Simon Garfield’s Timekeepers: How the World Became Obsessed With Time is a quirky dive into humanity’s fixation on clocks, schedules, and the endless race against the clock. Garfield skips around through all sorts of time-related topics—from time zones to the speed of modern life—and it’s filled with fascinating trivia.

While the book has some fun moments and interesting tidbits, it can feel a bit scattered, and not every chapter hits the mark. It’s a solid, light read for those who enjoy dipping into random facts, but if you're looking for a deep dive, it might leave you wanting more. Three stars for an entertaining, if somewhat uneven, journey through our obsession with time!

I tend to like Garfield's meandering journeys through topics and Timekeepers stays true to his style. There is no chronology but rather a group of set pieces that illustrate some period useful or important to timekeeping attitudes connected to a more modern phenomenon. For the reader, there are parts that feel long but also one comes away with a new arsenal of fun facts.

Patchy collection of essays inspired by timekeeping

This is a difficult one to review, as being a collection of essays, some I found fascinating, others I couldn’t wait to finish.

There’s some great “wow I didn’t know that!” moments, but also some that you feel could have been shorter.

Overall some great facts, but did find it somewhat of a chore to finish.

Thanks to netgalley for the review copy