So what happens when there is a stop in the time continuum? Literally all time stops. The sun still rises and sets, but there is no more way to tell time. Realistically, time could still be determined by sundials, but imagine having a cell phone and a smart watch with no date and no time. Perpetually stuck on June 23, 2020. The worst part is that June 2020 was at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic!
This is where we find Truda Becker immersed in the adventures of her junior year of high school. Stuck in a class called “Solution Time” where all students are expected to create projects and solutions to the time issue. This is probably the most rational and easiest to understand aspect of this book.
I spent the majority of the book wondering if she was in a coma and this was just a random stream of consciousness while her body decided if it was worth hanging on. My other thought was that the author was writing figuratively using analogies and metaphors and that all the events of the story weren’t literally happening. In the end, everything that happened was to be taken literally. I needed the help of Truda’s best friend Carrie to help me fully get on board with this strange reality.
What I came to understand is that this is a book that has a much deeper meaning. There is such a strong psychological undertone regarding impacts of dysfunctional and broken families, lies and trust, and the irrational importance that society puts on time. This becomes a message of sorts to tell the world it needs to slow down. That basically time gave up since people weren’t listening and decided to stop to make people take notice.
Very in line with the results of the COVID-19 quarantine. Families were forced to spend more time together, get back to what is important, and to just slow down and be introspective. This is what happens to Truda and her family, but the universe inserted itself and ripped the Band-Aid off the deep, unhealed wounds of the Beckers.
When we meet Truda, we learn that her mom left her, her brother Richard, and their father. That there is a sister, referred to only as “sister” who seems to be a sociopath and the cause of all the distrust, hurt, and breakdown of the family. Sister has a power over the family that prevents them all from moving forward and truly trusting each other. Sister is a poison, a festering wound and a well developed character even though he is never physically present in the book.
But, they all try to cope in unusual and personal ways to the upheaval of daily life and the pain of the past. Richard is sneaking out at night and hiding truths; Daddy is living in denial while slowly building plywood boxes throughout the house that everyone has to crawl through to get from one room to the next. It’s as strange as it sounds. Mama abandoned them then came back then leaves again only to come back, and Truda delves into the world of psychology to escape and cope.
There is great use of symbolism throughout the book, which I greatly enjoyed. Sister symbolizes the power the past has on our lives. How in order to heal and move forward, you have to let the past go. Then there are the boxes Daddy is building, the javelin, the energy, and of course, the switch. I don’t want to give them all away. Read the book, you’ll discover all sorts of symbolic meanings.
The writing style is also very unique and took a little while to adjust to it. It’s very choppy/ unfinished/ unstable. Written in this exact format / train of thoughts/ ideas get jumbled. But, it again is fitting for the psychological message the book is projecting. Truda is trying to make sense of a world that doesn’t make sense at all.
Robert Plutchik’s work in psychology becomes an almost obsession for Truda as she works with her friends in Solution Time class to look at the psychological impact of the time stoppage. The entire thematic lesson of this book revolves directly around this concept. We can’t hide the issues in our lives, but our society has ingrained in our behaviors to just move forward, time doesn’t stop. Just make yourself busy and time will make everything better. Until there is no time left.
There were some strange things that happened throughout the book that made me scratch my head and wonder what the heck was going on. Just know that if time ever stops people may all of a sudden develop some really weird abilities and talents.
Based on the deeper meaning, the psychological message that is presented, I might be willing to give Switch 4 ½ stars. The structure combined with the plot and character development would have me giving it 3 ½ stars. If you are looking for something a little different that is written in a very unique style. Something that will make you question what is happening and if it is really happening or if it’s all just in the characters’ minds, then this is the book for you. I feel that the timeliness of the book is very relevant to the overall message that comes through. The past 18 months with COVID has brought to light many domestic demons for families and a need to readjust priorities and responsibilities. As much as I liked the characters, I feel that Mama had great potential, but really ended up falling flat for me. She was very one dimensional. Read it; you’re going to have an opinion about it when you are finished and I think that’s what good books should do. Leave you feeling something.
This is where we find Truda Becker immersed in the adventures of her junior year of high school. Stuck in a class called “Solution Time” where all students are expected to create projects and solutions to the time issue. This is probably the most rational and easiest to understand aspect of this book.
I spent the majority of the book wondering if she was in a coma and this was just a random stream of consciousness while her body decided if it was worth hanging on. My other thought was that the author was writing figuratively using analogies and metaphors and that all the events of the story weren’t literally happening. In the end, everything that happened was to be taken literally. I needed the help of Truda’s best friend Carrie to help me fully get on board with this strange reality.
What I came to understand is that this is a book that has a much deeper meaning. There is such a strong psychological undertone regarding impacts of dysfunctional and broken families, lies and trust, and the irrational importance that society puts on time. This becomes a message of sorts to tell the world it needs to slow down. That basically time gave up since people weren’t listening and decided to stop to make people take notice.
Very in line with the results of the COVID-19 quarantine. Families were forced to spend more time together, get back to what is important, and to just slow down and be introspective. This is what happens to Truda and her family, but the universe inserted itself and ripped the Band-Aid off the deep, unhealed wounds of the Beckers.
When we meet Truda, we learn that her mom left her, her brother Richard, and their father. That there is a sister, referred to only as “sister” who seems to be a sociopath and the cause of all the distrust, hurt, and breakdown of the family. Sister has a power over the family that prevents them all from moving forward and truly trusting each other. Sister is a poison, a festering wound and a well developed character even though he is never physically present in the book.
But, they all try to cope in unusual and personal ways to the upheaval of daily life and the pain of the past. Richard is sneaking out at night and hiding truths; Daddy is living in denial while slowly building plywood boxes throughout the house that everyone has to crawl through to get from one room to the next. It’s as strange as it sounds. Mama abandoned them then came back then leaves again only to come back, and Truda delves into the world of psychology to escape and cope.
There is great use of symbolism throughout the book, which I greatly enjoyed. Sister symbolizes the power the past has on our lives. How in order to heal and move forward, you have to let the past go. Then there are the boxes Daddy is building, the javelin, the energy, and of course, the switch. I don’t want to give them all away. Read the book, you’ll discover all sorts of symbolic meanings.
The writing style is also very unique and took a little while to adjust to it. It’s very choppy/ unfinished/ unstable. Written in this exact format / train of thoughts/ ideas get jumbled. But, it again is fitting for the psychological message the book is projecting. Truda is trying to make sense of a world that doesn’t make sense at all.
Robert Plutchik’s work in psychology becomes an almost obsession for Truda as she works with her friends in Solution Time class to look at the psychological impact of the time stoppage. The entire thematic lesson of this book revolves directly around this concept. We can’t hide the issues in our lives, but our society has ingrained in our behaviors to just move forward, time doesn’t stop. Just make yourself busy and time will make everything better. Until there is no time left.
There were some strange things that happened throughout the book that made me scratch my head and wonder what the heck was going on. Just know that if time ever stops people may all of a sudden develop some really weird abilities and talents.
Based on the deeper meaning, the psychological message that is presented, I might be willing to give Switch 4 ½ stars. The structure combined with the plot and character development would have me giving it 3 ½ stars. If you are looking for something a little different that is written in a very unique style. Something that will make you question what is happening and if it is really happening or if it’s all just in the characters’ minds, then this is the book for you. I feel that the timeliness of the book is very relevant to the overall message that comes through. The past 18 months with COVID has brought to light many domestic demons for families and a need to readjust priorities and responsibilities. As much as I liked the characters, I feel that Mama had great potential, but really ended up falling flat for me. She was very one dimensional. Read it; you’re going to have an opinion about it when you are finished and I think that’s what good books should do. Leave you feeling something.