Thank you so much to Canongate Books and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book. Publication date 20th August 2020!!!

I loved this book, which definitely channeled both Mitch Albom & also It's a Wonderful Life. I'm not going to go into too much plot detail here because the book is so much more than that.

Our main character is a sad lonely woman named Nora Seed. She has lost her parents & she and her brother are estranged, She has lost her job and her best friend moved away. She takes an overdose in hopes of ending it all. Except...this is just the beginning.

Mental health is a huge huge factor in this book. While there are many things that could be triggered, I feel like the author was extremely sensitive and empathetic in his writing and this book made me feel good rather than bad. I found myself living vicariously through Nora's choices and thinking about my own life decisions. This book is like a self-help book, also kind of like a movie you watch at Christmas where the character gets a second chance- except with my better writing and execution. This was my first book by this author and I loved it so much. I am so thankful for the new authors I get to know through Net Galley. In conclusion: this is a beautifully written book. I found it very moving and ultimately uplifting. It really emphasizes how it's never too late to make a change in your life.

Absolutely fantastic novel that found its way to me at the perfect time. It was the perfect reminder to live fully and appreciate every moment, even the hard ones. This is the best book I've read this year. We will definitely be purchasing for the library.

Nora is a young woman who is depressed and has lost everyone and everything she cares about. At midnight she decides to take her life but when she wakes, she is in a library full of books. The books are all the different choices she could have made in her life. She is given the chance to try different lives including a glacier researcher, an Olympic diver and a rock and roll singer. In some lives she is married and has children, other lives she is single, I liked thinking how one decision could lead to such a drastically different life. Nora must decide which life she wants or if she wants a life at all.

Nora ,feeling extremely depressed and unhappy with her life, decides to commit suicide. Instead of dying she finds herself in a library with no beginning or end but full of books of every size, and her childhood librarian is there as well. Mrs. Elm shows her a heavy book filled with Nora’s regrets and tells Nora she should pick any book to experience a different life. As Nora tries on her selves she starts to see what life is really about.
The book is very Philosophical, and talks about the environment, Thoreau, and how we’re living many lives at the same time. An interesting concept, and a good read.
I didn’t realize Matt Haig is the author of How to Stop Time, another great read, so I’m going to see what else he’s written. It’s fun to rediscover a great author.

Okay, I have to start this review by saying I finished reading the book at EXACTLY midnight. It kind of freaked me out.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading THE MIDNIGHT LIBRARY. I loved the imagination used to create the various lives Nora "checks out". As a librarian, I also liked the setting and the implications of the Midnight Library, especially having her school librarian play a key role in the book. I have often wondered how my life would be different if I had made different decisions along the way. It was fascinating to see how the paths she thought were right for her did not necessarily turn out the way she planned. I enjoyed the ending. I think it brought the story full circle, ending on a positive note.

This is an absolutely beautiful novel by Matt Haig. I enjoyed learning about the different lives the main character, Nora, could have lead. For a book that deals with a heavy topic, there is a lot of hope. I highly enjoyed this original and imaginative book.

"So long as there are still books on the shelves, you are never trapped. Every book is a potential escape." ❤❤

Seriously, can I give this 10 stars?!

I have loved everything I've read by Matt Haig and this was not an exception. It had me from page one and had a strong hold until the end.

My heart hurt for Nora, you could feel her pain. Definitely written by a person who has suffered (or still suffering) from depression and been to the edge of life. Everything about this story hits where it needs to hit, especially for a someone that has been there themselves.

"The prison wasn't the place, but the perspective."

Another gem from Matt Haig that will please old and new fans alike. A recommended first purchase for adult fiction collections.

Writers must be as unsure of their unique purpose as the rest of us on any given Thursday. Readers, however, know why certain writers have appeared before them: necessity and grace. Matt Haig is a writer who rescues humans who read, rescues them from those too long and dark wallows of looking within, from depression and dread and malaise, from modern nightmares and meaningless dreams and too many days lost to pages of pointless prattle. And Haig gets better at rescue work with every book he writes.

With The Midnight Library, Haig has bested himself (and almost everyone else I can think of) in an author’s primary challenge: to define life’s purpose as logical, philosophically meaningful, and still a really enjoyable read. Haig’s newest even comes with some time travel anomalies resolved along the way. Caution: Suicide attempts, whether in books or in life, are not a simple thing to write about, or to survive, or to think or talk about, or to withstand in yourself or others; however, I think Haig has the exceptional talent of being able to draw us closer to meaning during our recovery from facing down meaninglessness. The Midnight Library gives us all a new way to talk about moving around in the dark, despite the inherent pain and danger.

BTW, over the years Matt Haig is also writing himself captured alive as the smallest of the Russian dolls: you know, that tiny one in the center, the heart doll that is solid rather than a shell, the one that has weight and significance despite its stature and location. He is apparently writing himself in to set others free. If he is an author that is new to you, you can start with his first published book and work your way inward gradually; you will certainly relish the journey. Or you can do yourself a great favor and get a copy of The Midnight Library to read and keep, as well as ten or twelve more copies to give away to people you like, and leave reading his other books for later. Today, in the pandemic springtime of 2020, we all could do with reading The Midnight Library at least twice. It doesn’t hit the shelf until this October, unfortunately, but it will be a book we readers all love and keep and give away and share throughout many more lifetimes of crisis and hope.

This was a very fresh and unique story. If you are familiar with any of Haig's previous work, you'll know what I mean when I say, Haig is different and has a distinct perspective. I would categorize this as being an existential type novel. It begs the question of "what if".

Imagine a library full of books. Thousands of books. Each book holds alternate universes. Similar to the "pick your own adventure novels" that you read as a child. Within the pages of these novels are lives that could have been. A different path of life that would otherwise have gone undiscovered.

This is such an incredibly fascinating and wonderful book. There truly are not adequate words to describe what this book means. The truth is, this book will mean very different things for every reader that passes through. Read at your own pleasure!

Nora Seed can't move past the regrets in her life and decides to end it all. Instead of dying, she finds herself between life and death in the midnight library, a multiverse of what ifs each contained in countless volumes. Can Nora find the perfect life before time moves on without her?

I really enjoyed the concept and plot. I thought the writing was done well enough but there were some very slow parts that had me putting this down for longer periods than desired.

Swept up in feeling like she doesn’t belong, Nora makes the decision to end her life. In doing so, she finds herself in the Midnight Library - a place kept by a familiar librarian. Here, Nora learns that each book represents a version of her life that could be. She is presented with an infinite number of books from which to choose - each representing a life to “try on.” By trying a few on for size, Nora discovers a new zeal for life and a newfound respect for the meaning she has to the lives of others. The Midnight Library explores depression, regret, and the meaning of happiness through the eyes of Nora Seed.

Interesting read! I enjoyed this book very much. The concept of the Midnight Library is fascinating, and the description of it really built a good picture in my mind. A fun and enjoyable read!