The Midnight Library
Ratings1,714
Average rating3.8
I liked this book a lot. Two quotes for me that stood out for me were:
“The only way to learn is to live.”
“It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see.”
I enjoyed the journey that Nora took through the different lives that resulted from the choices she made for herself. I thought the final wrap up of the book was the best.
A perfect read for the last book of 2021.
I thought the book started well and I really liked the concept. But I thought it got a bit ‘same-y' after a while and I guessed how it was going to end pretty early on. I do get the author's message though and I know that it comes from a sincere place from his personal experience.
Bibliotherapy at its best.
The premise and plot of this book are a simple yet unexpectedly effective literary device to reframe the experience of the protagonist and reader from despair, suicidality, and depression, to hope.
It's no literary marvel, but it is accessible and has a hugely positive message.
This book was totally fine. I'm a sucker for this kind of premise, but the plotting feels like the very first ideas for story beats that you would obviously come up with given such a premise. It's not bad, it's just not very exciting and a bit too cute/precious.
It was still engaging enough though, the writing mostly flows well and is easy to read, and the audiobook is well narrated by the actress Carey Mulligan. It was a good breezy read between other books, even if it feels a bit like a flash-in-the-pan beach-book-club pick (nothing wrong with that though I guess, I really liked The Help too).
** Mild Spoilers Below **
The decision to jump into a consciousness without any related memories and having to make sense of your new reality on the fly is fun... the first couple times. It feels like a huge portion of the book is just the main character trying to reasonably pass as her new self and it just isn't that interesting a lot of the time and is just a predictable way to hit us with a shocking revelation. However I did like how it was used in the conversation with Molly.
Made me cry, so automatically 5 stars, I don't make the rules.
Having been through depths of depression, sadness and hard times and finally feeling better, this book was a roaring fire of optimism and will to live. It was beautiful, soothing and touching my soul at every page. If you feel ever dissatisfied with life, give it a chance and change your perspective, go through your own midnight library and find your way
I can't say that I found this book particularly well written, I kept thinking that it was very simple and at times rather boring. It wasn't the kind of book that I felt excited to read more of, instead I had to push myself to finish it.
The idea that a person has the potential to be so famous if they would just make a couple of decisions differently was somewhat unrealistic. I also didn't like the fact that Nora went into each parallel life with no memory of it at all and it made reading these parts feel quite anxious. I feel as though it would have been better for her to still realise that she had come from the midnight library, but to go into each new life with some basic faint memories (e.g. is she married or unmarried? does she have a child?).
I also didn't find Nora particularly likeable. I grew more fond of her towards the end of the book but overall I did think she was kind of boring.
That being said, there wasn't anything necessarily wrong with this book, it's all just personal opinion and maybe I've just gotten more used to other authors' writing styles. I did love the concept behind this book. I love the idea that there are multiple universes existing out there with all of the different versions of ourselves, and that there is no definite path for any of us, rather we have the potential to shape our lives with the decisions we make every day. This concept has stuck with me after finishing the book and it's something I find myself marvelling at often, so overall I do believe that this is worth the read.
It's not as deep as the reviews would make it out to be. It's not life-altering or the best book I've ever read, but I would compare it to a good rom-com. Don't expect incredible to truths or great twist at the end, and you'll be satisfied. You will like the character and the story feels comfortable. Overall, I enjoyed this book and I would recommend it as a quick read, even if it was a bit predictable.
Good and insightful
I originally never intended on reading this. As with most my reads I try to stay away from those overly hyped everywhere. But after reading the synopsis I thought what they hay. I am sooooo glad I did. The writing touched a heavy topic of regret and what if, but the authors way of playful and witty words helped smooth those sharp edges. The insight within this book had me highlighting quote after quote because it resonates with the reader.
To jedna z najlepszych powieści jakie czytałam z gatunku sci-fi, fantasy, która niesie ze sobą dodatkowe filozoficzne wibracje!
Biblioteka o Północy Matta Haiga to nie tylko opowieść o Norze Seed, która jest uwięziona w swoim życiu, widzi siebie jako nieudacznika, jednorazowy odpad ludzki, który nie ma nic do osiągnięcia, nigdy nie będzie przez nikogo pamiętana. To historia o żalach, niedokończonych planach, co by było gdyby, akceptacji rodzin, narkotykach, błędach, poddawaniu się, realizowaniu cudzych marzeń, żalu do siebie, niepewności, samookaleczaniu, miłości, pasji i nienawiści....
Kiedy Nora próbuje zakończyć swoje życie, otwiera oczy w bibliotece wypełnionej książkami, które zawierają różne wersje historii jej życia. Jeśli odnajdzie właściwą książkę i najwłaściwsze życie, które będzie mogła przeżyć spełniona i szczęśliwa, będzie to oznaczało, że może zostać uratowana!
Nora może być pływaczką, gwiazdą rocka, filozofem, żoną, podróżniczką, glacjologiem, matką, właścicielką winnicy lub lokalnego pubu. Może być wszystkim lub niczym.
Ale czy po przeżyciu tylu żyć, prawie tysiąca różnych wersji, znajdzie to, co jest dla niej najlepsze i która forma życia będzie odpowiednia, by złapać prawdziwe szczęście?
Piękna, znacząca, olśniewająca, emocjonalna, chwytająca za serce, poetycka, realistyczna: to słowa, które przychodzą mi do głowy po przeczytaniu tej książki. Zupełnie jak definicja idealnego życia.
“Bać się miłości to bać się życia, a kto boi się życia, jest już w trzech czwartych martwy.”
I really wanted to like this one but it took me months to get through. The end was great, and I think I would've liked the rest of the book more if it was closer to the more mundane parallel lives Nora visits towards the end; the rockstar/olympian/arctic scientist lives felt flat and cheap to me. But again, definitely appreciate the ultimate direction the story takes!
Comecei a leitura gostando bastante da história, apesar de ser bem claro o que vai acontecer ao longo do livro, num contexto geral. Apesar do “vai e vem” da personagem, não achei cansativo ou monótono, até me interessei bastante pelos acontecimentos. Estava pronto pra dar uma nota maior ao livro, mas o final deixou a desejar na minha experiência - gosto de livros que deixam o leitor ser um pouco mais inteligente ou menos preguiçoso na hora de perceber a mensagem que o livro quer passar. Um dos capítulos do desfecho tornou minha experiência menos agradável do que eu esperava que poderia ser. Ainda assim, achei que foi um bom livro!
I don't think I had the magical experience that most people seemed to have with this book. There is a quote on the front that says “such a beautiful book” that must relate to the last 10 pages which I admit are quite uplifting. The rest of it is an utterly terrifying tale of being stuck in limbo between life and death. Actually reads a little bit like a non fiction book. Strange.
I'm sad to say this book wasn't for me. The overall message is a good one, but I don't think it should have taken Nora a whole book to come to the realization that just because there was a bad experience, there wouldn't only be bad experiences. There's one quote that sums up what exactly bothered me about Nora. It's when Mrs. Elm tells her that sometimes, the only way to learn is to live. Nora than replies “sounds hard”. Yes Nora, that's the point. Life can be hard sometimes, but you learn from those times as well. I'm glad she realized this in the end, but throughout the book there was too much self-pity and Nora expecting others to solve her problems in life. If you don't like the direction your life is going, you have to roll up your sleeves and do something about it. I know this sounds a bit blunt, and I'm not trying to diminish the fact that depression can make people feel like there's no way out. I just wished the author would have taken the time to explain more how Nora came to be like this, without describing her as an easy quitter. There were moments in the book where I recognized some of Noras struggles. Her habit to overthink, her not wanting to stand out out of fear of being mocked or how she worries about other people's approval. These are issues I know a lot of people struggle with, and I think we should all take Mrs. Elm's advice to heart: “you don't need a permission slip to be yourself”. This book made me realize that, even though I don't consider myself an optimist, I do have more of a positive outlook on life and it's challenges. I always try to keep in mind that when things seem a bit heavier, better times will come around.
Never fear shadows, they simply mean there's a light shining somewhere nearby - Ruth E. Renkel
“I don't think your problem was stage fright. Or wedding fright. I think your problem was life fright.”
What I didn't like;
This is one of those overhyped books which wasn't for me.
Before starting the book I thought to myself, this is a short book it will be very easy to get through but boy was I wrong. Yes, it is short and has short chapters but the words are so heavy to digest that after reading a sentence I had to reread it to grasp it.
And what everyone says is correct this is a self-help book disguised as a work of fiction.
I buddy read this with some amazing people and honestly speaking if it weren't for the buddy read I prob would have dnfed this.
-As always there's the good and bad to books and here are the things I liked in the book;
I connected to Nora on a certain level it's a bit hard for me to understand in what level but I felt connected to her during those first few chapters.
The words were heavy, but I loved the writing style.
Some beautiful quotes which you can see below.
Sometimes regrets are just....a load of bullshit
Some things about the book which confused me; I felt that a part of the reason why Nora didn't like most of the lives she went into was because she didn't know a thing about it, she was always very confused when entering each life.I am actually kinda glad at the way things ended, coz if the book had ended with Nora dying I prob would have rated it a 1 star.
my friend lent me the book after reading it
i think it was well-written - the despair and hopelessness that the character felt at the beginning of the book was effectively described to evoke similar feelings in the reader
i was interested to see how the plot would resolve; personally, found the ending to be a little anti-climatic/predictable, but i loved the epiphany that the protagonist reached nonetheless (:
FMC 35(?) ish
A riveting story
The kind of story you love to read and miss a lot when you can't find anymore of.
I can't recommend this enough. It gives you an entirely new perspective on life.
I'm definitely reading Matt Haig's others books
