The Lost Library covers a fun small town mystery surrounding the burned down library of Martinville. When a little library pops up in town Evan does what any curious fifth grader would do and tries to find out who burned it down.
Evan's curiosity truly drives this novel as he isn't afraid to explore dangerous abandoned places and ask adults the uncomfortable questions in order to discover the truth. Al is such a kind natured librarian assistant who spread her love of books far and wide during her time at the Martinville Library. Her gentle heart was evident throughout as she helps every person she comes across without much of a second thought. Then you have Mortimer the cat. He is an interesting perspective since he is the piece that ties the other two POVs together even though he isn't able to speak.
Overall, the story is a good mystery for an early middle-grade level since most of it is revealed through Evan's perspective. The only thing that I wish was better in the story is that the ending seemed a bit rushed when the truth is revealed. It comes across as though the town was just so quickly willing to except a completely different answer than previously brought up, as well as the drastic changes made in the epilogue only a chapter later. Granted I enjoy that the loose ends were tied up fairly neatly, but it felt too abrupt.

When I saw that the blurb included a mysterious little free library, a ghost librarian and a wise feline guardian I was instantly sold! I’m so glad that I picked this up because it was absolutely enchanting! This is the absolute perfect read for every book lover at any age - full of mystery, friendship, love, loss, the importance of human connection and the magic of books.

10/10 recommend picking up the Lost Library by Rebecca Stead & Wendy Mass!

Method Read: 🎧
Christopher Gebauer, Jennifer Blom & Rob Dircks did a fantastic job bringing the story to life!

Thank you so much to Macmillan Audio & NetGalley for the advanced copy!

As an elementary librarian, this book warmed every part of my soul. The story is told from multiple points of view (including a cat!). Evan lives in a small town that does not have a library because their library was destroyed in a fire.

Eventually, a kind citizen decides to build a free library and it becomes a huge hit. Along the way, Evan decides to tackle the mystery of how the fire began.

This book was just so sweet. I cannot wait to add it to my library and recommend it to my secondary students. It would appeal to students, their caregivers and teachers alike.

Thank you so so much to Macmillan Publishers and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

"The Lost Library" focuses on three integral characters in the small town of Martinville that's connected to the mystery of the library fire: Mortimer the cat that's overseeing the little free library, Al the ghost librarian, and Evan the human boy. Before he matriculates as a middle school student, Evan spends his last few days of 5th grade unravelling the mystery behind the cause of a library engulfed in flames years ago. As he explores the salvaged library books found in the little free library and slowly uncover clues in this mystery adventure, Al and Mortimer become the added perspectives on what exactly happened on the day of the library fire.

A timeless story that amplifies the power of community simply through pages and pages of books. With the bulk of the narrative filled with books and libraries, it does tie to how the presence of librarians can bring a formidable effect to kids on how they put empathy towards others, even animals. Middle-grade readers will be delighted to read this whimsical mystery that evokes the ongoing message on how books can bring people and families together.

I like the decision behind having multiple narrators for each respective POV in "The Lost Library." There needs to be a fair warning that I found myself lost in the few pages as I'm being introduced to the three characters, but each of these characters are thoroughly enjoyable that listeners can be engaged to the narration within the first few chapters. The narrator of Al's character, Jennifer Blom. did an exceptional performance visualizing her journey as a librarian and how her upbringing further portrays books and libraries being a large influence to young readers. While I don't dislike the other narrators for Evan and Mortimer, it was her personality and narration to the text was the most enjoyable of this audiobook experience. With the audiobook, I believe that "The Lost Library" is very digestible for elementary school readers that can cater perfectly for the younger MG audience.

I enjoyed listening to this book. I liked the elements of mystery and how the character learns about himself, his family, and his community.

Delightful! The alternating narrators added so much to this story of a library mystery with a boy, a cat, some ghosts and a few other fun characters. It was so fun to listen as Evan uncovered what happened to the library in his town with some good hints from Mortimer the cat. I enjoyed Evan figuring out who H.G. Higgins was and building a bridge to a better relationship with his Dad. My favourite thing about the ending was Mortimer finding someone he was looking for and that the town got a brand new, state of the art library.

This book had so much to say about books & their readers and I am so glad I got the chance to listen to this one. Thanks to NetGalley and MacMillan for a copy of this audiobook. I loved it!

In a Nutshell: A cute little mystery for middle-graders. The library setting and the presence of a friendly book-loving cat adds to the fun.

Story Synopsis:
A mysterious little free library appears overnight in the small town of Martinville. Fifth-grader Evan is mystified, but he takes two books from its shelves. He soon realises that there's something odd about the two titles, and he ropes in his best friend Rafe to help him in his "investigation".
The two boys soon discover that the books are connected to an event that took place two decades ago, but no adult is willing to talk to them about it. What's everybody hiding?
The story comes to us in the third person perspectives of Evan and Mortimer the kind-hearted cat who monitors the little free library among other things, and in the first person perspective of Al the ghost librarian.
(If your interest level didn't jump up at least five notches on reading about Mortimer and Al, you are too old for this book. 😛)

I had loved Rebecca Stead’s ‘The List of Things That Will Not Change’, and was hoping for a similar experience with my second attempt at her work. Alas, this book didn’t really match up, though it has its charm.

Bookish Yays:
😍 A big yay to kids’ books with a brave protagonist and a goofy best friend who always supports them. Evan and Rafe have a great mutually dependent friendship that works marvellously for this story.
😍 It’s always fun to have an animal in a book, but when this animal speaks to us, the going is even jollier. Mortimer’s perspective was entertaining as well as endearing. One of the many things I liked about his pov was how different humans would call him by different names because only he knew his actual name. Makes you wonder if your pet also has a name that you don’t know about!
😍 I liked the ghosts (Yes, ghosts… plural!) in the book as they don’t fit into any typical ghost mould.
😍 Al, whose name has a lovely secret attached to it, is a sweet and complicated character. I found her pov the best, though kids might not feel the same. Her character was the only one to be properly layered in personality.
😍 Everything connected to books and libraries was a treat to read, and we get this mainly because of Al, whose passion for books overflows from her words, and Evan, who uses books as his guide to solving the mystery. There are also some beautiful quotes connected to the habit of reading. I also loved the use of the ‘Little Free Library’ in the plot. This is the first book I have read incorporating the free library, and I hope we have many more.
😍 The small-town setting is also used to the story’s advantage, with accurate portrayals of both support and judgement that go hand in hand with the location.
😍 There are quite a few worthy themes in this book such as nervousness about starting middle school, the outcome of having overprotective parents, the pain of an orphan missing their parents, the helplessness you feel when people don’t believe you, and the importance of libraries. These offer plenty of material for potential discussions.

Bookish Mixed Bags:
😐 The start of the book was somewhat confusing, especially on audio. With three separate perspectives of a cat, a boy, and a ghost, and each talking about unrelated arcs, I couldn’t figure out how their tracks were interlinked. But soon the clues started popping up, and the story turned into a better reading experience, though not as great as I had expected.

Bookish Nays:
😟 Other than the three main characters and Rafe, we barely get to know anyone. There are quite a few interesting characters in the book, such as the librarian and Evan’s parents, so it would have been nice to get them more involved in the main proceedings.
😟 The adults seem to be keeping some big secrets, but most of these are quite easy to guess because of the abundant hints. There's only one exception, and a really good one at that. But I wish the book had made things more challenging for its readers. It’s aimed at middle-graders after all, not at a younger age group. As there are no red herrings at all, the main mystery also seems to get solved easily. While predictability is always a feature of children’s fiction, this one was a bit too straightforward.

🎧 The Audiobook Experience:
The audiobook, clocking at 4 hrs 15 min, is narrated by Christopher Gebauer, Jennifer Blom, and Rob Dircks. I appreciate the decision to have a distinct narrator for each pov as this reduces the chance for confusion in kids' minds while listening. However, I didn't particularly enjoy the performance of the narrator voicing Evan. His voice didn't suit Evan's age or personality, and his voices for the other characters were distracting. The narrators voicing Mortimer and Al were really good.

All in all, this book takes some time to get going, but once it does, it should work for kids. This is not the kind of MG fiction that will click well for older MGs or even YAs/Adults readers because it is too simplistic.
Recommended only to the younger MG segment. Good for classroom discussions as well.

3.75 stars.

My thanks to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the ALC of “The Lost Library”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the audiobook.

Good, clean mystery with ghosts for kids. There is a mystery, a cat and mice, library workers and Evan.

The multiple narrators will help kids follow who is telling their part of the story. They were nice to listen to.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher/producer for the early release audio.

A cute, low stakes mystery with a young protagonist. This is a nice palate cleanser for any reader/audiobook listener. I listened to the audiobook and the narrators were good and did not detract from the story. I especially like the voice of Mortimer.

This was a cute little mystery told in 3 voices. Mortimer the cat, who used to live in the old library that burned down. Evan, the 5th grader who decides to try to figure out what happened after finding some interesting information in some books placed in a little free library. AL, the.. uh... ghost with disappearing issues.

This was a quick, light read. As an adult, parts of the mystery and parts of the ending seemed pretty obvious, but it was all put together in a way that kids would enjoy. I do see this book as being a good read-aloud to 5th graders because Evan is reading a book about How to Write a Mystery and learns about some of the elements of a story - protagonist, antagonist, supporting characters, clues - and show how they fit not only into a basic story, but into his story specifically.

I honestly loved this book.
It was perfectly cozy and heartfelt. I cant lie I even teared up a little towards the end.
It is told in 3 POVs, which personally I enjoyed.
I listened to the audiobook, and thought the narrators did brilliantly as well.

After a Little Free Library guarded by a cat appears in town overnight, Evan finds himself in the middle of a mystery that will change his life forever.

This book was such a sweet and earnest journey! I loved the different narrations from each of the main character’s perspectives, and how each helped to unravel a new aspect of the mystery.

It’s so sweet to think that the small little free library continued to grow and evolve as more people gave it life and helped to expand its reach and the amount of books in its collection.

I’d definitely recommend this novel to kids and adults alike - I thoroughly enjoyed it!

This is my first book by these authors — I would like to thank Netgalley and Macmillan Audio/ Macmillan Young Listeners for the ARC . This is my honest review of the book.

Narrators; Christophen Gebauer, Jennifer Blom, and Rob Direks were quite good and did a great job performing their characters. —This story is told from the POVs of Mortimer the six toed cat, Evan the human boy, and Al (the assistant Librarian) at the Martinsville’s Library.

From the start I loved the cat Mortimer — it took me a little bit to start getting into Evan`s character but I love mystery and once their was something to discover / figure out — I was hooked . I also love books that take place in libraries as I grew up with my mother working in libraries and I was always sleuthing around the library stacks for my next great read — the library was always a home away from home —I personally had nostalgic feeling from the book--so I loved that setting and the POV of the library’s ghosts.

By 40% into the audiobook — I really was starting to get invested in each character and their stories. I loved the concept that reading books allows to to build rooms in your mind . The mystery of the fatal fire that happened at the library and Evans interest in solving the mystery was very intriguing . I really loved the mystery- and there was some good twists and turns and the final reveal was unexpected but a good ending. I really loved this book —and highly recommend it !

I enjoyed listening to this book and think that it is well suited for middle grade. It is a mystery novel that is a quick read. There are predictable elements in the story, but I think that this is not a big deal for the age that this book is geared towards. I think that this is a good book to introduce younger readers to stories that are told through more than one character perspective. The story is told through the point of view of three different characters, where each character is narrated by a different person in the audiobook. All the narrators were engaging and enjoyable to listen to. This is a fun story that kept me knowing what was going to happen next. I would recommend anyone who enjoys mysteries to check out this audiobook or the printed version of the book. I think that this is a good audiobook and/or book to add to a classroom and public library. This is a book that I look forward to adding to our home library.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio, Macmillan Young Listeners and NetGalley or providing me with a free copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Young Listeners for giving me the chance to listen to the advance copy of The lost library by Rebecca Stead, and Wendy Mass. This was a heartwarming and entertaining book to listen to.
A small free library pops up in the town of Martinville, guarded by an orange cat (named Mortimer). Evan and his friend Rafe soon discover a mystery, which appears to coincide with the burning of the town's library years ago. As they attempt to solve the mystery, the questions they begin ask will transform not only their own futures, but the town itself.
What I enjoyed the most was the book was narrated by three voices; Evan, Mortimer the cat, and Al, the ghost. The story flows nicely, the POV's chapters are labeled, making it easy to follow, and the narration of the audiobook is wonderful. Totally recommend this to middle school children (ages 10-14) and anyone who loves books, libraries and cats.
Narrated by: Christopher Gebauer; Jennifer Blom; Rob Dircks.
To be published on Aug 29, 2023.

A little library appears in town and middle schoolers Evan and Rafe discover that it is watched over by a big orange cat. There is some connection between the little library and the old library that burned down a long time ago. There are some ghost librarians in the story. Evan decides to discover who was responsible for burning the library down many years ago. He has a few suspects but no proof.

This was a cute fun read. I really enjoyed the ghosts and the cat's point of views, you even get a few mice points of view. I listened to the audiobook version, and it was very well narrated.

WHAT AN ABSOLUTE DELIGHT THIS WAS! This story is perfectly written for early chapter readers, 8-10 is the sweet spot. As I was listening, I could picture my nephew reading this and falling in love.

The narration for the audiobook was done very well, and it adds a nice touch to the magical realism in the storyline. It's a great cozy mystery that isn't too scary for younger kids, but will welcome them into the genre with open arms, and inspire the imaginations of kids everywhere.

I cannot recommend this one highly enough.

This was a fun young adult book! The popularity of multiple narrators has been very fun when companioned with the audiobooks. There was a narrator for each main character (three in total), and it definitely made the audiobook seem defined for each person's POV. I think this would make a great audiobook, especially for following along, but is fine without the text accompanying it. I love how the authors tied in each person. I would say that the beginning was a little more detailed than it needed to be, but that it just painted a better picture for the audiobook. The last third of the book was truly a ride and was very "twisty" as the reader/listener tried to guess the whodunit. I would definitely recommend this book to young readers.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Young Listeners for this advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

This has to be one of my favorite middle grade books ever. This book will be an absolutely amazing addition to any little bookworm's library. It's such a perfectly balanced middle grade novel. The characters are complex but so easy to relate to. The world is beautifully rich and vibrant. The writing is both lyrical, beautiful, and easy to understand without being patronizing. There were so many quotable lines that had me wishing I had this book as a child. The plot and underlying mystery is layered while being simple enough to follow along to and the lead up to each reveal is intriguing enough that even *I* didn’t want to stop reading. It was a fantastic read I loved it so much.

Thank you to the authors, Macmillan Audio, Macmillan Children's Publishing Group, Feiwel & Friends, and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I think it’s important to have the description (book blurb) clear in your mind at the beginning of this book. I didn’t and the audiobook caused me some confusion with all the points of view.
This is an interesting middle grade mystery. Kids who love animals will be intrigued by a pest exterminator that catches and releases mice and a cat with a lot to say.
A library was lost to fire. When a little free library appears in town, Evan and Rafe find a mystery in the books in the little library.
The narrator did a good job. I think middle grade readers will enjoy The Lost Library.
Thanks to Netgalley and Macmillan for the opportunity to listen to this book.