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lukehanfangirl's review against another edition
2.0
The story was interesting but the writing was all over the place. Random transitions, abrupt endings, and no flow really made it difficult to keep reading. I kept with it because I was interested enough in the characters to continue with it.
shree_reads's review against another edition
3.0
What will you do if your town's only library closes down for renovation? Dodie - an avid book reader thinks of converting her sunroom into a lending library. Her ideas turn into reality sooner than she anticipated. The Chatsworth natives help her by donating books and also by being regular consumers to her lending library.
Dodie's life was happy yet not perfect. She had a hard breakup and a sour experience as a painter - the lending library and the simple life at Chatsworth gave her stability. The first half of the book was pretty great but when the family drama was introduced - all the dilemmas, neurotic breakdowns, and crazy rush of emotions it became a bit weird for me but I still enjoyed the book.
Dodie has a thing for babies and she recently learnt that she might have a gynecological problem after the age of thirty-five and when her best friend, Sullivan, died leaving behind a cute child she thought of adopting him - but she had a hurdle in her way she was neither rich not did her boyfriend, Shep, was ready. She had to go through a lot of heartaches, planning and had to pull herself together because if the lending library. I really felt sorry for Dodie at times and sometimes angry because of her cutting-off-the-world nature.
This one was a bit beyond average read for me though I loved the concept of the lending library and the childish blabbering of Teribithia. I didn't like the family drama that much but I now that was much needed to develop the characters. Overall I loved the tone of the book and the love for books within the book.
Thanks to NetGalley for providing me will a free copy in exchange for an honest review. Happy Reading Fellas!
Dodie's life was happy yet not perfect. She had a hard breakup and a sour experience as a painter - the lending library and the simple life at Chatsworth gave her stability. The first half of the book was pretty great but when the family drama was introduced - all the dilemmas, neurotic breakdowns, and crazy rush of emotions it became a bit weird for me but I still enjoyed the book.
Dodie has a thing for babies and she recently learnt that she might have a gynecological problem after the age of thirty-five and when her best friend, Sullivan, died leaving behind a cute child she thought of adopting him - but she had a hurdle in her way she was neither rich not did her boyfriend, Shep, was ready. She had to go through a lot of heartaches, planning and had to pull herself together because if the lending library. I really felt sorry for Dodie at times and sometimes angry because of her cutting-off-the-world nature.
This one was a bit beyond average read for me though I loved the concept of the lending library and the childish blabbering of Teribithia. I didn't like the family drama that much but I now that was much needed to develop the characters. Overall I loved the tone of the book and the love for books within the book.
Thanks to NetGalley for providing me will a free copy in exchange for an honest review. Happy Reading Fellas!
candylovegirl's review against another edition
3.0
This book was not the lighthearted fun read I thought it’d be and had very little to do with the library beyond being the trigger for a story. It started out good and then got all angst ridden and dramatic. At one point I was flipping back checking timelines and the action wasn’t matching up. September was mentioned as an actionable moment but someone didn’t leave until February - this lack of continuity annoyed me. There was a section at the end that felt out of place and just wrong. I kept reading because I don’t like to not finish.
bnblckmn's review against another edition
3.0
I normally read the book first and then look at the Goodreads reviews...and people really didn't like this book. I completely agree with the 1-2 star reviews but if you're looking for an easy read (in my opinion) and not looking for too much sustenance, I think this is a good choice.
What spoke out to me is I love reading books about books, if that makes any sense. And Dodie's passion for books and her ability to bring people together through the love of books was enjoyable to read. I also related Dodie's desire to become a mom and feeling that time crunch (whether it's factual or not). And also starting up a project and getting a little "possessive" over it because in a way that's her baby.
I agree with some of the lesser star reviews about how the story kind of got away from what I thought the plot was going to be. Shep was pretty much 2-dimensional character. I also thought it was funny how 2 characters got engaged less than a year of being together. And maybe I missed it but I didn't catch that Mark was black until about 100 pages when they mentioned his grandma being from Ethiopia. If Goodreads gave out .5 stars, I probably would've given this book 2.5
What spoke out to me is I love reading books about books, if that makes any sense. And Dodie's passion for books and her ability to bring people together through the love of books was enjoyable to read. I also related Dodie's desire to become a mom and feeling that time crunch (whether it's factual or not). And also starting up a project and getting a little "possessive" over it because in a way that's her baby.
I agree with some of the lesser star reviews about how the story kind of got away from what I thought the plot was going to be. Shep was pretty much 2-dimensional character. I also thought it was funny how 2 characters got engaged less than a year of being together. And maybe I missed it but I didn't catch that Mark was black until about 100 pages when they mentioned his grandma being from Ethiopia. If Goodreads gave out .5 stars, I probably would've given this book 2.5
deethereader's review against another edition
4.0
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this eARC in exchange for a honest review
I thought this was a great story! The story of Do and her fear of not being able to have children and the obsession she has with making it a reality without realising how it is impacting not only her and her family and friends but also the community. The heartbreak that she experienced as a child and how that impacted her future relationships as well as fueling her obsession with wanting to have a child felt real.
I loved the idea of the library and how it brings the community together and lets people feel safe while also being connected to others.
Overall the story was a great read and I felt that the author did a fantastic job to bring the characters to life
I thought this was a great story! The story of Do and her fear of not being able to have children and the obsession she has with making it a reality without realising how it is impacting not only her and her family and friends but also the community. The heartbreak that she experienced as a child and how that impacted her future relationships as well as fueling her obsession with wanting to have a child felt real.
I loved the idea of the library and how it brings the community together and lets people feel safe while also being connected to others.
Overall the story was a great read and I felt that the author did a fantastic job to bring the characters to life
loribulb's review against another edition
2.0
I really *could not* stand the main character for the first part of the book. She got better toward the end but her growth arc did feel rushed. There were entirely too many middle-aged, baby-crazy woman tropes for my taste. I think I would rather have read a book centered around the foul-mouthed sister.
serinde4books's review against another edition
2.0
I received this book as an Advanced Reader's Copy (ARC) through NetGalley. I received this copy free in exchange for my honest review.
I wanted to like this book, and I wanted to like the characters. But I didn’t. Maybe it was the wrong time for the story for me but the loss hit me harder then I would have thought, which meant I didn’t enjoy the read. I didn’t like Dodie and I don’t like Shep and I really didn’t like Sullivan‘s parents. This was just a miss for me..
For additional reviews please see my blog at www.adventuresofabibliophile.blogspot.com
I wanted to like this book, and I wanted to like the characters. But I didn’t. Maybe it was the wrong time for the story for me but the loss hit me harder then I would have thought, which meant I didn’t enjoy the read. I didn’t like Dodie and I don’t like Shep and I really didn’t like Sullivan‘s parents. This was just a miss for me..
For additional reviews please see my blog at www.adventuresofabibliophile.blogspot.com
albloomy's review against another edition
2.0
2.5 stars ⭐️⭐️✨
The premise of the book was good, which made me pick it up, unfortunately the second half was very dramatic romance and baby drama. It felt forced and like if people could communicate and be honest with their thoughts and feelings the angst could have been skipped.
The premise of the book was good, which made me pick it up, unfortunately the second half was very dramatic romance and baby drama. It felt forced and like if people could communicate and be honest with their thoughts and feelings the angst could have been skipped.
annebrooke's review against another edition
2.0
I thought this would be a fabulous book as it was about how libraries and books change people - but sadly it didn't live up to my expectations at all.
Dodie is quite a shallow character and scarily obsessive about some issues, to the point of self-obsession. I have no idea how she manages to be so talented or why so many characters love her. She also gains a boyfriend with no personality at all, which is rather disconcerting. Anyway, the plot flits around and about a quarter of the way through, the library project is forgotten whilst she spends the rest of the book desperate to adopt a child before her time runs out. If I'd known there would be so much sentimentality about children and how perfect they are (ha!), then I would have given this book a definite miss.
Still, towards the end, Dodie does go back to the library for a chapter or two and for a precious few pages becomes someone more mature in her life choices, but this isn't enough to make up for the bulk of the middle of this story. For me, it felt as if there might possibly be a magical and magnificent novel about books lying deep inside and trying to come out but, sadly, it never made into the light of day.
Dodie is quite a shallow character and scarily obsessive about some issues, to the point of self-obsession. I have no idea how she manages to be so talented or why so many characters love her. She also gains a boyfriend with no personality at all, which is rather disconcerting. Anyway, the plot flits around and about a quarter of the way through, the library project is forgotten whilst she spends the rest of the book desperate to adopt a child before her time runs out. If I'd known there would be so much sentimentality about children and how perfect they are (ha!), then I would have given this book a definite miss.
Still, towards the end, Dodie does go back to the library for a chapter or two and for a precious few pages becomes someone more mature in her life choices, but this isn't enough to make up for the bulk of the middle of this story. For me, it felt as if there might possibly be a magical and magnificent novel about books lying deep inside and trying to come out but, sadly, it never made into the light of day.