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A review by guardianofthebooks
The Last Bookshop in London by Madeline Martin
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
3.5
Strengths:
- I especially liked the relationship between Grace and Mr. Evans as he became something of a father.
- Good themes of community
- I really, really liked the parts about life on the home front. It was so interesting to see what life was like for those left behind, and how women could be just as brave as the men and work just as hard. The book doesn't shy away from how horrible the bombings of London were.
Weaknesses:
- The book starts out slow. I almost gave up. It was worth it in the end, but still.
- A major character's death was very poorly handled. There should have been more forewarning.Ugh this made me mad. They literally built Mr. Evans up to be a father figure to Grace, and then killed him off in like two paragraphs. There was NO foreshadowing. He was fine, and then he was sickly for a paragraph, and then he was dead. It's like the author suddenly decided she wanted Grace to be independent and wanted to get rid of Mr. Evans right then. He deserved better.
- I especially liked the relationship between Grace and Mr. Evans as he became something of a father.
- Good themes of community
- I really, really liked the parts about life on the home front. It was so interesting to see what life was like for those left behind, and how women could be just as brave as the men and work just as hard. The book doesn't shy away from how horrible the bombings of London were.
Weaknesses:
- The book starts out slow. I almost gave up. It was worth it in the end, but still.
- A major character's death was very poorly handled. There should have been more forewarning.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Racism, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, War, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Child death, Car accident, Death of parent