Genre
Alternate history/speculative fiction
Setting and Context
The novel is largely set between 1958 and 1963, culminating on November 22, 1963.
Narrator and Point of View
The novel is told from Jake Eppings' perspective.
Tone and Mood
The tone of the novel is nostalgic, suspenseful, romantic, and melancholic. The novels mood is eerie, romantic, hopeful, and ominous.
Protagonist and Antagonist
Jake Eppings vs. Lee Harvey Oswald and the past itself
Major Conflict
Jake's struggle to prevent Lee Harvey Oswald from killing President Kennedy.
Climax
When Jake is successful in preventing Kennedy's assassination.
Foreshadowing
Al warns Jake on several occasions about the dangers of changing the past. However, Jake still proceeds with his mission and changes the past, leading to disastrous consequences.
Understatement
The number of things that Jake doesn't really know (like if there was another shooter besides Oswald in Kennedy's assassination) is understated in the novel.
Allusions
The novel contains numerous historical and cultural allusions from the late 1950s to mid 1960s.
Imagery
King uses vivid imagery to paint of picture of what life was like in the 1950s and 1960s.
Paradox
Time travel itself is paradoxical.
Parallelism
King draws a parallel between Jake's life in the modern-day and his life as George in the 1950s and 1960s and examines how similar they are, despite the different time periods.
Metonymy and Synecdoche
Washington is used to refer to the seat of U.S. government.
Personification
The time machine Jake uses at Al's diner is personified in the novel and given life-like qualities.
