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3.81 AVERAGE
3.81 AVERAGE
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The book progressively kept getting worse, the characters were so unlikeable. The story telling was absolutely poor, timelines for the characters and their ages did not make any sense.
The triumphant moment of the book is a trouble youth, who came from a foster home getting a longer jail sentence is not something to celebrate, it’s actually quite disgusting of the author.
The descriptions of the library and New York in the early 1900s was bland and boring.
Sadie was pathetic and Laura was a horrible person, why would I root for either of these two insufferable characters.
The triumphant moment of the book is a trouble youth, who came from a foster home getting a longer jail sentence is not something to celebrate, it’s actually quite disgusting of the author.
The descriptions of the library and New York in the early 1900s was bland and boring.
Sadie was pathetic and Laura was a horrible person, why would I root for either of these two insufferable characters.
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
How lucky am I that I have the privilege to read books written by Fiona Davis. I love them all. I love the historical fiction set in two time periods. I love strong female characters with a mystery to solve. I can’t imagine a more magical setting than the NY public library. When books go missing Laura and Sadie have to figure out where they go. I loved the storyline of the feminists Laura was drawn to.
2.5 stars. The very, very end of the book was the best part for me.
This is my second of the several historical fictions written by Fiona Davis; my first read was The Masterpiece. In rereading my review of that book I smiled to see, as with this one, the ending was a bit of a surprise. However, with this book it wasn't quite as a big a surprise as there were ample hints just waiting to be picked up.
I liked the chapters switching back and forth between the New York City of 1913 and that of 1993. The story of Laura Lyons, begun in 1913, intrigued me, at first making me wonder if it is possible to take a tour of the New York Public Library main branch at 42nd Street. (It is!) However, what I most appreciated was Laura's inner dialogue as she tries to balance her love of her family and the sense of obligation she feels towards them to be wife and mother - Jack, the superintendent of the Library and an aspiring novelist, her son Harry and her daughter Pearl - with her own desires to do something more with her life.
Laura wants to be a writer, in particular a journalist, and she applies to the just started Columbia University School of Journalism. (More about the history of the school here.) Despite the initial obstacle of not receiving a scholarship, and the ongoing issue of her husband being absorbed in his manuscript outside of his regular working hours, Laura winds up as a student, one of just a very few women in a class of predominantly men. And so begins Laura's discovery of another world of possibility housed downtown, the social issues plaguing women - and by extension their families - and her own awakening to what she wants in life.
By the time 1993 arrives, Laura's granddaughter Sadie Donovan has worked her way to become curator of The Berg Collection at the NY Public Library, the same library that was home to Laura and her family. Sadie is six years off a divorce, lives down the block from her brother Lonnie, his wife LuAnn, their daughter Valentina, and Robin, the young woman who takes care of Valentina.
While Laura and Sadie never met, and Sadie's mother Pearl has recently died, there are ties that bind beyond that of family. It remains to Sadie to unearth the backstory, figure out why there are currently thefts at the Library and, with the help of the retired detective Nick (yes, of course there is a romantic hero!), solve the mystery of the thefts, both those of 1913 and those of 1993.
I liked the chapters switching back and forth between the New York City of 1913 and that of 1993. The story of Laura Lyons, begun in 1913, intrigued me, at first making me wonder if it is possible to take a tour of the New York Public Library main branch at 42nd Street. (It is!) However, what I most appreciated was Laura's inner dialogue as she tries to balance her love of her family and the sense of obligation she feels towards them to be wife and mother - Jack, the superintendent of the Library and an aspiring novelist, her son Harry and her daughter Pearl - with her own desires to do something more with her life.
Laura wants to be a writer, in particular a journalist, and she applies to the just started Columbia University School of Journalism. (More about the history of the school here.) Despite the initial obstacle of not receiving a scholarship, and the ongoing issue of her husband being absorbed in his manuscript outside of his regular working hours, Laura winds up as a student, one of just a very few women in a class of predominantly men. And so begins Laura's discovery of another world of possibility housed downtown, the social issues plaguing women - and by extension their families - and her own awakening to what she wants in life.
By the time 1993 arrives, Laura's granddaughter Sadie Donovan has worked her way to become curator of The Berg Collection at the NY Public Library, the same library that was home to Laura and her family. Sadie is six years off a divorce, lives down the block from her brother Lonnie, his wife LuAnn, their daughter Valentina, and Robin, the young woman who takes care of Valentina.
While Laura and Sadie never met, and Sadie's mother Pearl has recently died, there are ties that bind beyond that of family. It remains to Sadie to unearth the backstory, figure out why there are currently thefts at the Library and, with the help of the retired detective Nick (yes, of course there is a romantic hero!), solve the mystery of the thefts, both those of 1913 and those of 1993.
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
4.5 stars, I couldn’t put it down and enjoyed the twists and turns of the story.
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
3.5 stars ✨
I’m slowly getting into historical fiction and this was a good one to add to my list. I surprisingly enjoyed the mystery aspect as someone who doesn’t normally love mysteries (I’m more of a thriller girl).
I love books about books so this one hit the spot. I enjoyed the dual timeline and the fact that the two characters we primarily followed were family; epic family sagas are some of my favourite books to read so it gave me a little fix.
I like that it addressed the importance of books and their preservation. It somewhat reminded me of reading a children’s book having a moral of the story.
I’m slowly getting into historical fiction and this was a good one to add to my list. I surprisingly enjoyed the mystery aspect as someone who doesn’t normally love mysteries (I’m more of a thriller girl).
I love books about books so this one hit the spot. I enjoyed the dual timeline and the fact that the two characters we primarily followed were family; epic family sagas are some of my favourite books to read so it gave me a little fix.
I like that it addressed the importance of books and their preservation. It somewhat reminded me of reading a children’s book having a moral of the story.
I think I was really looking forward to a book that was centered in living in a library. What cool, unique place to live and the stories that could be told about growing up in a library and the details surrounding that opportunity. In the end the family living there could have cared less for the most part and it ended up being about other things so I was fairly disappointed. It was just OK.