The Time Machine

Title: The Time Machine

Rating: 3.5/5
Author: H. G. Wells
Page: 140
Genre: Science Fiction


You may recall that there are some classics worth reading and some classics that I wonder how they became classic in the first place (unless your a classics enthusiasts and love all classics. Is there such a person that loves all classics ever? Probably not since I wouldn't expect a lover of any genre to give every book in that category two big thumbs up. I think this parenthesis conversation has gone on long enough.)

For instance, why has the Twilight fandom quieted down while I have nieces who haven't even reached the double digits yet who are already Harry Potter enthusiasts? To be clear, I'm not trying to give new life to Twilight versus Harry Potter arguments. I'm just curious as to what makes something classic. What makes it stand the test of time? Thoughts? Comments? Do share.

A friend of mine has a book club that I've taken some part in. This month's book was The Time Machine, so I decided to give it a go. All I knew about The Time Machine was the movie released back in 2002 (which I apparently liked better than Rotten Tomatoes which gave it 29%) and an episode of Wishbone, which I don't remember all that well if I'm honest. So I was really curious to see how the movie compared to the source material. More about that in a minute.

Synopsis:

Well, the synopsis for this one is pretty straight forward. Our main character, simple known as the Time Traveler, sets out to prove his theories correct, that time travel is possible, and he's built just the machine to do it. On his maiden journey, he travels 800,000 years into the future where he finds that man has evolved into two separate groups, one peaceful and carefree, and the other creatures that dwell in the darkness. When his machine goes missing, he is faced with the daunting task of recovering it and returning home before he gets trapped in the future forever--and possibly hunted down.

My Reaction:

My first thought is that this is one of those books where I actually enjoy the movie better, but that's not because the book was bad. Here's the thing, the book is told almost from a scientific perspective which is what you should expect when the main character has the sort of intellect to create a time machine in the first place and those he is telling his story to are also highly educated men of different fields. The book, therefore, is appropriate in it's telling and still has moments of excitement and mystery as the Time Traveler tries to work out his situation and comes closer to danger with every passing minute that he stays in the future. To sum up, the book is great if your a fan of science fiction, and it's not super long either.

It has been quite awhile since I've seen the movie. I admit that. Still, from what I recall, here's why I like the movie better. (In case you haven't seen the movie, I'm about to spoil it for you). The biggest reason is the difference in motivation for the Time Traveler. In the book his driven simply by the desire to travel through time, to prove it possible, and to observe his findings. While this is part of the motivation in the movie, his need becomes more desperate when the love of his life is killed. The emotional aspect of this version pulled me in more and made me more invested in his story.

While core elements of the stories are the same, the movie adds some more depth to the characters. We're also introduced to more characters in the movie, such as Jeremy Irons as the leader of the Morlocks. There are a few more differences I could get into, but the motivation and character depth were the biggest differences that made the movie a more enjoyable experience for me. However, as mentioned above, the book is a great piece of science fiction. Clearly I simply get more enjoyment from a story when I'm more emotional involved.

Also, I love this bit from the movie soundtrack. That has nothing to do with the story itself, but it's still a fact that this track is amazing.


Reader's Guidance:

When the Time Traveler is describing the innocence and carefree nature of the Eloi, he refers to some as "making love." It is also inferred that the Morlocks hunt and eat the Eloi. Both groups are supposed to be descendants of men.

Discussion Questions:

Well here's something new! As I've discussed some books with others, there have been some really good discussion questions brought up to help us talk about what we've read. As I read through The Time Machine, I found myself thinking of my own questions and observations. So I've decided to include this section. Feel free to answer in the comments below!

1. Considering that The Time Machine was published in 1895, what can we learn about the time period based on the Time Travelers observations about the future?

2. The majority of the characters in the story aren't given specific names. The Time Traveler himself is never identified by name. One of the few characters whose name is given is that of Weena, one of Eloi. Why do you suppose this is? How does that lack of time, or a given name in the case of Weena, affect how you view the characters?

3. If you could travel through time, would you travel to the future or the past? Why? If the past, what period of time would you most like to visit?

Orange Scones

I have been wanting to write a post for FOREVER! Apparently I haven't figured out how to juggle reading, baking, and blogging along with the other things I have to do, like caring for a three month old (which I love). But hey! I still plan on stopping by here when I get the chance, and I still do fit in some baking and reading. Mostly I've been reading children's picture books. I've found some real gems by the way.

But today is a baking post sort of day! If you were to come visit me this week for a live, in-person book club, I would probably make these for you, or possibly something patriotic given the upcoming holiday. These are delicious though, and really aren't that difficult to make.

So, I always hate it when I want to get to a recipe on a blog but people always chat forever about it when I just want to see the recipe so I can eat it. Even so, I'm going to make you read a little bit more before I give you the recipe.

Has anyone else referred to fry bread or know people who refer to fry bread as scones? Well, those aren't the scones I'm talking about (although, those are quite tasty with a bit of homemade jam, cinnamon and sugar, or honey butter). My husband has grown up calling those scones, and I had heard that too, but I also knew scones as a delicious baked treat that I can get at Panera Bread or at a fair not too far from where I grew up. Because of this, there's been some confusion in our house when it comes to the mention of scones. My husband is usually thinking of deep fried goodness while I'm thinking of baked heaven. I decided to do some research because especially now that I can hold Google in the palm of my hand I like to learn anything and everything that has to do with random facts about, well, pretty much anything.

Here's what I found out:
Referring to fry bread as a scone is a regional thing, particularly to Utah, and it seems that no one knows why people started referring to deep fried dough as a scone. It appears that the baked scone has much older roots. Apparently, the deep fried versions are also known as Utah Scones or Pioneer Scones. My research is basically wrapped up in this one article from the Salt Lake Tribune.

Okay, know that I've shared my random collection of knowledge with you, let's get to the baking! I should note that this is actually a mashup of two recipes. Here's what I came up with:


Ingredients:

2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 and 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, frozen
Zest of 2 medium oranges
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla

For the glaze:
3 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
1 cup powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 tbsp freshly squeezed orange juice

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In a large bowl whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. *Grate the Frozen butter. Toss the grated butter into the flour mixture and combined with a pastry cutter, your fingers, or two knives until the mixture resembles course meal. Stir in orange zest.

In a small bowl whisk the cream, egg, and vanilla together. Drizzle the wet ingredients over the flour mixture and then toss the mixture together with a rubber spatula (I use a spoon and my hands a little) until everything appears moistened. Try your best to not overwork the dough. Sometimes, I add a tiny bit more cream to get it all to stick together, but be careful not to add too much as you don't want your dough to get too wet.

Work the dough into a ball with flowered hands and transfer to a baking sheet with parchment paper. Press into a 8 in disc and cut into 8 equal wedges with a very sharp knife.

Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and using a sharp knife separate the scones so there is a little more space between each one. Bake for 5 more minutes or until lightly brown on the top and edges. If you don't separate them before that second back, the insides of your scones won't cook all the way through. I've noticed with my oven that I sometimes have to cover the scones with aluminum foil to prevent the outsides from burning while the insides finish cooking.

Mix all the ingredients for the glaze together in a small bowl. With a spoon, add as much or as little glaze as desired. The glaze will firm up as it dries on top of the scone. For best results, let the scones cool a little before adding the glaze.

*Note: I don't always use frozen butter. Sometimes I cut up refrigerated butter into small cubes and then put it in with the flour using either a pastry cutter or two knives to sort of cut through the mixture. The danger is having your butter melt too quickly. As we're getting into warmer days, I thought I was going to have an issue with it melting. I made it once grating frozen butter and once my cubed way and both turned out fine. If you're worried about it, I'd say go the frozen butter way.

There you have it! I hope you enjoy these as much as I do. And now I must leave you as I do believe I hear a little one who has decided nap time is over. Fare thee well follow readers and bakers!