The plot is absorbing, but the real charm of the book is in Finney's description of people and places of late 19th century New York.  Although the book is clearly fiction, it incorporates many real locations and events, most of which (such as the large fire in the World (or Potter) Building, which plays a major role in the plot) have been long forgotten. Also delightful is Finney's account of a young woman from 1882 who Morley briefly brings back to1970 and her reactions to the technologies, fashions, and life-styles of the mid-20th century.  Her fascination with television, her unwillingness to go out in public in a skirt that reveals any part of her leg, and the ease with which she accepts the existence of "auto-mobiles" all convey a non-obvious but entirely believable image of how a time traveler might respond to the dramatic changes that took place over this 90 year period.  Morley's desire to shield her innocence from knowledge of the wars of the 20th century is equally plausible.

As a long-time fan of Jack Finney and an admirer of his writings, particularly those on time travel, I have dedicated this month's Tidbit to Finney and Time and Again.  Below are links to other sites with information about him, about time travel, and about the history of New York City.  Included is a page of photos of sites connected with the book that I took during a recent visit to New York.

Time and Again by Jack Finney on Amazon.com.

Short biography and longer bibliography of Jack Finney on Alpha Ralpha Boulevard, a site devoted to bios of authors of "speculative fiction."

Biography of Jack Finney, including links to other sites and information about authors of similar works.

Jack Finney, 84, Sci-Fi Author Of Time-Travel Tales, Dies.  Obituary from The New York Times, November 17, 1995. 

Reviews of Jack Finney's time travel writings by Jim Henry (short).

Jack Finney: Time and Again, a summary and set of discussion questions from the Addison (Illinois) Public Library "Readers' Corner."

Sites in Time and Again, as they are today.  (My own photos, taken in late December 2003.) 

Nova Online:  Time Travel.  Companion site to the Nova program on time travel broadcast in the U.S. on PBS, October 12, 1999.  Includes an interview with the late astronomer Carl Sagan.

Time Travel for Beginners, by the British science and science fiction writer John Gribbin.  A lengthy discourse on the subject.

Time Travel. A site "devoted to the explanation of why time travel is possible in both a forward and backward direction," by two British scientists.

The Time Travel Institute. "Dedicated to the research and exploration of the temporal sciences. . . . 
Through the contribution of hundreds of experts in the field around the world, we are getting ever closer to our goal of controlling and manipulating time."

Time Travel and Modern Physics.  On the Stanford [University] Encyclopedia of Philosophy.

Time Travel Paradoxes by Kelley H. Ross, Ph.D., on The Proceedings of the Friesian School: Fourth Series, "a non-peer-reviewed electronic journal and archive of philosophy."

Unofficial history of the Statue of Liberty.  Mentions showing of its arm and torch at the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia but not its placement in Madison Square Park in New York City.

Photo of Statue of Liberty's Arm and Torch in Madison Square Park.  Including a short description on a site devoted to "Forgotten New York."  (Scroll halfway down the page to see the photo.)  The text refers to a "sneak preview" of the arm in the park in 1885.

History of Madison Square Park by the Madison Square Park Conservancy, which states that the arm and torch "were placed in [the park] for six years beginning in 1876 to raise funds for the statue and construction of the base."

Description of the World (Potter) Building Fire in Manhattan, January 31, 1882. An account of the fire, which plays a major role in Time and Again, taken from a history of the New York City fire departments.

The New York World Building (The tallest building in America, 1890). Photos of the building that replaced the one that burned down, as described in Time and Again and in the site above.

Trinity Church. Its 280 ft. (84 m) spire towered over Manhattan in 1882 and appears several times in the Time and Again..

Jack Finney Tours of New York.  Walking tours of Lower Manhattan and the Gramercy Park area focusing on landmarks that play a role in Time and Again as well as other sites that suggest the cultural and historical milieu of that era.  Conducted by Philip E. ("Dr. Phil") Schoenberg.

Vintage New York.  Photos and drawings of New York City landmarks from the late 19th and early 20th Centuries.