For our second A-Z feature, OBS brings you The Time Traveler’s Wife edition. As you all know this month’s book club is The Time Traveler’s Wife and to celebrate we have put together a list from A to Z of all things TTW.
Thanks to OBS founder Dawn and OBS staff member Rose
Remember also to check our Time Traveler’s Wife Book Club discussions!
The Time Traveler’s Wife
When 20-year-old Clare meets 28-year-old Henry at the Newberry Library in 1991 in the first pages of the novel, he has never seen her before, although she has known him most of her life. The love story devolpes around Henry DeTamble, a librarian at the Newberry Library in Chicago, and his wife, Clare Abshire , an artist who makes paper sculptures and has to cope with his frequent absences and dangerous experiences.
Henry starts to travel to Clare’s childhood and adolescence in South Haven, Michigan, beginning in 1977 when she is six years old. On one of his early visits, Henry gives her a list of the dates he will appear and she writes them in a diary so she will remember to provide him with clothes and food when he arrives. With time, they both meet again in “a present normal time”, handling both the consequence of their love.
From novelist and artist Audrey Niffenegger, comes the British Book Award for Popular Fiction winner, The Time Traveler’s Wife.
A: Audrey Niffenegger
(What an amazing author. I cannot fathom how she kept it all straight while writing the book.)
B: Baby
(Much of the story is about how badly Clare wants a baby. She miscarries a number of babies.)
Beau Thai
(Clare and Henry’s favorite restaurant. They had their first date here.)
C: Clare Abshire
(Her love for Henry is instantaneous from the moment she meets him as a young girl. And she never wavers from that love no matter what the obstacle.)
Charisse
(Clare’s best friend, just keep the bamboo stick away from her hands.)
Chrono-Impairment
(The name of Henry’s disorder, yes that is a mouth full.)
D: Dr. David Kendrick
(A specialist in molecular genetics. He and Henry figure out why Henry time travels as well as help him try and figure other life events out.)
E: Etta
(The Abshire family housekeeper and cook)
F: Field Museum of Natural History
(One of Henry’s favorite memories from childhood. He visited the museum with his parents and the first time he time travel’s it is here.)
G: Genetic
(Henry’s time traveling is genetic and Clare and Henry’s daughter can time travel too.)
Gomez
(Charisse’s boyfriend and later her husband. He and Henry become good friends, despite their dislike at first.)
H:Henry DeTamble
(The time traveler, who ends up naked wherever he travels. Wow that must be breezy.)
I: Ingrid
(Henry’s girlfriend when he and Clare meet. Ingrid tries to commit suicide numerous times.)
J: John Lennon
(Henry’s favorite Beatle, but of course.)
K: Kelmskott Press Chaucer
(The paper Clare is writing when she first “officially” meets Henry as an adult. Clare is in the library researching the paper when she stumbles across Henry.)
L: Library
(Henry often disappears and reappears here, after all it is his favorite place in the world. Nothing says time travel like musty old books.)
Loneliness
(Clare feels lonely most of the time as Henry comes and goes without warning.)
M: Meadow
(The Meadow near Clare’s childhood home. This is where Clare first meets Henry and he goes back often throughout her childhood.)
Meadowlark House
(Clare’s childhood home, built as a gift for Mary Henderson and Dieter Bascombe.)
Mrs. Kim
(The neighbor downstairs who helps care for Henry after his mother dies.)
N: Nell
(Abshire family cook. Clare often smuggles Henry food made by Nell.)
O: Ouija Board
(As a young child, Clare and her friends use the board during a sleep over. It tells Clare she will marry a man named Henry. Coincidence?)
P: Peanut Butter and Anchovy Sandwich
(Something Clare brings Henry to eat when he shows up naked and hungry from time traveling. She’s so evil when it comes to making him food.)
Pick-pocket
(Henry becomes very good at picking pockets when he time travels. After all how are you gonna buy things when you travel stark naked?)
Q: Queasy
(When Henry times travels he feels sick to his stomach and then he vomits. Cause being naked isn’t enough to make you hate time travel.)
R: Richard DeTamble
(Henry’s father and a violinist for the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Richard’s never the same after his wife dies. Luckily, through time travel, Henry is allowed to see how much his parents loved one another.)
S: Shoes
(Clare made sure to leave clothes and shoes for Henry to wear if/when he time traveled to her. What a nice girl.)
Sunday Times
(The paper Henry reads each weekend and sometimes disappears mid article. That would really suck… how does he get news.)
T: Thank You
(Clare expresses her appreciation to Henry – when he returns from time traveling – for defending her from Jason, who wanted to have sex withClare ultimately hurting her badly when she said no. Clare has a scar from where Jason burnt her with a cigarette. But when Henry finds out, he makes Jason VERY sorry.)
U: Understanding
(Clare is very understanding of Henry’s time travel no matter how inconvenient the timing. Now that’s true love.)
V: Violent Femmes at the Aragon
(A club performance that Henry and Clare attend. Ingrid is there and she and her friend Celia try to warn Clare about Henry, to no avail.)
W: Wedding
(Clare worries Henry will time travel during their wedding and, of course, he does. An older version replaces him.)
X: X Marks the Spot
(… where Clare and Henry meet when he time travels, which is helped by notes that Henry gave to Clare. After all when is she suppose to know when to come?)
Y: Young
(For the younger versions of Henry and Clare. They meet when Clare is very young and Henry frequently has to remind himself of her age. Naughty Henry.)
Z: Zapping Through Time
(Henry is always on the go – I have no idea how he knows whether he’s coming, going or staying.)
Be sure to check back at the end of the month for a A-Z on other YA book club, BEAUTIFUL CREATURES.
