I adored this book and for so many reasons I think it will resonate with readers in different ways. And that's really the basis of this book and why I love it. We all read the same things in different ways and that's the beauty of it. It truly felt like it was meant for voracious readers and book lovers and so many passages hit home with me. If you consider yourself bookish in any way PLEASE do yourself a favor and pick up No Two Persons.

This book has a really interesting structure. It starts as the story of a woman who ensures tragedy and ultimately writes a book to both heal and capture her lost loved one in the only way she can. From there, the book follows her book as it impacts the lives of a multitude of people. It’s a novel in stories with some characters connecting and others not. This was a lovely read that celebrates the written word, though I’m not sure how long it’ll stick with me.

I enjoy books that focus on the powers of reading, storytelling, and the different ways we interpret books. This is a story about a book and the ten different people who read it and how it influences them differently over a ten-year period. It was unique and I couldn't put it down.

"Books spoke to specific people for specific reasons, and it had everything to do with where they were in their lives."
My criteria for a five-star book is one that pulls me in and I can't wait to get back to it when reading. That's it. No specific genre-it can vary. I'm not looking for plot versus character development. Single POV or dual POV. As long as I love it when reading it, it's a 5 star. And that was No Two Persons. One story meant so much to each of the readers for different reasons and not only because of the story, but because of the specific time it came into each of their lives. This was a five-star book for me!
Alice has always wanted to be a writer, but she just couldn't find her story. Until one day she does and writes a book called "Theo". Its personal to her, but she could never imagine how it would resonate with the readers. This book highlights some of the readers and how "Theo" comes into their lives at just the right time. These readers are very different and have very different events going on in their lives, so the book resonates very differently.
Earlier this year I read The Lonely Hearts Book Club and said it was a love story to books and to everyone who reads. I felt the same about No Two Persons. It's a love story to readers!
Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for my gifted arc.

I am here for books about books and book lovers. This was absolutely lovely, and I can't recommend it enough.

Alice has always wanted to be a writer, but like most, she just ticks them away. That is until a devastating event makes her write a story that entraps many. Each story makes a reader discover things about themselves and how we’re all connected in ways.

This book will bring on the tears. It’s intricately woven and thought provoking. How stories and people can stick with us for years. A voice to readers and those who write and how we find ourselves amongst the masses but also apart of it.

I definitely recommend reading this if you want something different but refreshing to read!

A new writer that has lost her way sits down to write a book about a boy from early years till he's A grown man. So many different people come across this book in different walks of life or circumstances. This is a story of many people that are lost, searching for something when this book comes along. Its A story of how the same book can affect people so differently. Its how a book touches our lives. How the author comes to heal from their own wounds or sorrow in the process of writing. I found this incredible. Such A simple concept that blew me away.

I started this book not having a clue what to expect. I read the synopsis but still it didn't let me know what I was going to find between the covers of this book. This one touched me in a way only certain books can. It was phenomenally great. It was the best book I have read to date and that is saying a lot. I've read some very good books and honestly have to say this one hit the number one spot. It's truly that good.

You meet several people in this book. Each with their own story. Each with deep problems to overcome. Each touching a book called "THEO." How this book helped each was done to perfection in my opinion. I just don't see how anyone can read this book and not fall in love with all the characters. Each and every one of them. Each story touched me in a way that no book has that I can remember. I actually wept in a few places. Cried with each but some were just soul touchingly sad. This book definitely left it's mark on me. It's so easy to follow and keep up.

First you meet The Writer, Alice. Alice writes the book Theo. What all Alice goes through and then came out the other side as a best selling author was truly inspired. Even though she still had a lot going on in her life she wrote a book that touched everyone that read it. She was young and had lost her brother. Her brother was her best friend. He had problems that he just couldn't seem to get over. I think he had a lot of anxiety and emotional things going on. Mainly because of their parents. The father mostly. Alice made all of these stories possible. Her book made them all possible.

You meet The Assistant next. Lara is a new mother and working from home. She works for a publishing firm and her job is to find the next best seller. She does exactly that. She has a lot going on in her life too. Her job does eventually take her places and the book she found for her boss helps her in ways that she didn't see coming.

The Actor was a very touching story of a young man who had it all. The fame and love of all his many fans until he didn't. But he found an outlet that gave him voice to so much. I felt for Rowan.

The Artist, Miranda. She had problems with connecting with her mother. They had one of those relationships that needed lots of space and understanding. Her mother sent her a copy of Theo and she used it in a way I would never have thought of.

Then we have The Diver. Tyler was one of my favorite characters. He was a bit strange but so very likable. He knew what he wanted. Theo helped in also. In the deepest darkest point of his life the book helped.

The Teenager was also a favorite of mine. My heart broke for Nola so many times. She was working hard to just graduate after the most horrible loss a teen can experience. One of her teachers had them read Theo and ultimately helped Nola also. As did the handyman. Nola was a scared young girl and surviving was all she wanted. She didn't have a lot of faith in mankind.

The Bookseller, Kit. Kit came from a strong family who didn't just sit down to dinner. They talked. Not about their day but about deep things that let you know more about them. He ended up having to make a big life change and reading Theo helped him with that. I liked Kit.

The Caretaker. Oh my did I love William. I suppose that is because of the age thing. Maybe because of the loss he suffered and how he decided to move on. His daughter gave him a copy of Theo that her and her mother had read together. It was her mother's copy and there were notes in the margins. Sentences underlined. Things that made William remember all the many many good times they had together. He was so lost without his wife but Theo helped him also.

The Coordinator, Juliet. She was another good character. She coordinated the sets for movies. Not the sets but the people playing the parts. She taught them how to make people believe it was real. The kiss. The touch. Whatever the scene she could work with the actors and make it perfect. She had a beautiful home and family. Her daughter and husband were her life. She finally realized just how much after reading Theo. Actually she listened to an audio of Theo and it opened her eyes to what was most important to her. I loved that.

Then we have The Agent. The one who started this whole thing. Madeline Armstrong was the agent who could make or break an author. Theo was recommended to her as a best seller and it became one of her favorites. Madeline had to fight her way to the top in a male dominated world of publishers/agents. Madeline to me was great. She was perfect for this role. She was a fighter. In her part of this book you hear a bit about a few of the other people in the story. How they affected her or touched her or what she thought about them. Her story brought big tears to my eyes also.

Then the book is summed up with Alice's epilogue. After Madeline. Alice is young in age but seems old at heart. I'm glad she found a certain bookseller to possibly make her happy. And him too. Without Alice none of this book would be possible. That's a fact.

I loved this book. I loved each character. Their stories touch you in a way you won't forget soon. Each intersects with the book and in some with each other. I loved how they made reference to other characters they had met or loved or helped in some way. How each read Theo and saw something of theirselves in it. This is a happy book that has lots of sad parts.

Thank you #NetGalley, #EricaBauermiester, #StMartinsPress, for this wonderful ARC. This is my own true thoughts and feelings about this book. It is masterful.

Five huge stars and I can't begin to recommend it enough. You have to read this if you don't read anything else. It's honestly that good. At least it was to me. Have tissues handy though.

No Two Persons is a wonderful reminder that an author might just write one novel, but that one novel actually leads to infinite stories in the minds of its readers. Early on, we are introduced to Alice, an aspiring author who goes on to write Theo, her first novel. Maybe more importantly though, we’re then introduced to nine readers of Theo. Each reader has quite a unique story. Their love lives, professions, careers, all unique and challenging in some way, and while they all end up reading the same book, each of them sees themselves and their lives reflected in a different way. Different perspectives of the same material… my favorite quote in the book sums it up well, “the beauty of books is they take you places you didn’t know you needed to go.” To these nine readers, Theo was exactly what they needed it to be in that moment in their lives.

I enjoyed the premise of the book and each character was certainly unique and even heartwarming. I’m not sure if it was due to the number of mini-stories, but having finished I couldn’t name more than maybe 4-5 of the characters/sub plots. Some were certainly more memorable than others, but some were downright forgettable. There could have been some trimming done and still achieved the same end goal that “one thing can be so many things at once.” With that being said, I did enjoy how No Two Persons tied up nicely in the end and I also thought it was interesting to spin the Theo novel within this book. I found myself wanting to read it based on the characters’ reactions and descriptions, which was very clever.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for my ARC of this novel.

What a very interesting title because revolves around alice who wanted to become a writer. Book opens when an author comes to her school to talk about writing and this just one ship fell in love with written words. She decided to become a rider. Her brother peter was really important to her but they took off the college and then disappeared. He nicely died of an overdose. She writes a book called THO.. Before she wrote this book she went to school and me and she had a teacher call robert. After her brother died she could not concentrate in school anymore so she started to swim every day. Then she wrote this book. How it affected different people in different ways. Everybody had a saying this book. The chapters would explain how these people were involved in this book. Everybody had a story how they had to struggle and how they overcame the problem.. Madeline was the one who was the publisher who started this. She published this book from Alice. It was an artist involved and movie involved and it was really good book. I think people are helped by this book by alice who wrote it. People can be different and change and I think when you're in books like this. That helps you see where you can become

Wow! The premise of this book where each person takes away something different from the same book resonants with me because it is so true. I know that in our book club, when we discuss a book, it always makes me see a story or characters in a different light when I hear other people's opinions. I love that. In this book, Alice wants to write, she feels compelled to do so but needs to find that magic to do so. As the reader, we follow her journey as she struggles through the process encouraged by an amazing professor who believes in her. After a tragic event, Alice finally writes the story that has been blooming within her based on her brother and their lives as children, which becomes a debut bestseller. Then we hear how this book affects various people in different ways, impacting their lives and sending them in different directions. This story lasts with you long after the last page. Words matter, books are important and they bring us together to show we have more in common that we think. I loved this book and did not want it to end. I'll be getting a hard copy of his one to read again and again. I am going to highly recommend this to my book club and I recombined it to you as well.
Many thanks to #netgalley #ericabauermeister #notwopersons #st.martinspress for the opportunity to read and review this book.

This book is designed as a collection of short stories, featuring characters that are all impacted by the same story in different ways. Most chapters focus on a different people, although there is some overlap toward the end. Each perspective evokes different emotions.

It's a beautiful collection that highlights the way storytelling can support human connection.

Thank you to #Netgalley for granting me an ARC on this novel. Normally I do not enjoy books written with individual stories in it, but I do love this author and I really enjoyed this book. I liked how one story connected all the stories continuing on in this book, different lives and how they were affected by the first story. Well done!

“No two persons ever read the same book, or saw the same picture”. - The Writings of Madame Swetchine, 1860.

This quote that appears on the dedication and is explained even more in the Author’s Note had me really thinking for a moment and truly is what is at the heart of this book. No Two Persons is not really one story, but rather the story of ten different characters, each of whom is touched by the novel, Theo, in a different way. We hear the story of the author, then nine other people who find the book in their hands for various reasons, and learn what the book means to them based on the context of their lives the moment the book finds them. In each story, we learn more about each character and how exactly this one book changed their life. What is so special and so magical is the idea behind the opening quote: despite each of them reading the same book, they each find a different meaning in it based on their current circumstances. And how beautiful is that? To make it all even better, as you read you start to find some of these characters are interconnected, despite finding the book in different years and different locations around the US.

This book is one that will stick with me for a long time and will likely be one I continue to recommend for years to come. In fact, immediately after closing it, I was already texting people telling them this NEEDED to be their next read. Not only is the premise such a unique love letter to books and how they can change us, but the writing itself is beautiful. I was fully immersed in this story from the moment I picked it up, and could not stop until I was finished. I can without a doubt say that this will be one of my favorite books of 2023.
The audiobook is read by multiple narrators which is perfect as we hear each unique story.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for the advance copy.

3.5 stars, rounded up to 4.

This wasn’t an immediate home-run, but it did gradually grow on me and I appreciated its uniqueness. Although this wasn’t my first book by the author (I read The Scent Keeper and really enjoyed it), I seemed to struggle with her writing style with this latest novel.

I loved the premise that no two people have ever read the same book. We all interpret books and art differently based on our distinct life experiences or current mindset. At the center of “No Two Persons” is a book-within-a-book called: Theo. Each chapter is a quick vignette highlighting the various people involved in the creation of the novel and then individual readers impacted by the book after its publication.

We begin with the author, Alice, as she formulates her debut novel. From there, we move onto the literary assistant who plucks the book from obscurity and advocates for its release. Then we have the actor who brings the audiobook to life with his narration. After that, there are various readers from all across the US who stumble upon the novel over the years and form a unique connection to it. Each reader has a hurdle they’re trying to overcome and “Theo” finds them at a pivotal time. None of them read the book in the same way and each person is able to gather from it what they need to make a significant change in their life.

My favorite chapters were the first three that involved the actual publishing industry (the final chapter as well). I loved learning how the novel was concocted and distributed, and I wish we had stuck with that theme more. However, we then switched gears and meet 4-5 separate readers and while these sections were still interesting in the moment, I wanted more depth. Each chapter is essentially a short story and there just wasn’t enough time to really develop these characters and understand why the book moved them so much.

In the end, I did enjoy this but wanted more of an emotional punch.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for an electronic Advanced Reader Copy of this title.

I was intrigued as soon as I read about the concept of this book, and I'm so glad I was approved to read it through NetGalley. This story may be fictitious, but it truthfully demonstrates the power of books and words as it follows one singular story and shows how it affects multiple people. The writer, a homeless teen, an artist, and a free diver are only a few of the 9 humans we meet along the way. It is beautifully simple yet complex, and will make the reader think twice about where the stories they read come from, and how many others they have touched.

A story about what happens when different people read the same book. Some become inspired to change something in their lives–job/relationship/attitude. Some find hatred in themselves or things and people around them. Some fall in love with the words and binge the story; while others go slowly and savor it because they don’t want it to end.

I found this to be a beautiful read. I thoroughly enjoyed every chapter and every character.

This book is a representation of your art making a difference to the world around you. Even if you are not confident in your art–whatever form that might be–if you share it it will connect with someone. Be vulnerable in your art and your truth will show and will be appreciated by others.

No Two Persons by Erica Bauermeister
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One book. Nine readers. Ten lives changed.
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This book was such a lovely story. There are ten people and we read about each person’s interaction with a book simply called “Theo”. We start with the author and her story of writing the book. We move through an assistant, a bookseller, a student, a caretaker, an actor and several more. Each section feels like it could be a moving short story and yet they are all connected simply through this one book.
My favorite sections were The Student, The Author and The Agent.
There were a lot of great quotes throughout the story about life in general and having a love for reading. Any book lover would enjoy this book.
4.5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

No Two Persons by Erica Bauermeister is not a typical book I would read but I absolutely enjoyed it! We follow the story of a book’s inception, its publication, and its impact on readers, near and far, across multiple years. It's amazing how one person's writings can impact generations and stand the tests of time. It makes you think about different things you've read and the longevity. I would recommend this and probably will read it again!

Such an interesting concept for a story and very well done! No Two Persons follows ten different stories intertwined by one book and the impact it had on each of the ten lives. It's a beautiful story of the importance of books and stories in our lives and that we can all lead different lives but still be effected by that same story. It's the journey books themselves take in our world. And it was beautifully done!