The Time Meowchine: A Talking Cat’s Y2K Quest to Save the World

by Marty Beckerman

• One of New York Magazine’s 10 Best Comedy Books of 2023 •
Our feline cyborg hero must prevent climate “apawcalypse” by zapping back to 2000 and electing Purrsident Al Gore in this humorous sci-fi adventure.

“[A]ctually a well constructed time-travel novel… It’s funny but poignant, ridiculous but bittersweet.”
—New York Magazine

“This is good goofy fun. … [A]n entertaining story with heart … that will resonate with a lot of people, especially millennials.”
—The Optionist

“Somehow, it really works! Congrats to Marty on putting something very fun and very weird into the world.”
—Kat Rosenfield, co-author (with Stan Lee) of A Trick of Stan Lee’s Alliances

“[E]xemplary in its structure, organization, and pacing. … This is a different twist on a time travel story that is reminiscent of Philip K. Dick. A unique concept of technology that many pet lovers may wish was possible.”
—Judge, Writer’s Digest Self-Published Book Awards

“Nostalgia for millennials. Hope, fun, and an exciting adventure.”
—@RALBookClub, TikTok

2040: Earth's in trouble. Brilliant inventor Dr. Tara Switcher, an elder millennial (like all millennials), tried to save the environment, but politicians banned her controversial technology. Now she’s surviving day to day with Blink, her sweetly optimistic, brain-chipped kitty.

2000: There’s still hope. Tara is a punk-rock teenage activist who can’t persuade anybody of anything … until her zealous antics in Florida spoil everything for eco-friendly Vice President Al Gore. And for the rest of humanity. (Oops.) But can history be unwritten? Can hisstory?

The future Dr. Switcher discovers a way back to her stubborn younger self … and if she can’t alter the darkest timeline, then maybe Blink can. The Time Meowchine is a bonkers yet heartfelt story of interspecies friendship across the multiverse (multifurse) that will leave readers purring.

Praise for Other Books by the

“[A] laugh-out-loud parody…”
—USA Today

“[F]unny…”
—Kirkus Reviews

“Beckerman attacks the hot-button issues with a hilariously irreverent humor that makes you squirm, ponder and laugh…”
—PopMatters

“[R]aucous…”
—Booklist

“Amusing, and often laugh-out-loud… Beckerman’s research is, to put it in very clear terms, exceptional.”
—The Guardian

“[A] surprisingly nuanced critique of contemporary culture.”
—Washington City Paper

“Funny and gleefully provocative.”
—The Boston Phoenix

“Beckerman … manages to capture something essential about our generation.

Genres: Science Fiction

317 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 26, 2023

Reviews

[Mark Fajet · Rating 5 out of 5]

This review is done as a rebuttal to my girlfriend who rudely gave this book only four stars.

Furstly, this book is filled with cat puns. There are two in the title and they stay purr-esent throughout the rest of the book. I’m a furm believer that repetition of jokes only makes them funnier. To me, they did not feel like they were non-stop. I would read and I would furget that they would make these puns until a new sentence would do it in a way that has yet been done. The puns weren’t always “laugh out loud” funny, but they did work towards making reading the book a more enjoyable expurrience. Every other chapter is written in a cat’s purrspective so that means the other half is written mostly without the cat puns.

Predictable? Only if you know the history of 9/11 which I didn’t. I learned a lot about 9/11 thanks to this book which, from the title I read, was very unexpected. I didn’t find it to be purrdictable. There was lots of furshadowing, but there were twists I didn’t see coming as well. To me, the plot is just a fun delivery vehicle fur the humor and commeowntary so it wouldn’t even matter if it were purrdictable.

This book reminds me of hitchhikers guide in the sense that those are the only other combination comedy/sci-fi novels I’ve read. I loved the hitchhikers books, but I loved this one more. On top of the silly humor and the sci-fi elements, it provided modern political commeowntary in a hilarious way. It’s a (hopefully) exaggerated critique of our society and history.

I’m not a cat purrson, but this book really made me care about the cat who is one of two protagonists. The other is a teenager who my girlfriend refurred to as annoying (later redacted from her review), but a character having flaws does not take away from the story. Despite the character’s flaws, I found myself rooting fur her.

My girlfriend called this book “cute, wholesome, and enjoyable.” I agree with all of that, but I’d also add the following:
* Funny
* Clever
* Heart breaking
* Informative
* Political
* Understated

In the end, no book is purrfect, but this one is very good. I think I hyped up the book too much when recommeownding it to my girlfriend. Her biggest complaint seemed to be the cat puns so if you were able to read these purragraphs without being too annoyed, I think you’ll have a great time purrusing through this book.

I went into it with no expectations, reading only the title, and I think that may be the best way to read the book.


Meow meow

[Steven Christensen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overraskende nok er ikke dette noe litterært mesterverk. Det prøver den heller ikke å være. Men det er en underholdende, humoristisk og lettbent fortelling om en katt som reiser tilbake i tid for å redde verdenen fra å gå under. Hvordan kan en katt redde menneskeheten lurer du kanskje på? Ved å sørge for at Al Gore vant valget, og ikke George W. Bush.

[Bookfairy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I almost DNF'd this book a couple chapters in because th cat's perspective is kind of dumb and full of cutesy cat puns. I'm glad I gave it a little more time, but it was a little too hope-punk overall. It was a fun story, and if you can overlook some silliness and overly optimistic time travel revision, then you might like this.

[Bookworm · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating: A

A thoroughly enjoyable book. I'm not sure I'd really call it a comedy but it was light-hearted. It was also quite downer at times.

CW: Animal abuse, gun violence, death of a parent, suicide and suicide attempt, alcoholism

The Time Meowchine is a scifi novel with a dual POV storyline - Tara, in 1999, is an environmental activist and outspoken teenager and Blink is her talking cat from 2040. In the 2040s the world has gone through a horrible pandemic and environmental collapse, and Tara, a cyberneuroscientist is an alcoholic and out of work, living alone with her cat Blink in a depressive haze as she waits to die. Blink is just a cat, loving life because he can be with his mummy forever. One day some soldiers bust down Tara's door and tell her they need her to change history and save the world.

I found Tara's characterisation and POV chapters really enjoyable to read. I loved her high school years and how she grows up and matures but keeps her passion about the environment and her causes. She's a caring and driven person which comes through in how she interacts with her friends and family. (I even enjoyed her love story.) As an adult, the experiences that she lived through deeply shook her character and the sections that included her autobiography were deeply moving and depressing. Tara had such a distinct voice as the human protagonist. Her adult chapters also have an emotional numbing towards what she is going through, which really showed the depth of her trauma.

Blink's were a bit harder to get through, especially at the start. Blink uses cat puns in almost every single word. Expawriment, Meowdam Pawresident, antihisstemine etc. It was really jarring and hard to read; I did eventually get through it and grew to enjoy his chapters too, but it was definitely tiring. Plus I guess Blink isn't that smart of a cat lol. Blink has a collar and neural implant that allow him to listen to and understand human speech but also talk back through the collar. I thought it was so lovely reading how much he just wants to snuggle with his mum and sleep beside / be with her (he's totally codependent). The chapters that were really plot relevant were particularly gripping. It's been a while, but I actually cried reading this book.

Something about it is really charming and fun, but it's also a little dummy. Just a good book. Full of hope at a dark time.

[MG Potgieter · Rating 5 out of 5]

It seems a bit annoying to start with (or maybe that was because I was on a plane and already annoyed about that fact), but if you stick with it, it is a genuinely heartfelt and at times hilarious story. I even almost shed a tear near the end.

I would have preferred the ending to be a bit different. Instead of the AI giving them all the technology for a better future, I would have liked to see the impacts their interventions had to the timeline without cheating progress with the AI to guide them. That being said, I wouldn't change the last paragraph. It is the perfect send off to the story.

Hopefully we aren't as doomed as the book thinks we are, given we won't have time travel to go try the other route. Wild how it the story is equal parts optimistic, pessimistic and nihilistic about our future.

[Jessica Rockhill · Rating 5 out of 5]

No spoilers, just love. I couldn't be happier that I picked this novel up. I thought it would just be fun or funny, but what I got was a literal time machine for my 90s teenage psyche. Not only was it a time meowchine, it felt like the author was the fairy godmother to all elder millennials, that if this plot line was real, it was his Cinderella success story for us to keep on keeping on until our last meow. Hilarious, full of fun language, and a what if future is the present time travel story that poignantly and heartwarmingly hits home for everyone who became an adult to weather four recessions between the ages of 20-40. Thank you Mr Beckerman! Keep your paws on that keyboard, our generation needs your brilliance and wit to laugh through it all.

[taegen ☾⭒ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of my favourite book titles and covers ever. The story is completely wild.

At first I was thrown off by the "Blink chapters" nevertheless, the cat puns are truly sensational.

It took me a while to get into it but the story really grabbed me in the back half. The political jargon got a little heavy in a couple of places otherwise, a clever time travel tale told in a refreshingly unique way.

[Michelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was recommended to me on Kindle and it’s far different from what I would typically read. I unfortunately decided to DNF at 40% I loved all the 90’s early 00’s throw backs it made my millennial heart so happy. However I just couldn’t get into it. I found myself skipping most of blink’s chapters and it just wasn’t the vibe I needed. Someone wrote in a review that it’s something fun in dark times. Considering the state of the government currently some of it hit a little too close to home. I can only hope that there is a talking cat in the future that will come rescue us from this hell.

[Ali · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an absolute page-turner with a well-conceived plot, rich characters, and seamless writing all the way through, even the cat-tax (syntax). I never thought I'd say that a talking cat's trauma-motivated sacrifices to save its mother (and the world) made me cry, but here we are.

This book is so fun and so smart; a true exemplification of why comedy is often best suited to tackle the social and political woes of the world, meow meow.

[Erik Deckers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Happy ending, sad build up

Marty Beckerman, as always, is entertaining and thought-provoking. But, man! Tbis story is very sad in places. It broke my heart i n places although everything turned oit alright in the end. I love how Blink talked and I loved his love for his Mommy.

[Sheila · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought I was prepared for all the cat puns but I was not. The first half of the book was too silly-goofy-predictable but the last 30% really improved. The ending was cute, wholesome, and enjoyable.

[Agnieszka Małgorzata · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m not sure where the promised comedy part was… but this was a really pleasant read. The story is well told and the presentation is neat. It’s great that there are still writers out there who want to provide the reader with a — shocker — interesting reading experience and not simply use books as a medium to deliver their worldview, a “mood”, or some other ephemeral blah-blah.