Under Story Book Review Calls Time-Reversal Melodrama Hokum

Chloe Benjamin's novel, "Under Story," is critically reviewed as a time-reversal melodrama that employs quantum hokum, with its narrative machinery described as shonky and distracting. The premise of the novel centers on a grieving couple who have lost their son and discover a portal to a mirror universe where time flows in reverse. This concept allows for a unique exploration of life played backwards, highlighting the absurdity of ordinary events when viewed in reverse order. The review notes that a child falling into a tree, a sandwich reassembling itself in a mouth, and a doctor unstitching a wound are examples of the strange and absurd scenarios presented by this reversed temporal flow.

Novels that challenge forward momentum often leverage this inherent absurdity. The review draws parallels to other literary works that play with time and reversal. Ian McEwan's "The Cockroach" (2019) is cited as a Brexit fable where "Economic Reversalism" makes employees pay for work and money returns to its origin. Martin Amis's "Time's Arrow" (1991) is also mentioned for its controversial inversion of the Holocaust, imagining a system of sanatoriums and benevolent Nazis focused on reparation. These comparisons serve to contextualize Benjamin's approach to time reversal, suggesting that while the concept can be powerful, its execution in "Under Story" is found wanting.

The review suggests that the novel's attempt to harness the absurdity of reversed time is undermined by its narrative construction. The concept of a mirror universe where time runs backwards, while intriguing, is presented in a way that the reviewer finds to be a distraction rather than an enhancement to the story. The effectiveness of such a narrative device hinges on its ability to engage the reader and deepen the thematic exploration, but in "Under Story," it appears to fall short. The core emotional journey of the grieving couple, intended to be amplified by the unique temporal setting, is instead overshadowed by what the review terms "quantum hokum."

Ultimately, "Under Story" is presented as a novel with an ambitious premise that struggles with its execution. The exploration of grief through a reversed timeline is a high-concept idea, but the review indicates that the novel's narrative mechanics fail to support this ambition effectively. The critique implies that the novel's reliance on a fantastical or pseudoscientific explanation for time reversal, rather than a more grounded or psychologically resonant approach, detracts from its potential impact. The reviewer's assessment suggests that the novel's narrative machinery is not robust enough to carry the weight of its speculative premise, leading to a less than satisfactory reading experience.