An excellent
science fiction novel by
Ken Grimwood about the lives of
Jeff Winston, first published in
1988. This is probably one of the only novels in which the
main character dies within the first few pages.
When Jeff Winston dies, he wakes up to find himself in his college dorm room, twenty-five years younger -- and twenty-five years in the past. He lives his life over again, making better choices, earning millions betting on horse races and playing the stock market. Then he dies -- and wakes up again, young, healthy, and at the beginning of his life. The first time it was a mysterious blessing. The second time it becomes tedious. The third time, it nearly drives him insane. And it happens again and again and again. Every time he dies, he wakes up again, just a little older than when he woke up the time before.
This is a book about choices. It's thought-provoking in the extreme. You can't help but identify with Jeff. I know I'd love to relive my life and make better choices -- once. But being forced to relive the same life and make the same choices over and over and over again would take a tremendous toll on anyone's sanity.
There are parallels here (just barely) with the movie Groundhog Day, but the two stories are wildly different despite hitting on roughly the same concept. I highly recommend this book. It will make you think differently about your life, and that's never bad.