I’ve always heard good things about Rudy Rucker, but had never actually read any of his book. So, when I ran across Master of Time and Space in the library, I decided to give it a spin. The book was originally published in 1984 and the only part that really struck me as out of time was when the main character was drinking and driving. Based on this novel, I’m likely to check out some other Rucker books (any suggestions of what I should check out next). So, let’s find out who is really the Master of Time and space.

Joe Fletcher is an unhappy corporate computer programmer who greatly preferred when he ran a company with his tech genius friend Harry Gerber. Joe is a little surprised when he gets into his car after work and finds several small versions of Harry in his car telling him to go and see Harry. This sets up a circular chain reaction that focuses on Harry creating a device that makes him the master of all time and space (by playing with the plank length) for a short period of time (depending on the quantity of gluons he uses). The book ends up playing as a high-tech, multi-universe version of the genie in the bottle. Since there are three flavors of gluons, the group gets three sets of wish times. They lessons learned are very similar, but the plot isn’t the point of the book.

The book is a comic romp where the plot is just there to have a structure to lace the jokes to.The book is fun to read and has a number of funny situations (such as Joe’s last minute wish on the second go around). The characters are well developed and interesting and Rucker covers most (if not all) of the contradictions to make sure everything is wrapped up.

This isn’t a book you read to learn anything. It’s just a fun adventure with some scientific concepts thrown in along the way. Overall it’s well worth the time to read it and I found myself enjoying the book a lot more than I thought I would. Recommended.