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Quick answer: If you liked How to Stop Time, read Matt Haig's The Midnight Library and The Humans, then try The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August, Life After Life and The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue. All ask how people live when time is not on their side.
Matt Haig's novel follows Tom Hazard, a man who looks forty but has lived for four centuries and must avoid falling in love. It mixes history, romance and a tender look at loneliness. The books below share that blend of long lives, second chances and quiet wisdom. Most are adult fiction, and all are real, in-print books.
Table of Contents
Quick Picks at a Glance
| Book | Author | Ages | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Midnight Library | Matt Haig | Adult | the best-known Haig |
| The Humans | Matt Haig | Adult | funny and tender |
| Reasons to Stay Alive | Matt Haig | Adult | personal Haig |
| The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August | Claire North | Adult | repeated lives |
| Life After Life | Kate Atkinson | Adult | reborn lives |
| The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue | V.E. Schwab | Adult | immortal love |
| The Time Traveler's Wife | Audrey Niffenegger | Adult | love across time |
| Replay | Ken Grimwood | Adult | second chances |
| Orlando | Virginia Woolf | Adult | long lives |
| Slaughterhouse-Five | Kurt Vonnegut | Adult | time and war |
| A Man Called Ove | Fredrik Backman | Adult | heartwarming stories |
| Time and Again | Jack Finney | Adult | nostalgic time travel |
| The Picture of Dorian Gray | Oscar Wilde | Adult | eternal youth |
| Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine | Gail Honeyman | Adult | loneliness and hope |
| Dark Matter | Blake Crouch | Adult | alternate lives |
1. The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
A woman explores her alternate lives in a library between life and death. Gentle and hopeful.
Best for: the best-known Haig.
2. The Humans by Matt Haig
An alien takes the body of a mathematician and learns about human life. Funny and sweet.
Best for: funny and tender.
3. Reasons to Stay Alive by Matt Haig
A memoir of depression and recovery. Honest, short and warm.
Best for: personal Haig.
4. The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August by Claire North
A man relives his life again and again and must stop a threat across time. Clever and moving.
Best for: repeated lives.
5. Life After Life by Kate Atkinson
Ursula is reborn each time she dies and tries to get things right. Literary and moving.
Best for: reborn lives.
6. The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab
A girl makes a deal to live forever but be forgotten. Lyrical and romantic.
Best for: immortal love.
7. The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
A man with a genetic disorder jumps through time while loving one woman. Romantic and sad.
Best for: love across time.
8. Replay by Ken Grimwood
A man dies and relives his life over and over. Thoughtful and emotional.
Best for: second chances.
9. Orlando by Virginia Woolf
A noble youth lives across centuries and changes sex. Playful, inventive and warm.
Best for: long lives.
10. Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
Billy Pilgrim travels through time and remembers the bombing of Dresden. Short and strange.
Best for: time and war.
11. A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
A grumpy widower is drawn into the lives of his neighbors. Funny and moving.
Best for: heartwarming stories.
12. Time and Again by Jack Finney
A New York man travels to 1882 through an odd experiment. Warm and nostalgic.
Best for: nostalgic time travel.
13. The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
A beautiful young man's portrait ages while he stays young. Witty, gothic and a study of vanity.
Best for: eternal youth.
14. Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman
A lonely Glasgow office worker slowly opens up to others. Funny and sad.
Best for: loneliness and hope.
15. Dark Matter by Blake Crouch
A physicist is kidnapped and wakes in an alternate life. Fast and emotional.
Best for: alternate lives.
How to Choose
For more Haig, begin with The Midnight Library. For lives repeated, The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August and Life After Life. For romance, The Time Traveler's Wife and Addie LaRue. For a short classic, Slaughterhouse-Five. These books mix sadness and hope, so keep one for a gloomy day. These stories explore what time does to people. If you like them, try keeping a journal of what you would do with an extra lifetime. Reading in the evening, with a warm drink, suits the gentle mood.
Related: How to Read More With a Full-Time Job · What Is the Best Time of Day to Read? Morning vs Night
Frequently Asked Questions
What is How to Stop Time about?
Tom Hazard has a rare condition that makes him age slowly, and he must hide it while searching for his daughter.
Is the book a love story?
Yes, but it is also about memory, loss and finding purpose.
How old is Tom Hazard?
He is over 400 years old but looks about 41.
Is there a film?
A film adaptation with Benedict Cumberbatch has been long in development.
What age is it for?
It is written for adults, with mild violence.
Who are the Albatross?
A secret society in the book that protects people like Tom and keeps their long lives hidden.
Is How to Stop Time hopeful?
Yes. It argues for living in the present and risking love.
Is it similar to The Midnight Library?
Both are about second chances and finding meaning, but Tom's story is historical.
How long is the book?
About 330 pages.
Does Tom find love?
Yes, though not without risk, and the book explores whether love is worth the pain.
Is the book a good beginner Haig?
Yes, though The Midnight Library is more popular.