This science fiction novel by Colin Wilson is really a novel of ideas, and my teen-age self found it quite compelling, so much so that when I lost my paperback copy I ordered this out of print hardcover first edition. There's an element of fantasy to the book, as it describes the adventures of two scientists trying to find rational explanations for what seem to be nearly mythological forces dating back to the ancient Mayans. The scientists are in pursuit of heightened or cosmic consciousness -- brain operations give them the power to read minds and travel back in time to Shakespeare's era -- and, well, then a bunch of other crazy stuff happens. Wilson said that after he read H.G. Wells at age 11 he wanted to write "the definitive novel about time travel. Time travel is a perpetually alluring idea, but it always sounds so preposterous... The question of how to make it sound plausible is quite a challenge." He pulls it off.

This Old Book is a series of posts about books that have survived many purges from my shelves over decades.

A friend from Pennsylvania forwarded this Craiglist job ad. If you're interested, hurry before it expires. So many questions: What is the business in June 1983? Perhaps a modest investment in Apple Computer. The need for a cat sitter could be avoided by returning on the same day, but perhaps time that passes in the past must be accounted for somehow. A two-day job, then. I have to assume "circumference" of the head was intended. The average circumference of the human head is reportedly 57 cm, based on a Web page I pulled up at random. Do you have to climb through some kind of porthole? Or wear a special helmet? Will you have to lift the time machine? Perhaps to hide it.

Seriously, though, most cats can get through a couple of days alone with a bowl of dry food and water.

Update: There is a similar time traveler ad meme / prank out there, which has now inspired a movie, "Safety Not Guaranteed."

This Old Book: 'The Philosopher's Stone'

Time Traveler Needs Cat Sitter