1976: Bid Time Return

Set in 1971, a young Richard Collier is sick with a brain tumor and decides to flip a coin to see where it will take him. He ends up in a beautiful hotel built in the 1800's. Richard soon finds himself in love with a portrait of a young actress who was the star of a stage production held at the hotel almost a century earlier. Utterly besotted, he is able to convince himself that he can return to that time to be with her. Why it's on the list This delightfully inventive and inspired book draws the reader into its fantastical web. A genuine page-turner, it is a classic story of a love which will not be denied. The yearning that the protagonists have for each other is painfully tangible. A poignant sadness infuses the pages of this book, as the characters pass through life, barely feeling how each is a shadow on the consciousness of the other. Read the book, and then see the movie, "Somewhere in Time" with Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour. You will not be disappointed. Read it if you like History, Romance.