Reviews with content warning for Fatphobia - La Bibliothèque des rêves secrets

The fatphobia in the book really ruined the stories for me. Fatphobia is just unnecessary and unpleasant. The fatphobia also gets more graphic and nasty with each characters story. I also found this book to be really repetitive - it is the same storyline a number of times over with characters "finding" a positive spin on their lives.

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hyperashley's review against another edition

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hopeful inspiring lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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hello_lovely13's review against another edition

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hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

This was just fine. It didn't quite live up to the expectations I had for it. Because of the title, I was expecting to spend much more time in the library than we actually did (I was expecting this to be a more optimistic/less bittersweet version of Before the Coffee Gets Cold, one of my favorite books of all time). As the book went on, I found the writing style increasingly more endearing. Each of the short stories focuses on a different main character (I was happy that they were somewhat interconnected) facing a relatable existential problem, each of which I connected to on a personal level, even if their situations were not identical to mine. The overall message seems to be that you don't have to wait for some distant, vague goal to be achieved in order to be happy, you find happiness in the present. I really liked the exploration of this message. Although I liked each of the short stories and found them relatable, I wasn't too invested in any them, thus this hit more towards the middle of the road for me. Another big downside to this book is the amount of fatphobia directed towards the librarian; it was frankly something I found quite irritating as it appeared in every single story (I am aware that Asian beauty standards aren't the most inclusive, but that is not an excuse).

I also didn't like in the first story that all of a sudden the main character realized the reason she wanted to improve her cooking was to make a MAN happy. I really liked that she was doing it for herself, but then that line had to be thrown in there to ruin it for me.

Overall, I liked the message about seeking present happiness, but disliked my lack of investment and certain details of the stories. I rated it 3.25 instead of 3 stars because I found each character's situation so relatable and I like how they were explored and (for the most part) addressed.

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joymargot's review against another edition

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4.5

Japanese-book-with-a-cat-on-the-cover is pretty much my favourite genre so this was always going to be a win from me!

It’s a cosy, wholesome and comforting tale about work, belonging and personal growth. It features five loosely-intertwined short stories, centred around a librarian in a small community centre library.

My only issue was the incessant and unnecessary fatphobic descriptions of the librarian.

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lindseyph's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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geekmom's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No

3.75

This was sweet and charming and a gift to avid readers or users of libraries. I also appreciated how very Japanese this book was while at the same time speaking to universal experiences and offering or overt social commentary about things like the nature of work and the perceived value of people who have different roles in society.

I would have given a higher rating if the descriptions of the librarian weren’t so fatphobic - they made her sound grotesque and I didn’t really get it.

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ashybri's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Very inspiring book, one I will be sure to have a copy of so I can revisit anytime I’m in the need for an inspiring pick-me-up. I loved the diversity of the characters and how each took on a common issue faced in life at a certain stage. It was very relatable and reflective. I highly recommend this cozy story.

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plumeriablossom's review against another edition

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inspiring lighthearted reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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