If I had paid someone to do a review of my book, it wouldn't have been THIS good
There was a nice comment on Amazon from none other than Norm Ornstein, "Washington's most quoted pundit," but I have no idea who this was. If you are someone on DU, my humblest gratitude. If not, maybe a few more of you will be inspired to check it ("The Time Cellar"
out:
As a fan of time travel stories I never thought I'd ever find a novel that could rival the classic "Time and Again" by Jack Finney. I stand corrected.
I can't compare the two stories since they are so very different in nature, but for sheer enjoyment as well as thought-provoking wonder, "The Time Cellar" is quite simply a fantastic companion to Finney.
Which is as it should be; I've seen some stories that hew too closely to Finney's model. It's a treat to read a book with an entirely different approach, but no less excitement and equal plausibility. Every permutation of the time travel paradox is addressed, often brilliantly.
The writing is delightful, with a casual tone that only a very skilled wordsmith could pull off so successfully. Like a talented dancer, (DFW) makes it look easy. But the more you read, the more you realize how hard it really is to write so well, with so many subtle hints of things to come. I was also impressed with how artfully he integrated impeccable French with translations of such dialog so that it seemed all the more real, without becoming awkward. It all flows together.
It's a book which I quite literally could not put down. I read it in one sitting, and was very sorry when I reached the end. I would have loved for it to go on for several hundred more pages. I'm glad I bought it as a hard-copy, this is a book I intend to re-read often in coming years.
I couldn't recommend this more highly. (I've already started shipping off copies to my friends!)
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It's really fascinating to me--some people like the time travel parts, some like the collecting references, some liked the romance subplot, some liked the small bits of social commentary, and, so far, at least, nobody DIDN'T like it (or if they hated it, they had pity enough on me not to say so).
= new reply since forum marked as read
on which the classic movie "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" (1956) and three (!) remakes were based.
If you ever see a great big pod, you'd better not go to sleep.
Congratulations on the favorable review by a reader with good taste.
but to be honest I may be bugging the library first, I get the feeling that my buy list is going to be pretty exclusive.
Congrats! 
Celebrating with you.
hence the moniker. I am even more anxious to read it to see how you did on that score
Never a bad thing.
sounds intriguing ... I will put it on my list to read. 
what I'm gonna do today 
1.) The fact that there is a super ritzy area (Rodeo Drive) that is well-known almost everywhere.
2.) The fact that L.A. is better known for oddball characters--Dallas doesn't have a Hollywood or a Beverly Hills.
3.) The fact that the legend of Zorro was about Spanish California (too long to explain--you'll see when you get to the story).
4.) The fact that a local university is well-known for its film school--not so for any college local to me.
5.) The fact that the Las Vegas mafia is more likely to show up in L.A. than in Dallas (see comment #3).
6.) The ridiculous traffic situation in L.A. is more famous than Dallas traffic (again, see #3).
7.) The fact that a genius Guatemalan woman is more likely to have an ex from Hong Kong in L.A. than in Dallas
If THAT isn't enough to get you wondering WTF the book is about, I give up 
