The Time Traveler's Wife, Part II [SPOILERS]

Well, I just finished reading The Time Traveler's Wife. It took me five days to read the first half, but I flew through the second half in the usual Aida way. Some people run marathons; I marathon books. Anyway, I still don't know what I think of it. I almost cried at the end, and yet at the same time I was so frustrated with the characters, especially Clare, that I couldn't really bring myself to feel more than I actually did. When I read about time travel, I vastly prefer Stable Time Loops, which just make so much sense. But this fatalistic attitude Henry and Clare had, that everything was predestined, annoyed the hell out of me. It was downright depressing to read at times. Things did get considerably more interesting once Alba came into the picture (and yes, I was right about Henry meeting another time traveler, although I never dreamed it would be his own daughter), I will grant Niffenegger that. I did care about what happened to her, and I was sad for Clare throughout her miscarriages (although adoption is not pretending, Clare). Maybe it's because I have a burning desire to have a family of my own someday (not anytime soon, mind you; 20 is waaay too young to be having children), but I'm immensely interested in family dynamics in fiction. I digress. My point is that I'm still not sure I liked it as a complete work, but I definitely liked bits and pieces.

Other notes behind the cut:

• The constant classical and pop culture allusions got tiresome really fast.
• Speaking of which, it always peeved me that Penelope had to wait patiently at home like a good little wife while Odysseus was getting it on with practically every woman he met on his travels. Part of me is glad Clare slept with someone else, and part of me is really squicked that it was Gomez, who struck me as skeevy. I'm still kind of upset she blithely jumps into bed with Henry when she knows he's got a reputation as a womanizer, though.
• Yeah, sorry, Niffenegger, an 18-year-old losing her virginity to a 40-year-old will never not be creepy.
• I'm not a prude when it comes to sex in the books I read, but the way it's written about here just didn't sit well with me. There's a bit about how Clare and Henry pretty much constantly boink, at least early on, and Henry even mentions that he would love to be able to continuously have sex with Clare for days on end. I rolled my eyes really hard. Come on, Niffenegger. Henry and Clare are into each other, I get it. There is such a thing as overuse of hyperbole. Also, niggling point: the narrative and the characters often mention Clare "fucking" Henry (Niffenegger's terminology, not mine), but is that technically possible? 'Cuz, uh, he's the one doing the penetrating. Okay then, just being nitpicky.
• Niffenegger is a redheaded artist, just like Clare. Self-insert much? Of course, pot meet kettle - half the stuff I write features half-Puerto Rican, nerdy liberals as the protagonists, so I shouldn't talk.
• Clare mentions that she sometimes wants to kick her entire family into Lake Michigan. Maybe I'm weird, but while I'm occasionally annoyed with my family, I've never been angry enough with them to wish anything bad upon them. I don't know, I love my parents. Dysfunctional families are strange to me.
• Alba is the only awesome character in this book. Clare and Henry bugged me too much.

I'm off to watch the movie. Until tomorrow!