The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
Published by Viking on September 29, 2020
Genres: Contemporary, Fiction, Fantasy
Pages: 304
Source: Loan
Goodreads

Somewhere out beyond the edge of the universe is a library that contains an infinite number of books, each one the story of another reality. One tells the story of your life as it is, along with another book for the life you could have lived if you had made a different choice at any point in your life. While we all wonder how our lives might have been, what if you had the chance to go to the library and see for yourself? Would any of these other lives truly be better?
In The Midnight Library, Matt Haig's enchanting blockbuster novel, Nora Seed finds herself faced with this decision. Faced with the possibility of exchanging her life for a different one, following a different career, undoing old breakups, realizing her dreams of becoming a glaciologist, she must search within herself as she travels through the Midnight Library to decide what is truly fulfilling in life, and what makes it worth living in the first place.

Let’s start with some trigger warnings. This book features suicide self harm and mental illness. I seriously hadn’t´t heard of this book, I even owned another book by Matt Haig. Then a friend told she was reading it and then it was all over the place. Maybe I was just all of sudden noticing it but I was seeing it at a minimum 7-10x a day. I borrowed the book. I am so glad I did.

Even though The Midnight Library deals with some difficult themes, it does it in a beautiful way. The words literally jump off the page at you. It is heart breaking at times.

The main character is Nora Seed, a 35 year old who makes a life changing decisions one fateful evening when it seems like her whole world is falling apart. In a strange twist she finds herself in the in-between called The Midnight Library.

She realised that’s what she was, a black hole, a dying star, collapsing in on itself.

The Midnight Library is full of books, endless books, which are alternative lives she could have lived. There is also one very significant book called The Book of Regrets which has everything Nora regrets doing or not doing through her life.

There are quite a few secondary characters throughout the story. They don’t really feature too much nor do they influence the storyline so they aren’t really flushed out. They are one dimensional. They play their rolls and nothing more.

Places are places and memories are memories and life is fucking life.

The writing flowed beautifully, was easy to read, yet so thought provoking and meaningful. Matt Haig also added some well placed and relevant quotes by philosophers, that really enhance the story and makes you truly think.

Even though the subject matter is challenging and difficult for some, Matt Haig does an incredible job with the topic. Not only that, he imparts invaluable life lessons throughout the novel. The words will stick with you for a while and will have you questioning whether you are living your best life.

And even if you were a pawn-maybe we are are-then you should remember that a pawn is the most magical piece of all. It might look small and ordinary but it isn’t. Because a pawn is never just a pawn. A pawn is a queen-in-waiting. All you need to do is find a way to keep moving forward. One square after another. And you can get to the other side and unlock all kinds of power.

It is simply enchanting!