A Shortcut in Time [Hardcover]

Charles Dickinson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 4, 2003

Charles Dickinson's novels and short stories have won widespread acclaim for their deft characterization, humanity, and humor. Newsday described him as "a writer thoroughly in command of his art," while the Chicago Tribune wrote "he can surprise us at almost every turn."

Now Dickinson slips beyond the bounds of mundane realism to create a poignant fantasy that bears comparison to the work of Jack Finney and Jonathan Carroll.

Euclid, Illinois, is a town of many shortcuts, between houses, through orchards, and across fields. Josh Winkler, a local artist and longtime resident, knows these irregular pathways well, but is thoroughly taken aback when a hasty dash down a familiar walk deposits him fifteen minutes in the past--literally. At first, Josh is more intrigued than alarmed by this accidental time travel. Then a lost young woman appears, claiming to be from 1908 . . . .

As his life, his family, his town, and even history itself begin to unravel, Josh gradually realizes that his only salvation may lie in A Shortcut Time.

Charles Dickinson has written a moving and unforgettable book about the way the past can affect the present as well as, sometimes, the other way around.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Author of such imaginative novels as Waltz in Marathon and Crows, Dickinson is a splendid writer who has yet to reach the audience he deserves. After a decade's hiatus, he edges close to sci-fi in this psychologically rich and engrossing novel about time travel. Reminiscent of Jack Finney's Time and Again, but with its own distinctive flair, the story begins with a subtle, clever twist on time-travel tropes. The hero, Josh Winkler, discovers he has the ability to move just 15 minutes backward in time. Unlike previous fictional chrononauts, he soon has his whole small town of Euclid, Ill., talking about his exploit, some believing, most not. Josh is a hopeful if unsuccessful artist. His wife, Flo, is a hard-working, family-supporting pediatrician, and their daughter, Penny, is a typical teenager. After Josh's unexpected temporal adventures, his life begin to unravel. He eventually manages to go back 80 years and encounters a mysterious 15-year-old girl, Constance Morceau, herself an unsuspecting traveler from 1908, whose plight is poignant. The narrative tension increases dramatically as her apparently hopeless situation becomes clearer. The reader shares Josh's highs and lows in a time-twisting game of blind man's buff over which he has little control. Dickinson's trick is intertwining stories, for Josh's own daughter is also transported back three generations, and he learns she will die in the influenza epidemic after WWI unless he can get her out. The conclusion to this intricate and sophisticated time paradox puzzle is unexpected yet logical. This is a low-key gem.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Perhaps the ageless allure of time travel stems from the desire to go back and "set things straight" or "get it right this time," itself born of stubborn resistance to the unstoppability of time. Yet modern science speaks of gateways in time that could conceivably allow really going back. Science can't, of course, predict the consequences of doing so. Quiet Euclid Heights, Illinois, is home to Josh, a painter; his doctor-wife Flo; and their daughter, Penny. Built with irregular pathways as shortcuts from one end of town to the other, Euclid Heights also provides a shortcut in time. A young woman suddenly appears, sodden despite the bright heat of the day, and claiming to be living in 1908. Josh might never have taken her seriously had he not accidentally "traveled" the same path a quarter-hour into the past. Can he help Constance return to her time and go back to reverse his brother's fate? In the manner of Jonathan Carroll, Dickinson conjures a notably mundane environment, then makes it extraordinary. Whitney Scott
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Forge Books; 1st edition (January 4, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0765305798
• ISBN-13: 978-0765305794
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (42 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,278,862 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Be careful where you run in the rain . . ., January 12, 2004

By 

Michael K. Smith (South Louisiana) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: A Shortcut in Time (Paperback)

There are basically two kinds of time travel stories. There's the Sprague DeCamp/Robert Silverberg kind of story, full of large, historymaking events, and the Time Patrol to protect the continuum, and knowledgeable time travelers making things happen. And there's the Jack Finney kind of story, about ordinary people dealing with small-scale events in out-of-the-way towns and trying hard simply to cope with things that happen to them willy-nilly. Dickinson has written a warm, funny, affecting example of the second kind of story. Josh Winkler is a somewhat feckless artist living in Euclid Heights, Illinois, where crosswise shortcut paths known as "perp walks" disturb the town's gridded layout. He's married to a doctor, the sister of his brother Kurt's best friend when they were kids, before her brother drowned in the town pool and Kurt suffered permanent brain damage. Their fifteen-year-old daughter, Penny -- the best-drawn character in the book, I think -- is about all that's still keeping them together. Then Josh gets caught riding his bike in a storm on one of the perp walks and is tossed fifteen minutes into the past. But young Constance, who appears soon after, has a worse time of it, dragged into our own era from 1908. Can she get back? Can she adapt to our world? And what happens if someone else becomes an unintentional time traveler? Dickinson's style is quiet and thoughtful; he almost lets the story tell itself. An excellent piece of work.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Unanticipated consequences, February 7, 2006

By 

Andrew W. Johns "ResQgeek" (Alexandria, VA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Shortcut in Time (Paperback)

One of the reviews on the back cover compares this book to the time travel stories of Jack Finney. As I started reading this, I wasn't sure what that meant, but as the story progressed, it definitely developed an atmosphere that was very similar to Finney's style. However, this is a very different story, one that is much less upbeat in its consequences. The narrator, Josh Winkler, is an accidental time traveller, and while his actions in the past have an impact on the present, the changes he brings about don't necessarily make life easier or happier. While time travel is the hook in this story, it really seems to be more about the choices we make and their often unanticipated ramifications. The story opens with a tragic incident early in Josh's life, and ends with a number of unresolved questions lingering. The story doesn't come together in a neat package, tied together with a pretty ribbon at the end, which perhaps makes it all the more compelling.

18 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Why was this published?, January 3, 2005

By 

Weaver Hall "Weaver" (Phoenix, AZ) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Shortcut in Time (Paperback)

This book started very well. It had me interested, curious, thinking ahead. Good signs for a book. But then some holes start to appear and they slowly get bigger and bigger. And then after 287 pages it just ends on page 288. How did this get past the editors? Was this a joke by the publisher? "Hey lets see how many people will buy a incomplete book?"

The story was very interesting until he gets back to his "second time around" life. There are lots of hints leading you to think there is more to it. But nothing leads anywhere and all of a sudden it is over. What about the brother? How can there be a daughter if there was never a union with the mother? Time travel flaw!!

I just can't get past how angry I am about the way this just fizzled out! I don't understand how others can give it a good review. It started strong and just FIZZLED and then THUD!!!!

I am P#$$ed Off!