The Midnight Library
Ratings1,710
Average rating3.8
This book has an unexpected start but then the rest just rushed over me. The ebb and flow of Nora's decisions are believable and feel so personal. Regret over the roads not taken is common but Nora let herself be ruled by it, worn down to her last thread of sanity. The Midnight Library is an interesting concept elevated to an exploration of Self, identifying internal and external motivators, and a search for happiness that almost reaches Odyssean proportions. Nora's journey feels truly earned as she realizes throughout her many lives that her decisions and their consequences extend beyond herself. The definition of a “perfect” or “good” life is completely subjective and this book fearlessly runs the gamut. I'll definitely be reading this one again!
I wasn't even remotely interested in this book until recently, in dealing with grief, but the idea to pick it up came to me when I needed some comfort about the possibilities. I loved it.
Not good, although I got through it quickly, and I've read worse; I'm vacillating on one star versus two. I'm pretty disappointed in it on basically all levels. It feels like the author wanted to convey a very specific destination and gracelessly composed a simplistic path to get there. The basic premise — the main character exploring alternate versions of her life — is okay, but the specifics are uninspired and poorly thought out.
Nora, the main character, is good at everything. Not always in the same life, but in whatever life she's in, whatever she decided to do, she's world-class. It's not enough for her to be a good swimmer, she has to medal at the Olympics. It's not enough that she has a career in academic philosophy, she has to be a lecturer at Cambridge. It's not enough for her to be in a band, she has to be selling out arenas.
The central conceit doesn't really work as executed. The author makes an attempt at explaining why it's the way it is, but it's very flimsy and doesn't stand up.
All this is rendered in mediocre prose, and I guess the author wants to show off his bona fides; there's a Sylvia Plath quote before it gets started, because of course there is, and philosophers are not just named, but quoted directly.
The editor was asleep at the wheel, too. I'm pretty sure I found a place where the dialogue, in a back-and-forth where speakers aren't explicitly identified, doesn't actually make sense and the speaking order can't be right.
It has a nice moment here and there, but this ain't it, chief. I'm donating this one to the library.
EDIT: Screw it, I'm downgrading to one star. I just made myself mad remembering how the author made a whole big deal in Nora's penultimate life about how the really important thing is love, and then never revisited that concept in the wrapping-up whirlwind tour of Nora finally making good in her root life. This thing is a mess.
A great book club book raising questions of regret or what you would do if you could change any choice in your life. Great for some lively discussions.
Super intriguing. Made me think More about how those smaller actions I take impact my overall life while still being a fun read
i'm done with forcing myself to finish books even when i have no interest in them. this just did not do it for me. my expectations weren't particularly high but i didn't think it would bore me like that. i think the concept is just not for me. i couldn't get attached to the character like i guess i was supposed to. i tend to think that when i start a book i have to finish it but i realised that reading should be fun first of all and i shouldn't force myself to continue reading something i don't like! so here are my reasons.
save yourself some time and read the fig tree passage from sylvia plath's the bell jar. that's the whole book pared down to one paragraph. you're welcome
Sometimes a book enters your life not because you seek it out, but because some cosmological force made it seek you out. I have been going through a major career/life crisis over the past few months. With this crisis has come a lot of regrets. Regrets about not studying hard enough. About not being happy enough. About not being brave enough. About not having things figured out. About roughly anything that could possibly come to mind. One thing that I have never regretted is my love of reading. Reading has always been a form of escape for me. It's why fantasy and sci-fi are my favorite genres. It is so easy to escape into the world of a good fantasy or sci-fi novel and experience a life with no regrets. But life isn't about that. I say all of this as a very lofty preamble to me randomly picking up The Midnight Library and thinking ‘yeah I'll give this a shot' with minimal enthusiasm. This is not my genre. Under the vast majority of circumstances I never would have touched this. But I decided to for some reason... and devoured the entire thing in a day. The Midnight Library tells the story of Nora Seed, a depressed woman who decides to kill herself at midnight one night due to feeling like her life is worthless. While she is in a state of limbo, she enters the titular Midnight Library, a place that allows her to go into any alternate life she may have lived had she made any different choice. Some of these lives are radically different, others are very similar to her current life. Along the way she finds out that she wants to live in her ‘root life' and forces herself into consciousness in the ‘real world' and saves herself from her own suicide attempt. Writing this all out makes the book sound very cheesy and predictable. I'm sure if I were to go up to 100 random people and ask ‘how do you think a book where a woman is given the opportunity to choose between any other life she could have lived and the one she currently has would end' and all 100 people would say ‘she chooses her current life because she discovers the joy of her current life'. It's not exactly the hardest plot to figure out. But... this book just worked for me on this day. One truly magical thing about reading is that you can read the same book at various points in your life and those same words can hit you totally differently. A Separate Peace by John Knowles is one of my all-time favorite books, but if I had read it for the first time at 24 instead of 14 I doubt that'd be the case. On a similar note, had I read The Midnight Library at 14 I probably wouldn't have liked it. But this book is exactly what I needed right now. This is one that is going to stick with me forever. Thank you Matt Haig.
It felt like it was slowly transforming into a self help book and I didn't sign up for that.
I just started this book today and, now, 10% in, I'm going to DNF it. Because BOY DO I HAVE THOUGHTS. This book is predicated on a premise that is, apparently, a huge philosophical trigger for me.
OK, so the basic premise is: we meet Nora, a depressed 35-year-old English lady who is full of regrets. REGRETS, DID YOU HEAR ME. If you remember from the book description, this book is a pop treatment of Borges's library of Babel. That is: Nora is given, early on and after an attempted suicide, the option to “redo” her life - undoing a single regret (and she has many!) and letting the “better option” play out.
OK! So! The basic idea here is the freedom of free will. But I simply just do not buy this! Indeed I found it stifling! Suffocating! This is so deeply, aggressively alien to my core philosophical belief and existential feeling that I simply must take to Goodreads to vent:
The idea of “having regrets” and being weighed down by them is, of course, a very common feeling. And indeed a big symptom/characteristic of depression. But it's founded on a cognitive error! “Having regrets” is a kind of perfectionism - as if every past choice had a “right” or “wrong” choice and, poor Nora, she just picked all the wrong choices. But... like... what?! Sometimes both choices can be wrong! Or right! Furthermore, Nora's “regrets” seem to often derive from (1) she didn't want to do it in the moment (e.g. being a high-performing athlete under massive pressure), or (2) she was afraid to do it, even though she wanted to (marrying that guy). Surely (1) is allowed? Why regret not doing a thing you didn't want to do at the time anyway? You're still you?? Jeez, let youself be you! I sometimes regret not doing a comp sci undergrad degree... but hey, I did econ, which I love with all my heart. I just also love comp sci! Yes, there's not enough time in the day, not enough years in a life, to do it all, but that's quite distinct from “oh shit I made a mistake and now I'm in shitty life version B”.
On (2), sure, it sucks to have let fears, anxieties and our “lesser angels” guide our hand but - jeez - have some latitude. Beating yourself up for not making the so-called “best” decision every time is just perfectionism! Where's your self-compassion? Ay ay ay.
Honestly, I think I'm just deterministic. I did what I did cuz I did it and I'm me and the universe is the universe. There is no alternative? Or maybe - if there is an alternative (since I also believe in the multiple worlds theory, probabilistic universes, God playing dice etc.) - who knows if it'd be better or worse. Like that TNG episode where Picard lives a total domestic life on some planet playing the flute. What a mindfuck, eh. But just that! A mindfuck! Nothing more. No depression-infused moralizing about which one was better. Starship captain, or flute-playing stay-at-home dad? Both have pros and cons!
In addition to being a boring determinist, I'm also a Buddhist - aka, life is suffering. Make the best of this shit! As the Germans say, das Leben ist kein Ponyhof. Life is not a pony... stable? Pony ride? PONIES ARE A PRIVILEGE, NOT A RIGHT. (As I scream to my children.) I'm glad Nora was on antidepressants. Maybe she needed regular therapy too! Bedford sounds fine, stop knocking small towns! Arghhh THIS IS ALL SO BASIC.
Oh yeah, on the subject of kids: I know Matt Haig was just framing this all as relatable to a certain midlife, WEIRD (Western educated etc etc) set, and hey - I did appreciate the Fleetwood Mac poster - but I also found it stifling and conservative and BASIC (in its mindset) and bleghhhh.
OK, vent complete. DNF!
(Side note but Carey Mulligan did the audiobook narration and gosh, she's just so cute.)
This is a pleasant story that might distract you from the unpleasantness all around us these days. If you like time travel story lines, and a reminder about how tomorrow is a new day and a fresh start, this might be a good book for you. I heard the audible version and appreciated the narrator also. Her British accent added to my escape.
The Midnight Library – 4.5 stars
I didn’t know what to expect from this book, but it turned out to be a fairly original take on the Sliding Doors concept, written in a compelling style—quick to read but with real depth. It was highly entertaining and made me reflect on many of the choices I’ve made in life. I knocked off half a star for the slightly paint-by-numbers structure and the overly predictable ending, but overall, this was a strong and thought-provoking read.
As a fiction, it has a very nice concept and an alright execution which isn't too corny. I was immersed with the story and did hope the main character the best. I didn't personally like the themes as much, it felt too repetitive, even though technically it made sense since they're all the same person (climate change - a specific philosopher - family - bad life - disappointment or sadness - repeat)
As a self-help book, which it becomes in the second part, it wasn't for me, the only notable thing is that metaphor with chess doesn't make any sense lol, just a nitpick though.
Seems quite cheesy to be frank, but still a nice and light read that is rather emboldening and earnest in its ways.
I don't really know what to say about this book after finishing it. I expected certains things from the first pages and it delivered exactly that, nothing less, nothing more… I can't say it is bad, but, I don't know… A little bit boring maybe ? It may be a question of sensibility and life experience after all, maybe this book will be a game changer for some readers.
The storyline was very intriguing and had me coming back to read the book. I kind of had an idea of where it was going but wanted to find out anyway (maybe a part of me wanted to see Nora live it through and finish her story... hopefully). Although the message was quite clear to the reader, I appreciated the continued epiphanies and discoveries by Nora that was beautifully expressed. I think we all wonder what would happen if we could choose different lives and I felt myself reflecting on my own dreams and wonderment. The book helped Nora and the reader land on the best conclusion...”we don't have to do everything to be everything, because we are already infinite”
An incredibly easy book that you can binge-read.
**SPOILER ALERT**
The Midnight Library by Matt Haig provides a new interpretation to the belief of life-flashing-before-death; instead, the protagonist Nora sees her alternate lives where she took the road not taken.
Basically, she goes through all her regrets and realises that focusing on the what-ifs is preventing her to enjoy her current life.
I will admit that this book oversimplifies a lot of mental health issues but, there's a certain charm to it.