Dodie’s local library closes for renovations so she decides to turn her own personal library into a “lending library” for others. A sanctuary for everyone to share the power of books together. I thought this was be the main story of this book with maybe some romance but it was quickly forgotten about. The book began to focus on getting married and having babies. Dodie obsesses with infertility, babies, getting pregnant.. etc. Safe to say, I got bored quickly. I think the books synopsis should have mentioned something like that otherwise I don’t think I would have picked this one up. Dodie herself is not a very likable character, I found her a bit judgmental and annoying.

Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for copy of this book.

A fun read about the importance of books, friends and family. Love the idea of starting my own library in my house.

I thought this book was a good story a light read.

I certainly understood the main characters feeling of wanting to do it all herself, and not have to have help. By doing so she almost lost everything that mattered to her.

The real truths are finding why she couldn't accept help. I think you have to think a little deeper into with this book to see what the messages are.

I did feel like the writing to the end was clunky but all in all I enjoyed it.

Such an enjoyable book! When the town library closes abruptly for repair and renovation, Dodie Fairisle, an art teacher decided to open a lending library in her sunroom. The sunroom becomes more than just a library and impacts the lives of Dodie and others in ways never imagined. It is a superb debut novel.

I wanted to love this one, as the title of The Lending Library sounded right up my nerdy book worm self. And the setting of Chatsworth England Jane Austen country should have also been up my alley. And for the most part it was. But I hated the main character I couldn’t find anything about her personality that I could like. If I had at least like one of the secondary characters, it could have at least helped me to at least enjoy the book.

DNF. Thank you NetGalley and Publisher for this early copy! I decided to not keep reading this one, it was not for me. Thanks!

This read was ok..but .just ok. I wanted to like it more than I did but it didn’t quite hit the mark for me sadly.

The Lending Library by Aliza Fogelson - publish date 1/7/20

A sincere thank you to the publisher, author and netgalley for providing me with an ebook copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

A book about books is a wonderful thing in my opinion. I instantly loved the characters especially Dodie. She was depicted with such character that I genuinely cared about her and wanted her to be happy. It was a cheesy story; a laugh out loud story but mainly a book about hopes and dreams. I don’t want to say too much without spoiling it, however, I would recommend this book to every bookish friend I have. It was an escape in a very uncertain time.

The only downside to this book was the additions to my ‘book wish list ‘. Dodie talked about so many books that she had read and that she recommended leading to my ever-growing list lol.

Highly recommend this story to everyone and would definitely read it again. 5*****

What a sweet story of a woman with a big heart and many books who creates a lending library in her home. Beautifully told, the story is full of overthinking, contemplation, friendship, love, laughter, children, parenting, want-to-be parents and self-discovery. Dodie is a simple character on the outside, yet we find the complexity of her is what makes her immensely special indeed!

2.5★s
The Lending Library is the first novel by American author, Aliza Fogelson. After a major disappointment in her art career, Dodie Fairisle quits the anonymity of New York City, and the undermining of her ego by her narcissistic boyfriend, and heads to the small Connecticut hometown of her art school friend.

Soon, she has bought (or her parents have bought her) a quirky but thoroughly charming little house in Chatsworth, has a position teaching art at the elementary school, enjoys the town’s café, library and bookstore, has some close friends, and feels at home, comfortable, secure and loved.

The only thing missing is motherhood, but for that, of course, she needs a man, a conspicuous absence in her current life, although her good friend Sullivan has circumvented that need by adopting a sweet little boy from Ethiopia. Dodie becomes painfully aware, though, that her biological clock is ticking louder and faster than she had thought.

But then her beloved library is suddenly shut down due to safety concerns. It may be an inconvenience for Dodie to travel to the next town for her book fix, but she knows that for some patrons, especially the children, the trip will be impossible, and purchase at the bookstore will be beyond their budget.

For Dodie, the solution is clear: a lending library, and soon the volume of books donated precludes a classroom location; Dodie’s own sunroom proves to be the ideal location. It’s there, through book clubs and storytimes, that Dodie gets to know the residents of her adopted town more intimately than she had ever expected.

So far, so good.

Then Dodie takes up with a hot guy who recently broke with his girlfriend because she wanted children, and he wasn’t ready. And Dodie does NOT mention her own urgent motherhood aspirations.

And then, with a full-time job that barely covers her costs of living and running a community library, and a not-ready-to-father boyfriend, Dodie abandons practicalities, gets all entitled and decides she must have a certain little boy. And when offered help, pride gets in the way of accepting it.

Initially, Fpgelson’s protagonist seems to (mostly) have her heart in the right place, but is often irritatingly flakey, naïve and immature, and morphs into self-absorbed and shallow, while most of the support cast is rather one-dimensional. It feels like we jump into the story half-way through, by which time we are meant to know and love the characters, and care about what happens to them. Sadly, this is not the case.

The initial premise of the story, the lending library, has great potential, but the novel is then hijacked by Dodie’s obsession with acquiring the child, which gets boring quickly. The copious insertion of book titles and meal descriptions doesn’t rescue it. Ultimately, way too predictable, disappointing and a bit of a chore to finish. Unable to recommend this one.
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing.

This was more sad than I was expecting. The main characters best friend get killed in a car accident and she had just recently adopted a baby. The main character decides to also open up a library after the town library is shut down. The main character I think was really not that bad. I know that there is not a problem with adopting a child but sometimes people want the experience of having their own children and are sad when they can't got through with it. The character does go throught character development through the story so that she isn't as panicked about having children because she starts accepting that things are just meant to be.

*Thank you Netgalley for providing me a copy for an honest review!*

The title of the book - The Lending Library - was the reason I chose to read the debut novel by Aliza Fogelson. Sadly, that entire storyline becomes almost a side note in the entire book. It gets lost as does almost every other story thread because there are too many. I am disappointed that this was not the book I expected. I was definitely not the right reader for what this book actually is.

Read my complete review at http://www.memoriesfrombooks.com/2020/09/the-lending-library.html

Reviewed for NetGalley.

Thank you Netgalley and Lake Union Publishing for a copy of The Lending Library in exchange for an honest review. It was a quick, light read for a good rainy night. One of the things I really liked about this book was the idea of starting a Lending Library. That would be a cool goal to have when I'm older and nestless. One of the things that I really did not enjoy is the MC not communicating her feelings upfront to those close to her. It was frustrating and hard to empathize with the main character. If you are looking for a quick, fluffy read, Lending Library will do the trick.

The Lending Library was an enjoyable read. I appreciated the realness and complexities of the problems Dodie experienced. I would enjoy reading about Dodie's friends and family in future novels!

It doesnt support or open after I download the pdf version of it. It's also not showing in my shelf in netgalley and I cant open it to read Please look into the issue and if you can send me the pdf in my mail ID- taniagungunsarkar@gmail.com I cant read the book from here. Please look into the issue

Thank you to NetGalley for this book. Upping it to 3.5 stars.

I really wanted to read this because of the library theme. It reminds me so much of my and other Little Free Libraries out there in the world but in a different type of setting which was Dodie's home, her sunroom to be exact when the library which is like her second home, closes for 2 years for renovations.

This book was so much more about books and her library. It was about love, adoption, death, family, and so much more. Her sisters Coco and Maddie were a hoot and all of her library friends who helped her out.

I love happy endings and wish it would have gone more into the future but I have an idea of what happened and what would happen eventually.

This just wasn't the story for me. I couldn't empathize with the main character and her obsession with having a baby, apparently at any cost.

This book blew me away! I was unable to but it down. Perfect, dazzlingly, very well written. The details the author described throughout the book was so amazing. The characters and storyline were fantastic. The ending I did not see coming Truly Amazing and appreciated the whole story. This is going to be a must read for many many readers. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! No spoilers. Beyond amazing I enjoyed this book so very much. The characters and storyline were fantastic. The ending I did not see coming Could not put down nor did I want to. Truly Amazing and appreciated the whole story. This is going to be a must read for many many readers. Maybe even a book club pick.

This was such a lovely read. As an avid book lover myself, Dodie really resonated with me. The only part that felt a little off to me was the adoption, at times it felt white savior-like and there was little context to how to raise a child in America while keeping ties to their culture.

The Lending Library by Aliza Fogelson
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Thank you @netgalley for my digital copy to read and review.
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This was a quick and enjoyable read for me. Dodie’s character had struggles that I could sympathize with. I wasn’t very happy with some of the choices she made but in the end things worked out ok.
I think I liked the first half of the book more than the second half. I loved the idea of the lending library that Dodie made in her sunroom! And that she wanted to mentor children from her school, provide the library as a refuge for them to get away from real life when they can. But then the book sort of left the lending lobrary and focused on Dodie’s burning desire to be a mother. Which, as a mother, I can understand the desire. But it was sad that she focused on that to the exclusion of everything else that was important to her.
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I gave this book 3⭐️⭐️⭐️, I still enjoyed it despite it feeling like 2 different stories.