The Book of Speculation

“We would bury ourselves in books until flesh and paper became one and ink and blood at last ran together.”
I read this book for a book club at my school, and I have to admit that when I first picked it up, it sounded pretty strange. I wasn't sure if I'd like it or not because it might be just too weird and out there. While it definitely was not a normal book, it wasn't at all strange in a bad way. It reminded me a lot of The Night Circus in how there were multiple stories of past and present woven together to form this larger tale, and I really loved it. Each character was so unique and well-developed and had amazing personalities that made them stand out. I also loved that the main character was a librarian and bibliophile. I highlighted so many quotes about books throughout like the one above that I found really wonderful. This book was beautiful and well-written; it was strange but in the best way possible. How often do you read books about a curse on a family of circus “mermaids” that jumps back and forth between the family's present generation and their great-great grandparents? It would be difficult to explain this book to anyone simply, especially without making it sound too strange, but I can say that it is a remarkable book that is definitely worth reading.