with the same middle-life crisis, seeing our parents age, grieving our youth, accepting our aging and the acceleration and blending of time as we become older. She put what I think and feel in much more beautiful words than I possibly could. I really highlighted and liked a lot of quotes.

The book is full of nostalgia. I grew up thousands of miles away, ok we also got Beverly Hills, 90210, but I missed many other references. Emma Straub grew up in New York, the Upper West Side and she mostly writes about real places - past and present. I think for someone who grew up in New York in 1990s, this could really be a nostalgic time travel book. New York is an alive character in the book we get to know intimately. I loved the opportunity to live on Pomander Walk and walked the Upper West Side with the privileged who call it their home. ( )

this was so genuine and bittersweet. i love thinking about the passage of time, whether i would change things if i could, the implications of those changes, and that love is the strongest force in the universe!!! perfect mix of lighthearted, funny, and poignant. it reminded me a little of happy death day (one of the best time loop movies ever tbh) ( )

40-year-old Alice travels back in time to her 16th birthday party, and makes some changes that she hopes will alter her future.

What a spectacularly emotional book about time travel. Alice moves past being mired in her own regrets, past the fear of her father's death and her compulsion to control the death, and into a better understanding of how love functioned in her life. Honestly, what would anyone do with time travel other than go visit the people that they have loved? ( )

2.5 stars. Disappointing. This was so saccharine I wanted to DNF it after the first part. I forced myself to read it only to be rewarded with more cliches. The only interesting character here was the dad, and he was not explored very deeply.
Everything in here is surface level, and even the 90s nostalgia didn’t do much to make it more bearable. This book could have been a lot better, but it felt so superficial to me. ( )