The Man Who Folded Himself
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| The Man Who Folded Himself | |
.jpg/200px-TheManWhoFoldedHimself(1stEd).jpg) Cover of first edition (hardcover) |
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| Author | David Gerrold |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Science fiction novel |
| Publisher | Random House |
| Publication date | 1973 |
| Media type | Print (Hardcover & Paperback) |
| Pages | 148 pp |
| ISBN | ISBN 0-394-47922-X |
The Man Who Folded Himself is a 1973 science fiction novel by David Gerrold that deals with time travel. It was nominated for the Nebula Award for Best Novel in 1973 and the Hugo Award for Best Novel in 1974.
[edit] Plot summary
The main character in the book (or so it seems), Daniel Eakins, inherits a belt that allows him to travel in time. This results in a series of time paradoxes, which are only resolved by the existence of multiple universes and multiple histories. Eakins, who repeatedly encounters alternate versions of himself, finds himself in progressively more bizarre situations, and ends up in an even more complex situation than the protagonist of Robert A. Heinlein's 1959 story "All You Zombies—". Much of the book deals with the psychological, physical, and personal challenges that manifest where individual time travel is possible at the touch of a button. The extraordinarily narcissistic Eakins repeatedly meets himself; has sex with himself; and ultimately cohabitation with an opposite-sex version of himself. He spends much of his own contorted lifetime at an extended party with dozens of versions of himself at different ages, before understanding the true nature of the gathering, and his true identity.
[edit] See also
- "By His Bootstraps", a 1941 Heinlein short story, also with a contorted timeline.
[edit] References
- Gerrold, David (1973). The Man Who Folded Himself. Random House. ISBN 1-932100-04-0.
