Title: The Midnight Library
Author: Haig, Matt
Publisher: Viking
Pages: 288
Date Read: 21 December 2021
Bookshelves: read, favorites
My Rating (out of 5): ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
In this book, Matt Haig attacks an existential question with empathy. He writes about roads not travelled and lives not lived. This book offers a calming perspective on living with regrets, informing us that we cannot conclude that a path we have not trod will be better for the simple fact that we have not trodded it. By following the story of Nora, we are reminded of how easy it is to mourn lives we did not live, friends we did not make, and work we did not do. We see how quickly regret of what was and longing for what could have been makes us forget the awesome things to be made out of the cards we are currently being dealt. I think the author did a fantastic job at communicating this perspective.
Having said that, this book felt like an aggregate of short stories. And while I have my reservations about the genre (short stories are, well, too short; same reason I prefer series to movies, but i digress), I understand that this was the only way the story could have been written. This specific discomfort is the reason for my rating of 4.5 but still, fortunately, rounds up to a solid 5 stars.
Read this book, folks!