The Midnight Library

Being someone who often ponders life's "what ifs," I was quick to snap this novel up. The plot revolves around a suicidal woman, Nora Seed, who finds herself in a mysterious library between life and death, where each book serves as a portal to a different version of her life had she made alternative choices.

Though the story shares thematic elements with traditional time travel narratives—such as the exploration of alternate realities—it’s not time travel in the strictest sense. Instead, it has a dreamlike quality that offers a clever means to explore the deeply personal and relatable concept of self-discovery.… show more.

There is a certain kind of literature that takes my breath away. In my experience, there is nothing more exhilarating than reading a book that you think is contemporary that veers, with the reader hardly noticing, into the speculative. I adore books that take the ordinary world and sprinkle it with magic and possibilities.

With this book, Matt Haig answers a question many of us contemplate: What if? What if I’d taken the other fork in the road? This book answers that question for one flawed, beautiful character, and I was enthralled with every page.  

In the Midnight Library, I can check out any book and each one will tell me a different story of my life. I wondered as I read it if I would really want to be given all those options: my life as it is or my life how it could have been if I’d made different choices.

Would I be happier now if I’d married my high school sweetheart? No. Did I make the right career choice? Yes, although it will never turn me into a millionaire.

Perhaps the great gift of this book is that I discovered how happy… show more.

Last summer, I wanted a work of fiction to read on the airplane heading back to visit my childhood home. I was craving a philosophical-type novel with a pinch of whimsy. Something fun that would explore the ways we are connected to our pasts but still the authors of our own lives. Browsing the airport bookstore, Matt Haig’s The Midnight Library promised to cure what ailed me.

I had so much fun reading this book. It was like watching a movie (in fact, I read that film rights have already been optioned by a major studio—can’t wait!). I was hooked… show more.

I often lie awake at night wondering what my life would be like if I had married my college boyfriend, kept swimming in college, moved to France, or became a professional pastry chef. In the wee hours of the night, all of these things seem like they would lead to a better path than I’m on now.

This book made me see that every choice is just that, one choice, but it’s one that leads to another and another. Some are good, and some aren’t, but it doesn’t help to lie awake staring at my ceiling and wishing it could… show more.

The premise of The Midnight Library immediately swept me up, and the book was so thought-provoking.

It explores regret and how we can get lost thinking about and mourning “the lives we aren’t living” at the expense of the life that is in front of us right now. I loved how it drew attention to the consequences and pain of the choices we make, yet also how the beauty of life is in living it and connecting with all the shades of it (good, bad, funny, and sad).

One of my favorite quotes “She imagined accepting it all. The way… show more.

I loved this book because of the imaginative premise, particularly blurring the lines between reality and fantasy and the possibility of alternate lives.

Being analytical, the thought that certain decisions could have such a profound effect on our lives was intriguing and entertaining. I thought about some of my own decisions and how things might have turned out if I’d had the chance to go back and make different choices.

The suspense of this book had me reading fast, anxious to see what would happen next, and excited to see how it would end. I also loved how it focused… show more.

Midnight Library is a magical story about Nora who feels lost in her life and is given the chance to explore what could have been, had she made another choice.

In a mysterious library on the edge of the universe between life and death, Nora finds books that contain her different life stories. All she needs to do is pick one and want to stay. But as she explores each possibility of her life, things don’t turn out quite the way she expected which leaves her wondering what is the best way to live?

This is another book that leaves… show more.

I’m recommending this novel because it shows how books can quite literally save your life.

There was a time when I was very young when I was sent away to boarding school and suffered the trauma of abandonment and abuse. The school library offered me a magical portal into other worlds where I could escape in my mind, if not in my body.

The Midnight Library connects with this part of my story. I love the genre (magical realism). I also love the idea of books in a magical library offering hope for those suffering from depression and despair.

The Midnight Library is a profound exploration of life's possibilities, which resonated deeply with my personal philosophies.

As a lover of impactful fiction, I found Haig's magical realism engaging and thought-provoking. The book's central theme—the power of choices and their impact on our lives—struck a chord with me. It reminded me of my own crossroads and the decisions I made that shaped my life.

This book is an excellent choice for anyone seeking a deeper understanding of life's complexities. Its narrative will leave you contemplating your own 'midnight library.' Highly recommended.