How to stop time
by Matt Haig · first published 2017
100% recommend
Why HN recommends it
A warm, readable speculative novel about a man who ages very slowly and has lived for centuries. It is a beautiful short read and a fun, character-driven take on immortality without vampires.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
Tom Hazard has a dangerous secret. He may look like an ordinary 41-year-old, but owing to a rare condition, he's been alive for centuries. Tom has lived history--performing with Shakespeare, exploring the high seas with Captain Cook, and sharing cocktails with Fitzgerald. Now, he just wants an ordinary life. So Tom moves back his to London, his old home, to become a high school history teacher--the perfect job for someone who has witnessed the city's history first hand. Better yet, a captivating French teacher at his school seems fascinated by him. But the Albatross Society, the secretive grou
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Please read ‘How to Stop Time’ by Matt Haig It’s a beautiful short novel exploring this idea.
on “The Rich and Powerful Want to Live Forever. What If They Could?” ↗The novel "How to Stop Time" by Matt Haig is a recent addition to this genre, and is built on this very premise. It is a fun read. (And, unlike most "eternal life!" type books, has no vampires)
on “Age Reduction Breakthrough?” ↗…the series...) - The Three Body Problem by Cixin Liu - the first book was ok but I really liked the second - The Dark Forest - Devotion of Suspect X by Keigo Higashino - House In the Cerulean Sea - How to Stop Time by Matt Haig Others that I like: The Rosie Project, The Books of Babel, A long way to a small Angry Planet, Wool/Shift/Dust, Lockstep, All the Light We Cannot See, Mr. Penumbra's 24 Hour Bookstore, Earth…
on “Ask HN: What is your favorite fiction book?” ↗Anything Neal Stephenson. I've read them all. Multiple times. But some other stuff that people haven't yet mentioned that I enjoyed: - Matt Haig: The Humans, How to Stop Time - Richard Morgan: Altered Carbon trilogy - Ramez Naam: Nexus Trilogy - Hugh Howie: Silo series - Ann Leckie: Ancillary Justice - Ernest Cline: Ready Player 1
on “Ask HN: What are your favorite sci-fi books?” ↗…folks who get early access, book bloggers, etc.. (which I assume comes with their own bias at the pleasure of early access) and now throwing in 'bots' into the mix..gross! I did enjoy 'The Humans' and 'How to stop time' but would never mark either of them as 5 star books, mainly because I would count books like 'Madam Bovary' or 'Rebecca'or 'Crime and Punishment' as a 5-star book. Nonetheless the praise for Midnight…
on “Hacking the Goodreads Review System” ↗