Jake Epping is a recently divorced, high school English teacher who, according to his ex-wife, cannot cry. One night while reading the papers of his Adult English students, he reads one that touches him and he does cry. The story, written by the high school's janitor, Harry Dunning, describes the night that his father came home with a hammer and murdered his mother and two older brothers, put his little sister into a coma that she would never awaken from, and permanently crippled, both physically and mentally, Harry.
Two years later, Jake is taken in the backroom of his friend Al's diner. Although he had seen Al only the day before, Jake is taken aback by the changes he sees in Al. Al tells him the truth- in his pantry, there is a passage to 1958. Every trip back is the first time that you go and it only takes two minutes according to 2011, no matter how long you spend in the past. He has been going back in time to buy meat for the diner, but had become obsessed with the Kennedy assassination. He wasn't sure that he would be able to do it, so he went back to change the life of one girl who was crippled by a stray bullet. It was in these attempts that he discovered that the past doesn't want to be changed. But he was convinced that if Kennedy was to live, the world would be a much better place, so he keeps working. His last trip lasted 4 years as he tracked Lee Harvey Oswald, but he had to return to 2011 when he was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer. He then recruits Jake to finish his work and stop Oswald from killing Kennedy. Jake is skeptical, but agrees to go back on a test run first to check the butterfly effect. Remembering Harry Dunning's story, he decides to go back and save Harry's whole family.
Jake ends up spending almost two months in Derry, deciding how to save Harry Dunning and his family and keeping a close watch on Frank Dunning, Harry's father. On the day of the murder, Jake discovers just how much the past doesn't want to be changed when he is felled a terrible stomach virus. He makes it to Harry's neighborhood, but is then stopped by Bill Turcotte, the brother of Frank's first wife. Bill believes that Frank killed his sister and baby nephew, but decides that Frank rotting in prison for killing his current family would be better than killing him to prevent the murder. Jake ends up disarming him and rushes into the Dunning house just as Frank is smashing his wife's arm with a sledgehammer. Although he is unable to stop Frank from killing his oldest son, Arthur, he does save everyone else. Bleeding from a head wound inflicted by Frank, Jake makes it back to the passage and goes back to 2011. He finds out that Harry never became the janitor, but that he was killed in Vietnam. He starts to have second thoughts about going back again, but when he finds Al dead of an overdose of his pain meds. Knowing that he only has a little time before the diner is demolished, Jake heads back into the past. When he gets there, he finds that the homeless man that had been living in the alley, known to Jake and Al as the Yellow Card Man, has killed himself and that his card is now black.
Freaked out by the death of the Yellow Card Man but determined to save the Dunnings again, Jake stays in Derry only long enough to win a bet on the World Series, follow Frank Dunning to the cemetery, and shoot him. He then heads to Florida where he gets an English degree from a diploma mill and begins substitute teaching. He finishes the school year, waiting for Lee Harvey Oswald to get back from his tour of duty with the Marines, and then heads to Dallas. He settles in Jodie, a little outside of Dallas, and begins teaching at a high school there. He falls in love with the high school's librarian, Sadie Dunhill. Sadie has just recently run away from her psychotic husband. Eventually, the school finds out about his mail-order diploma and Sadie breaks off the relationship and heads to Reno to divorce her husband, but Jake had already decided to quit teaching to focus on Oswald and keeping Sadie safe. He moves across the street from Oswald and spies on him.
Sadie returns from Reno and Jake confides in her that he is from the future and his plans to save President Kennedy. At first, she doesn't believe him, but she agrees to help him. Jake is unable to stop Oswald's attempted assassination of General Walker because Sadie is attacked and disfigured by her ex-husband. Jake decides that he will stop Oswald and then take Sadie back to 2011 with him so that her disfigurement can be fixed. Because the past really doesn't want to be changed, Jake ends up being beaten by a bookie and spends three months recovering. During this time, Sadie takes him back. Jake recovers just in time for Kennedy's visit on November 22nd. He and Sadie are able to stop Oswald from killing the President, but Oswald fires at Jake and hits Sadie. Hearing the shots, the Secret Service burst in and kill Oswald. Sadie dies in Jake's arms.
Jake is a national hero and is personally thanked by the President. Agonized by Sadie's death, Jake decides to go back to 2011 and then reset by coming back and trying to save both Sadie and President Kennedy. When he reaches the portal, he finds that the dead Yellow Card Man has been replaced by a younger man with a green card. He tells Jake that they are guardians of the time portals and begs him to make things right.
Upon returning to 2011, he finds that the world is not a better place. The Civil Rights Bill never passed, nuclear war has occurred, and earthquakes are threatening to destroy the Earth. He returns to 1958 and the Green Card Man begs him to go back to 2011 and destroy the portal. Although Jake wants to go to Texas and bring Sadie back with him, he goes back to 2011. 2011 is pretty much restored, the diner is demolished and the portal is destroyed. Jake finds out that Sadie survived her husband's attack and goes to Jodie to see her. He gets to dance with her one last time.
Discussion Questions
- Jake, as our main character, is described as a good, decent man but he's also willing to commit murder and uses his foreknowledge of sports to cheat at gambling. Does this make him a bad guy or did it change your opinion of him in any way?
- How important is the Yellow Card Man? What does he symbolize?
- Why do you think it was important that every trip back was the first time? Do you think Jake would have gone back knowing that he couldn't change it back if the future came out wrong?
- Jake and Al encounter resistance to changing the past. Jake believes that the more history is changed, the harder it is to make the change. Do you agree with Jake? Why do you think there would be resistance anyway?
- The first time that Jake goes back to save the Dunnings, he prevents Harry from being injured but he ends up dying in the Vietnam War. Obviously, neither is a good option, but which do you think was the better future?
- Why do you think that Jake and Al, after changing the past, can still remember the original future? For example, after Jake saves Harry the first time, both he and Al remember Harry as the janitor even though that future no longer exists.
- Do you agree with Jake that Al committed suicide because he knew that Jake would have second thoughts?
- Do you think that Jake and Sadie's story could have or should have ended differently?
- In the afterword, Stephen King tells us that his son came up with the book's new and better ending. You can read the original ending on his site here. Which ending do you prefer?
- I think that you could sum up the theme of the book as "The road to Hell is paved with good intentions." Although Jake and Al go back in time to save President Kennedy and, therefore, make the world better, it doesn't end up actually making the world better. Do you think that you could ever go back in time and "make things right" or would it always have unintended harm as well?
- Fantasy time! If you could go back and change one event in history, what would it be? How do you think changing that event would affect the future?
Jake, as our main character, is described as a good, decent man but he's also willing to commit murder and uses his foreknowledge of sports to cheat at gambling. Does this make him a bad guy or did it change your opinion of him in any way? I think for Jake the end justified the means. Jake could have easily been a millionaire with his foreknowledge. But he made bets to make just enough to survive the 5 years in the past to complete his mission.
ReplyDeleteHow important is the Yellow Card Man? What does he symbolize? I wish King would have expanded on this. It wasn’t until the end that we are made aware that they serve as gate keepers. My question is why were they chosen? Knowing that they’re normal human beings incapable of handling many strings of time who chose them?
Why do you think it was important that every trip back was the first time? Do you think Jake would have gone back knowing that he couldn't change it back if the future came out wrong? Can you imagine making a huge mistake in the time paradox? I’m sure it was put in a failsafe in case one has to re-write a mistake that caused ill future events.
Jake and Al encounter resistance to changing the past. Jake believes that the more history is changed, the harder it is to make the change. Do you agree with Jake? Why do you think there would be resistance anyway? That was evident from the beginning when he tried to save the girl from getting shot. Suddenly car issues, a tree falls on the road, he past is definitely obdurate.
The first time that Jake goes back to save the Dunnings, he prevents Harry from being injured but he ends up dying in the Vietnam War. Obviously, neither is a good option, but which do you think was the better future? Very good question! Before his death in Vietnam was his life fulfilling? Or would he rather live a life of a disabled man destined to work as a janitor?
Why do you think that Jake and Al, after changing the past, can still remember the original future? For example, after Jake saves Harry the first time, both he and Al remember Harry as the janitor even though that future no longer exists. I suppose the time traveler is having been the reason for the change in the future is not affected.
ReplyDeleteDo you agree with Jake that Al committed suicide because he knew that Jake would have second thoughts? In part I agree, even though Al was on his death bed and Jake already made a promise. Knowing Jake, Al knew his death would not be in vain.
Do you think that Jake and Sadie's story could have or should have ended differently? I think we all wanted that happy ending where Sadie and Jake remain together in the end. But I actually loved the ending; it solidifies the message of the story. Sadie in the end turned out to be fine and did a lot of good despite Jake’s attempt to change her future.
In the afterword, Stephen King tells us that his son came up with the book's new and better ending. You can read the original ending on his site here. Which ending do you prefer? Both are good but I prefer the one in the book.
I think that you could sum up the theme of the book as "The road to Hell is paved with good intentions." Although Jake and Al go back in time to save President Kennedy and, therefore, make the world better, it doesn't end up actually making the world better. Do you think that you could ever go back in time and "make things right" or would it always have unintended harm as well? I think the Kings intent was to explain that no matter what good you prevent in the past there is an opposite outcome in the future. Likewise, whatever horrific event in the past an opposite outcome will occur in the future. The death of JFK although tragic led to the events of what LBJ had done during his administration. The “harmony” that was explained in the story is pretty much just ying/yang, BALANCE!
Fantasy time! If you could go back and change one event in history, what would it be? How do you think changing that event would affect the future? This is tough, after reading this book I’m hesitant to even pick something I deem small. Each even served a purpose of how I’m shaped who I met and where I am in life.
I thought the series was amazing! I do have one question but I cannot come up with an answer for… How did JFK know that Jake saved him?
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