“The Time Keeper” by Mitch Albom – The Value of Time

No one goes through life knowing the concept of time without spending some time thinking about it. Does time truly exist, or is it merely a human construct which we use to measure our lives?

Because the question is rather philosophical in its nature, I have yet to find an answer which conclusively supports one side of the debate over the other.

Nevertheless, it is a very interesting subject which deserves to be explored deeper at any given opportunity, and it’s the grand theme The Time Keeper by Mitch Albom revolves around.

In this book, we are basically following the story of the inventor of the first clock, the man who managed to measure the greatest gift humanity was bestowed with. However, God decides to punish this man, banishing him into a cave and forcing him to listen to the voices of all those seeking a bit more time on this Earth.

Just when he is nearly broken, God gives the man a shot at redemption: he is tasked with going back to Earth, finding two people and teaching them the true meaning and value of time. One is a teenage girl who is sick and giving up on life, and the other one is an old and wealthy man desperately seeking eternal life.

As is always the case with Mitch Albom, The Time Keeper is written in beautiful and breathtaking prose, not to mention that it has a rather unique storyline to it. As you can guess, the vehicle is more of a vehicle used by Albom to explore the concept of time, measuring it, and using it as wisely as possible.

We see through various events and the teachings imparted by the protagonist, the Father of Time, numerous theories, ways of thinking and philosophies in regards to the concept.

In other words, Albom seeks to explore it from every single direction, and I guarantee that if this is a topic of interest for you, at the end of it you will have plenty of food for thought.

In my opinion though, Albom did not seek for his readers to come to one single conclusion… rather, he pushes us to formulate our own thoughts and theories while keeping in mind one universal truth: time is precious, and regardless of anything, there will come a day when there won’t be enough of it.

As for the actual story itself, it is rather entertaining with all of the metaphors and lessons imparted by the protagonist. The nature of the characters also adds some flair to it all as the way they are and their thoughts are much more important than their identities.

The Father of Time’s quest for redemption does make the readers emotionally-invested in his troubles, but ultimately, it is his realizations in regards to his invention that steal the show.

It doesn’t matter who you are, where you come from, or what you have been through; time works the same for everyone, it is a subject matter very dear to humanity in general, and you will end up being interested by it. In the end, you will realize that what you come to learn here goes beyond semantics and details, touching on human life in general.

All in all, if you enjoy literary works which are vehicles for the exploration of complex and perhaps even abstract concepts, or if you want to see a very interesting perspective on time itself, then I wholeheartedly recommend you read The Time Keeper.

It will suck you in from the first page and never let you go.

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Mitchell David "Mitch" Albom Personal site Most know Mitch Albom through his most famous books, The Five People You Meet in Heaven and Tuesdays with Morrie, but the man born all the way back in 1958 has had a long and diverse career as a journalist, screenwriter, broadcaster, musician, dramatist, and radio show host.