This tribute to Hawthorne’s classic earns not a red A but a puce C-minus ... Here, when Hoffman draws very close to the strings of Hawthorne’s novel, we’re made aware of the grating dissonance between them as writers ... Through some unearthly witchcraft, every prick of Hawthorne’s sharp irony is rubbed away.
Hoffman summons all of her extraordinary storytelling magic to whisk us back to Hawthorne’s world, turning our ardor for books into a force that transcends time, our love for authors into something truly erotic. As she contrasts women’s lives past and present and considers the mysterious compulsions to write and read, Hoffman’s fresh and evocative time-travel tale becomes a lush and suspenseful homage to the transporting and lifesaving power of books.
Enchanting ... Though the evil Joel is a bit one-dimensional, the portrayal of Hawthorne is credible and the conceit feels truly magical. For the most part, Hoffman manages not to break the spell.
Hoffman makes Nathaniel dreamily appealing and creates a riveting voice for his sister Elizabeth, whose brilliance is thwarted by the times in which she lives, but Mia is more author’s puppet than character, and Hoffman’s worthy message concerning women’s rights feels repetitive and ultimately didactic. More important, the realism and fantasy never quite jibe. Not one of Hoffman’s best, but it may spark a desire to reread Hawthorne.
