In Blake Crouch’s new novel, Dark Matter, an atomic physicist is kidnapped, torn from his life in Chicago and the family he adores. The action never stops, and the plot twists and turns keep coming in this psychological thriller with sci-fi elements — but the heart of this novel is a man’s desperate search for his wife and son.
We asked Blake Crouch for a look at his library, and offered us this quartet of favorite reads which he’s used to introduce the mind-bending notions of time travel and alternate realities to his own family.
The Time Machine
By H. G. Wells
“The 1895 science fiction novel that popularized the idea of time-travel. I recently read this book to my son, and we had the best time venturing into the far, far future with the unnamed Time Traveler, and watching humanity evolve, adapt, and split in the most fascinating way. Even more than the notion of time-travel, this book’s real genius lies in its imagining of how humanity may continue to adapt and change into something that holds little resemblance to our species.”
A Wrinkle in Time
By Madeleine L’Engle
“My favorite of the four novels on this mini-list. The first time, my mother read it to me. The second time, I read it as a teenager, because I happened to pick the novel up one bored summer afternoon and ended up devouring it in a sitting, as is so easy to do with L’Engle’s tale. And in the last year, I read it to my son. Each time I’ve encountered this story, I’ve been blown away by the vivid, emotional journey it pulls me through, because at its heart, it’s about a girl trying to reunite her family through the only thing that actually ever moves the needle: love.”
The Magician’s Nephew
By C. S. Lewis
“My favorite novel of The Chronicles of Narnia series and one I particularly enjoyed reading to my son for its mesmerizing blend of tension and humor. The forest filled with pools, each leading to an alternate reality, is one of the most enduring images a book has ever imprinted on my brain.”
Time and Again
By Jack Finney
“This isn’t technically a young adult novel but I’ve put it on this list, because it means so much to me. I first read it when I was ten or eleven. I discovered it on the shelf of my public library and got swept away by the storytelling, and yes, even the love story. I remember sitting all afternoon among the stacks, inhaling this gorgeous book. It’s simply one of the greatest time-travel novels ever written.”
The Barnes & Noble Review http://ift.tt/2auSitf
Sig Nordal 
Thanks so much for this! It’s the second time I see something about Dark Matter and its author. Great idea to have him talk about those four books.
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