Brought to you by Penguin. Tod. T. Friendly is living his life backwards. Doctor Friendly has just died, but after weeks of improving in the hospital, he is sent home to his affable, melting-pot, primary-colour existence in suburban America. From the fresh-cut lawns of his retirement to the hustle of New York, and then the boat back to war-torn Europe, Friendly carries with him a secret. Trapped in his body from grave to cradle, Friendly's consciousness can only watch as he struggles to make sense of the good doctor's most ...
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Brought to you by Penguin. Tod. T. Friendly is living his life backwards. Doctor Friendly has just died, but after weeks of improving in the hospital, he is sent home to his affable, melting-pot, primary-colour existence in suburban America. From the fresh-cut lawns of his retirement to the hustle of New York, and then the boat back to war-torn Europe, Friendly carries with him a secret. Trapped in his body from grave to cradle, Friendly's consciousness can only watch as he struggles to make sense of the good doctor's most ambitious project yet - the final solution. SHORTLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE 'Amis's most daring and ambitious novel' Daily Telegraph ??? Martin Amis 1991 (P) Penguin Audio 2026
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Add this copy of Times Arrow (Vintage International) to cart. $4.99, good condition, Sold by Brit Books rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Milton Keynes, BUCKINGHAMSHIRE, UNITED KINGDOM, published 1992 by Vintage Books.
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Good. Simply Brit – welcome to our online used book store, where affordability meets great quality. Dive into a world of captivating reads without breaking the bank. We take pride in offering a wide selection of used books, from classics to hidden gems, ensuring there's something for every literary palate. All orders are shipped within 24 hours and our lightning fast-delivery within 48 hours coupled with our prompt customer service ensures a smooth journey from ordering to delivery. Discover the joy of reading with us, your trusted source for affordable books that do not compromise on quality.
Add this copy of Time's Arrow (Vintage International) to cart. $8.49, fair condition, Sold by Books For Life rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Laurel, MD, UNITED STATES, published 1992 by Vintage.
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Fair. Book is in acceptable condition. May have shelf wear edge wear and spine wear but a very readable copy. May not come with supplemental materials if applicable. Does not include original dustcover jacket. Possibly Ex Library Copy.
Add this copy of Time's Arrow to cart. $8.92, good condition, Sold by Goodwill rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Brooklyn Park, MN, UNITED STATES, published 1991 by Harmony Books.
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Good. All pages and cover are intact including the dust cover if applicable. Spine may show signs of wear. Pages may include limited notes and highlighting. May include From the library of labels. Shrink wrap dust covers or boxed set case may be missing. Item may be missing bundled media.
Add this copy of Time's Arrow (Vintage International) to cart. $9.00, good condition, Sold by Goodwill BookWorks rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Austin, TX, UNITED STATES, published 1992 by Vintage.
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Good. Book shows general signs of use and handling. May have light wear on the cover or edges and minimal writing or highlighting. Binding remains tight and pages are clean and readable.
Add this copy of Time's Arrow to cart. $9.30, fair condition, Sold by Orion Tech rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Arlington, TX, UNITED STATES, published 1992 by Vintage.
Add this copy of Time's Arrow to cart. $9.38, good condition, Sold by Good Books Will Follow rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Blue Springs, MO, UNITED STATES, published 1991 by Harmony Books.
Add this copy of Time's Arrow to cart. $9.79, very good condition, Sold by Dream Books Co. rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Denver, CO, UNITED STATES, published 1991 by Harmony Books.
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Very good. Pages are clean with no markings. May show minor signs of wear or cosmetic defects marks cuts bends or scuffs on the cover spine pages or dust jacket. May have remainder marks on edges.
Add this copy of Time's Arrow to cart. $9.94, fair condition, Sold by Blue Vase Books rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Interlochen, MI, UNITED STATES, published 1991 by Harmony Books.
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Fair. The item is very worn but is perfectly usable. Signs of wear can include aesthetic issues such as scratches dents worn and creased covers folded page corners and minor liquid stains. All pages and the cover are intact but the dust cover may be missing. Pages may include moderate to heavy amount of notes and highlighting but the text is not obscured or unreadable. Page edges may have foxing age related spots and browning. May NOT include discs access code or other supplemental materials.
Add this copy of Time's Arrow (Vintage International) to cart. $10.37, good condition, Sold by Dream Books Co. rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Denver, CO, UNITED STATES, published 1992 by Vintage.
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Good. Gently used with minimal wear on the corners and cover. A few pages may contain light highlighting or writing but the text remains fully legible. Dust jacket may be missing and supplemental materials like CDs or codes may not be included. May be ex-library with library markings. Ships promptly!
Add this copy of Times Arrow to cart. $11.49, fair condition, Sold by St. Vinnie's Books rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Eugene, OR, UNITED STATES, published 1992 by Penguin Books Canada.
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Acceptable. Mass_market 100% of proceeds go to charity! Acceptable reading copy with obvious signs of use, wear, and/or cosmetic issues. Item is complete and remains readable despite notable condition issues.
This is a review of the audiobook format of Martin Amis's Time's Arrow. I enjoy listening to audiobooks while I'm involved in household tasks. However, I'm picky about my audiobooks for two reasons: first, an inept reader can ruin an otherwise good book and, second, abridged audiobooks are almost always a disappointment.
In this case, I find almost no fault with the audiobook production of Time's Arrow. The book is quite capably narrated by actor Richard E. Grant. Grant reads smoothly, without a single misstep, and adds a soft German accent and a prevailing note of bewilderment to the novel. However, I could tell that the audiobook is an abridgement, and this is unfortunate. The audiobook is only an hour and a half in length. The printed book itself is quite short. There hardly seems any reason to cut out portions of such a short book. As a result of the abridgement, there are some abrupt and seemingly out of context passages. Also, I keep wondering what I've missed.
The book itself is unusual and very unnerving. At the moment of Dr. Tod Friendly's death, a separate consciousness emerges and proceeds to live Friendly's life over in reverse. This separate consciousness is, at first, aware that he is somehow living the same life as Friendly while lacking Friendly's identity. Eventually, the two identities merge completely. The first half of the story is told in first person plural narration - "we" and "our" are the pronouns used. After the total merger, the story is told in first person singular, with the pronouns "I", "me" and "mine".
In the first half of the book, the new consciousness is confused, resentful and whining. Because he is living life in reverse, bodily functions are a horror and human relationships are the epitome of frustration. To make matters worse for this newly-emerged consciousness, there is something horrible or nefarious in Friendly's past (and the new consciousness's future).
The book becomes much easier to follow when the identities merge at the point where Tod Friendly takes the name Odilo Unverdorben. Strangely, ironically and disturbingly, Odilo (whom the listener knows is a Nazi death-camp doctor) ceases to be whining and resentful. He is still confused but becomes more childlike, na've and innocent as he lives his backwards life. Very unnervingly, this consciousness draws backwards conclusions from his backwards life. At one point, he muses, "and we all know that violence creates."
Time's Arrow has more literary value than I originally thought. However, it is a revolting book with a singularly unsympathetic protagonist. A memory-less, clueless soul living his violent, evil, sadistic life backwards and coming up with backwards conclusions about violence, life, relationships and Hitler's Final Solution. There are some immensely-intriguing passages nonetheless -- the point where the Odilo goes to confession, for instance, and the new consciousness's backwards lifelong fear of children and infants. He has no idea why children haunt him -- no concept of his guilt, just a sense of horror. Putting aside the book's literary merits, I've got to say that listening to the audiobook was a disturbing experience and I'm glad to be over it.
I am intrigued by Amis's writing and thought, however. I am left with the impression that Amis set out to horrify, disgust and unsettle his readers with this book for a reason.
Icewoman
Jul 13, 2007
A Must Read! (Historical Fiction)
Time's Arrow is the story of Dr Tod Friendly told in reverse chronological order by his disembodied conscience or spirit beginning with his death, through his flight from prosecution resulting from his job in Hitler's death camps working with "Uncle Pepe" (Joseph Mendele), to his birth. While it can be somewhat disconcerting at first, this method of telling Dr Friendly's tale sheds a humorous light on day-to-day trivialities while drawing attention to the similarities between the dehumanizing effects of today's fast-paced life and the mindset of those running the concentration camps. Additionally, this method emphasizes that the only way the cruelties of Auschwitz-Birkenau can make sense is in a backwards world. I strongly recommend this book for its thought-provoking method of telling historical events. Guaranteed to spark conversation at your next book club meeting! (Hint: For additional information about the characters, look closely at their names. For example, "Tod", as it is spelled in this book, is German for "death". Martin Amis is notorious for this aspect of his writing.) ;) ENJOY!
