The Man Who Folded Himself (Hardcover)

by David Gerrold (Author), Robert J. Sawyer (Introduction, Foreword), Geoffrey Klempner (Afterword) "IN THE BOX was a belt..." (more)
Key Phrases: Uncle Jim, Daniel Eakins, Absolam's Ass (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
"Everything you ever wanted to know about time travel" -- Larry Niven

"Superb" -- The Independent (London)

"Widely imaginative and mindbending" -- Publisher's Weekly

Product Description
This classic work of science fiction is widely considered to be the ultimate time-travel novel. When Daniel Eakins inherits a time machine, he soon realizes that he has enormous power to shape the course of history. He can foil terrorists, prevent assassinations, or just make some fast money at the racetrack. And if he doesn't like the results of the change, he can simply go back in time and talk himself out of making it! But Dan soon finds that there are limits to his powers and forces beyond his control.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: Benbella Books; Limited edition (July 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1932100067
• ISBN-13: 978-1932100068
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (60 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #28,243 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #1 in	Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Authors, A-Z > ( G ) > Gerrold, David
  #4 in	Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Authors, A-Z > ( S ) > Sawyer, Robert J.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Rings all the changes . . ., October 15, 2004

By	Michael K. Smith (Gonzales, Louisiana) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

When this time-travel classic first appeared thirty years ago, I was a grad student in history and my mind was full of the academic debate over the nature of causality -- so Gerrold's thoughts on the subject made quite an impression on me. I stole his arguments shamelessly for use in the TA lounge. I had met him at a con a couple of years before, when his reputation derived almost entirely from tribbles, and I believed at the time that he was going places. Sadly, he never quite made the big time and I imagine most younger discoverers of science fiction have never heard of him. Still, any fan of time travel fiction knows this book well and I doubt anyone can ever match the psychological and philosophical complexity of Dan Eakin's life in possession of the Timebelt. This artifact is the only one of its kind (logically, when you think about it) and so Dan is the only time traveler, . . . but there's plenty of him to go around, because time travel is actually the creation of alternate realities. There are young Dans and old ones, hetero- and homosexual versions, even male and female. Some go insane, some become degenerate. Some find love, some lose it. But Dan is his own universe: "I am a circle, complete unto itself. I have brought life into this world, and that life is me." If you're looking for a Time Patrol adventure yarn, this isn't it. (There isn't even all that much plot in the usual sense.) But if you want to think about the consequences of personal, individual time travel, you can't do any better than this one.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A journal through time, September 9, 2004

By	Sarah Sammis "Avid BookCrosser" (Hayward, CA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Man Who Folded Himself (Paperback)

I think narcissism and time travel go hand in hand. Dan/Don/Danny/Diane et al is not much different than Dave Lister. I enjoyed the book quite a bit, though I have to wonder if the author retconned some of Dan's early stock picks. The original book was published in 1973, so unless the author has a time belt of his own or is psychic, he wouldn't have known about Apple and Sony. I'd love to get a first edition and compare those passages... The time travel plot and "twists" are fairly standard, the ending didn't suprise me but I did enjoy this telling of the story. The journal entries from the various incarnations allowed for a character growth that doesn't usually happen in this genre of book. I also liked the rather frank exploration of the main character's sexuality.

31 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars THE MAN WHO LOVED HIMSELF JUST A LITTLE TOO MUCH..., September 26, 2004

By	Lawyeraau (Balmoral Castle) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)

I love books that have a time travel theme and looked forward to reading this book, as it had come highly recommended. This book is more like a long short story or a very brief novella, which is a mercy, considering how disappointed I was by it. It was merely ok. In fact, there was very little about it that I found to be engaging, though I do not affirmatively dislike the book.

The book is about a young man, Daniel Eakins, who inherits a belt that allows him to travel in time. The book itself is like a diary that the main character keeps of his journeys in time. He writes mostly about meeting other versions of himself, both male and female, and making love to those versions. His presence at some of the greatest moments in history, which he does go to see, consist of nothing more than a laundry list to indicate that he had been there. There are also journal entries by some of his other various incarnations, which is a moderately interesting contrivance.

Still, there is little substance to the book in terms of plot, as well as little character development. The time spent in other eras are glossed over quickly, as if too much time would be wasted in doing otherwise. Daniel does try to change some historic moments, with some interesting consequences, but that, too, is glossed over. The book almost reads as if it were a stream of consciousness narration, which is, perhaps, congruent with keeping a diary or journal. The exploration of sexuality in which the author engages is certainly novel, though slightly creepy.

This book, which feels more as if it were an outline for a book, would probably be of interest only to die hard, time travel fans. If you are not such an individual, deduct one star from my rating and avoid this book. As is its central character, the book is in a state of arrested development.