Read-alike Guides - The Time Traveler's Wife

If you liked The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger, you might enjoy one of these books:

Atonement by Ian McEwan
In the summer of 1935, 13-year-old Briony, an aspiring writer, misinterprets something she sees, tearing apart the lives of her family and those close to them. This is a good choice for readers who like Niffenegger’s literary style and themes of memory, tragedy, and family. Like The Time Traveler’s Wife, Atonement has been adapted into a popular film.

The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton
In 1913, an abandoned girl arrives in Australia and is taken in by strangers. The only clue to her identity is a book of fairy tales. As an adult, she tries to piece together her story; her granddaughter also takes up the challenge. Intersecting narratives that move back and forth in time and a touch of mystery make this a compelling novel.

The Heroines by Eileen Favorite
Anne Marie and her daughter Penny run a bed and breakfast where literary heroines come to life and come to visit. The heroines quickly and comically disrupt their lives. Audrey Niffenegger recommends The Heroines, which she calls "Funny and tender...a chance to see Scarlett O'Hara and Emma Bovary off duty."

The Lovely Bones by Alice Seabold
Susie Salmon is 14 when she’s raped and murdered in 1973. She narrates from heaven, where she watches her grieving family and friends try to cope. This is a moving story about remembering the beauty of life even with faced with an ugly reality. The Lovely Bones will be released as a major motion picture in 2010.

The Memory Keeper’s Daughter by Kim Edwards
In a tale spanning 25 years, a doctor delivers his newborn twins and, rashly deciding to protect his wife from their daughter's affliction with Down Syndrome, turns her over to a nurse, who secretly raises the child. Edwards’ work alternates between light and dark tones in its depiction of a broken family.

The Mercy of Thin Air by Ronlyn Domingue
Razi Nolan, who is having a great love affair, dies in a tragic accident in 1920s New Orleans. She stays behind as a ghost, eventually haunting a young couple and revealing the story of her life while trying to discover her lover’s fate. Dominigue’s well-drawn characters and multiple plotlines will appeal to Niffenegger fans.

Shanghai Girls by Lisa See
Forced to leave Shanghai when their father sells them to California suitors, sisters May and Pearl struggle to adapt to life in 1930s Los Angeles while still bound to old customs. Together they face discrimination and confront a life-altering secret. The richly drawn characters and lyrical writing are reminiscent of Niffenegger’s work.

Somewhere in Time by Richard Matheson
Like Henry De Tamble, Richard Collier is a modern man who travels through time, drawn to his soulmate. She is a Elise McKenna, a famous actress living in San Diego in 1896. Somewhere in Time won the World Fantasy Award for Best Novel, and in 1980 it was made into a film, starring Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour.

The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield
Margaret, a bookseller and biographer, travels to the eerie home of Vida Winter, a dying writer famed for never telling the story of her life the same way twice. Margaret attempts to illuminate the truth of Vida’s life, discovering dark and sometimes dangerous family secrets. The dark, gothic plot is full of twists that will surprise and intrigue.

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
Ninety-something-year-old Jacob Jankowski remembers his time in the circus as a young man during the Great Depression, including his love for Marlena, the star of the equestrian act, and their friendship with Rosie, the elephant, who gave them hope. Water for Elephants is a poetically written page turner, populated with vividly-drawn characters and a fascinating historical setting.

Also by Audrey Niffenegger:

Her Fearful Symmetry
Niffenegger’s newest novel is about twin American teenagers who inherit their aunt’s flat in London near Highgate Cemetery. The sisters are surprised to discover that their aunt still resides in the flat—in ghostly form. Populated with quirky, troubled characters (both alive and dead) and written with Niffenegger’s familiar, poetic style, this supernatural tale of death, selfhood, love, and family is sure to impress.

The Three Incestuous Sisters
The three sisters of this “novel in pictures” are very different—one is smart, one is talented, and one is pretty. They live together near a lighthouse, far from the city. When one falls in love and becomes pregnant, it has a dramatic emotional effect on all three. This is a grim tale, told with minimal, spooky text and dark, evocative images.

The Adventuress
The dreamlike journey of an alchemist’s daughter unfolds in this “novel in pictures.” After she is kidnapped, she turns herself into a moth and flees to the garden of a charming butterfly collector named Napoleon Bonaparte. Niffenegger’s common themes of love and tragedy find new life in this haunting story that is part gothic romance, part fairy tale.