nut free nerd

I think time is one of the most interesting things to read about. Time feels inescapable, and yet can mean something different to each of us. Of course, there’s the classic time travel story (Doctor Who, anyone?), but lately I’ve enjoyed reading other takes on time: how we spend it, how it affects us, and our attempts to understand it. Here are five books — both fiction and nonfiction — that do just that.

The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner

Published in 1929, this novel follows a family over several decades as they struggle with religion, money, loss, and morality. The novel is divided into four sections with four narrators, each with their own relationship to time. I first read The Sound in the Fury years ago as a first year literature student in college, and I remember being so confused by the many characters and the leaps back and forth in time. But with each reread since I’ve come to really appreciate how Faulkner meticulously crafted this striking, haunting novel. Read this if you want to think about our relationship with time and history in a more abstract, yet still granular, way.

Saving Time by Jenny Odell

In this nonfiction book, Odell discusses our relationship with time, work, and leisure and how that relationship has changed throughout history. Odell pushes back against the common adage that we all have the same twenty-four hours in a day, and that it’s up to us to make the most of them. Read this if you’d like to reflect with a fresh perspective on how you view the time you spend working and not working.

Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf

Mrs. Dalloway is set over the course of a single day in June after World War I. Although the novel may span mere hours, it grapples with the effects of war, the bittersweet beauty and nostalgia of aging, how the smell of a flower or the sight of a smile can take you back to a long ago memory. Read this one if you’d like to soak in a harrowing, brilliantly written stream of consciousness narrative pulsing with the chimes of Big Ben.

Your Money or Your Life by Vicki Robin and Joe Dominguez

This personal finance book defines money as “life energy” — in other words, “something you trade the hours of your life for.” Money and time are linked in so many ways, from work and leisure to investing and planning for the future. Read this one if you’d like to reevaluate your relationship with money (and time!). It’s one of the best books on personal finance that I’ve read.

Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel

I read this one over a year ago, but I still find myself thinking about it today. It’s a twist on the classic time travel premise, coupled with a look at a world before, during, and after a devastating pandemic. This novel’s structure is fascinating, and I would love to reread it soon. If you’re a fan of time travel but would like something new, definitely pick this one up.

Do you have any recommendations for books about time? I’d love to know.

Take care xx