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In the tradition of The Cookbook Collector comes a funny, romantic novel about a young woman finding her calling while saving a used bookstore.
Maggie Duprès, recently "involuntarily separated from payroll" at a Silicon Valley startup, is whiling away her days in The Dragonfly's Used Books, a Mountain View institution, waiting for the Next Big Thing to come along.
When the opportunity arises for her to network at a Bay Area book club, she jumps at the chance-even if it means having to read Lady Chatterley's Lover, a book she hasn't encountered since college, in an evening. But the edition she finds at the bookstore is no Penguin Classics Chatterley--it's an ancient hardcover with notes in the margins between two besotted lovers of long ago. What Maggie finds in her search for the lovers and their fate, and what she learns about herself in the process, will surprise and move readers.
Witty and sharp-eyed in its treatment of tech world excesses, but with real warmth at its core, The Moment of Everything is a wonderful read.
Maggie Duprès, recently "involuntarily separated from payroll" at a Silicon Valley startup, is whiling away her days in The Dragonfly's Used Books, a Mountain View institution, waiting for the Next Big Thing to come along.
When the opportunity arises for her to network at a Bay Area book club, she jumps at the chance-even if it means having to read Lady Chatterley's Lover, a book she hasn't encountered since college, in an evening. But the edition she finds at the bookstore is no Penguin Classics Chatterley--it's an ancient hardcover with notes in the margins between two besotted lovers of long ago. What Maggie finds in her search for the lovers and their fate, and what she learns about herself in the process, will surprise and move readers.
Witty and sharp-eyed in its treatment of tech world excesses, but with real warmth at its core, The Moment of Everything is a wonderful read.
Paperback
First published January 1, 2014
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5669 people want to read
About the author
Shelly King
5 books85 followersShelly King is a native Southerner who packed her bags and moved to Silicon Valley at the beginning of the Internet boom. She works for a major software company as a social media strategist and information architect. Her stories have been published in the GW Review, Epiphany, Slow Trains, the Dos Passos Review, and the Coe Review. She lives in the Santa Cruz Mountains with her husband, two big dogs, and a disapproving cat.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 537 reviews
September 21, 2014
I was killing some time at Barnes and Noble between friend dates and I found this on one of their featured tables. The cover was too adorable not to pick up.
I wanted to love this book, but I just can't decide if it worked or not.
So I started working at Borders when I was 22, fresh out of college and no job prospects in sight. I was there for a couple years before I'd decided to pursue graduate study in publishing and transferred to a store on the East coast, where I worked for another three years until I got a full-time editing job and the store closed. The closing was one of the most devastating things that ever happened to me and I grieved for it the way I'd grieved for people in my life who had passed away. I cried for three days, no kidding. I'm tearing up right now just thinking about it, three years later.
Because not only did the bookstore provide me with a direction in my career and a sense of purpose, it gave me some of my best friends and it gave me a home away from home when I was at my emotional lowest. When I was going through a difficult break-up and just didn't want to be alone, I used to go to the store a couple hours before my shift and just sit in the breakroom talking to whomever happened to be eating their lunch at that time. I felt safe there to nurture the parts of my personality that I'd never really allowed to come out before - my weirdness and my enthusiasm for nerdy things. My friend Ted and I used to joke that you couldn't get hired at the store unless you were using it as a substitute for actual therapy or you were nursing an undiagnosed personality disorder.
And, I was really good at working at a bookstore. I knew the inventory and the layout of the merch like nobody's business. I thrived on being able to answer the "that book with the blue cover about a girl" questions. My quasi-OCD was kept in check by the constant alphabetizing and straightening of shelves. And if I made more than just above minimum wage, I probably never would have done anything different with my life.
So if there's ever a book -- novel or memoir -- published about a young woman who finds herself by working in a bookstore, I am ON IT. And that is why I picked up this book with the cute cover.
It's about Maggie, a recently single thirtysomething who's been laid off from her Silicon Valley job and spends her days hanging out at a used bookstore reading romance novels instead of job applications. She joins a book club in the hopes of networking and while flipping through Lady Chatterly's Lover, she stumbles across a collection of love letters written inside. She wants to find out who wrote the love letters, but she really wants to find a sense of purpose in her own life and her day-wasting at the bookstore gradually leads to more and more behind-the-scenes involvement.
And then there's Rajhit, the love interest who comes into the picture.
Without getting too spoilery, I might have given this book a better rating if I hadn't been so put off by Rajhit. I can't even tell you what it was that put me off, but the whole thing felt a little creepy and devoid of appealing chemistry.
King's a great writer and the story stayed pretty upbeat and zippy which is just what you'd want if you pick up a book like this. But there were times when it felt a little tonally uneven -- there were some weird, overly cynical moments where I wasn't sure I wanted to keep going because I was so sure it was headed in a direction I was going to hate. And I was a little disappointed that the mystery of the love letters inside the book were not a very big focus of the story at all. If we were discussing this in sitcom terms, they weren't the A-plot or the B-plot. They barely qualified as a C-plot. It felt like they were thrown in as an afterthought and largely forgotten about, except for one or two moments.
In the end, I did like this book and there were moments that affected me (Namely, when Maggie thought about what life would be like if her bookstore closed but I'm also the person who has had to turn off You've Got Mail when Meg Ryan closes her bookstore.) But I was disappointed by the lack of satisfying chemistry in the love interest department and the fact that some of the conflict that Maggie faced felt forced and artificial, so it falls just short of an enthusiastic recommendation.
I wanted to love this book, but I just can't decide if it worked or not.
So I started working at Borders when I was 22, fresh out of college and no job prospects in sight. I was there for a couple years before I'd decided to pursue graduate study in publishing and transferred to a store on the East coast, where I worked for another three years until I got a full-time editing job and the store closed. The closing was one of the most devastating things that ever happened to me and I grieved for it the way I'd grieved for people in my life who had passed away. I cried for three days, no kidding. I'm tearing up right now just thinking about it, three years later.
Because not only did the bookstore provide me with a direction in my career and a sense of purpose, it gave me some of my best friends and it gave me a home away from home when I was at my emotional lowest. When I was going through a difficult break-up and just didn't want to be alone, I used to go to the store a couple hours before my shift and just sit in the breakroom talking to whomever happened to be eating their lunch at that time. I felt safe there to nurture the parts of my personality that I'd never really allowed to come out before - my weirdness and my enthusiasm for nerdy things. My friend Ted and I used to joke that you couldn't get hired at the store unless you were using it as a substitute for actual therapy or you were nursing an undiagnosed personality disorder.
And, I was really good at working at a bookstore. I knew the inventory and the layout of the merch like nobody's business. I thrived on being able to answer the "that book with the blue cover about a girl" questions. My quasi-OCD was kept in check by the constant alphabetizing and straightening of shelves. And if I made more than just above minimum wage, I probably never would have done anything different with my life.
So if there's ever a book -- novel or memoir -- published about a young woman who finds herself by working in a bookstore, I am ON IT. And that is why I picked up this book with the cute cover.
It's about Maggie, a recently single thirtysomething who's been laid off from her Silicon Valley job and spends her days hanging out at a used bookstore reading romance novels instead of job applications. She joins a book club in the hopes of networking and while flipping through Lady Chatterly's Lover, she stumbles across a collection of love letters written inside. She wants to find out who wrote the love letters, but she really wants to find a sense of purpose in her own life and her day-wasting at the bookstore gradually leads to more and more behind-the-scenes involvement.
And then there's Rajhit, the love interest who comes into the picture.
Without getting too spoilery, I might have given this book a better rating if I hadn't been so put off by Rajhit. I can't even tell you what it was that put me off, but the whole thing felt a little creepy and devoid of appealing chemistry.
King's a great writer and the story stayed pretty upbeat and zippy which is just what you'd want if you pick up a book like this. But there were times when it felt a little tonally uneven -- there were some weird, overly cynical moments where I wasn't sure I wanted to keep going because I was so sure it was headed in a direction I was going to hate. And I was a little disappointed that the mystery of the love letters inside the book were not a very big focus of the story at all. If we were discussing this in sitcom terms, they weren't the A-plot or the B-plot. They barely qualified as a C-plot. It felt like they were thrown in as an afterthought and largely forgotten about, except for one or two moments.
In the end, I did like this book and there were moments that affected me (Namely, when Maggie thought about what life would be like if her bookstore closed but I'm also the person who has had to turn off You've Got Mail when Meg Ryan closes her bookstore.) But I was disappointed by the lack of satisfying chemistry in the love interest department and the fact that some of the conflict that Maggie faced felt forced and artificial, so it falls just short of an enthusiastic recommendation.
July 25, 2014
This is truly a book for book lovers. The atmosphere and setting of a used book store is so well defined in these pages that you'd almost swear you could smell that kind of dusty, old paper smell that you get in a real book store.
To be honest, in the beginning I wasn't completely enthralled with this story. I know as much about the technology described in this book as a pauper knows about the feel of gold coins. However, I fell in love with the bookish angle to this story and soon found myself caught up in the rest.
This novel is tender in places and sassy in others. I liked the main character and her attitude toward life and those around her. The descriptions were good and the pace of the book was perfect for the plot.
If you enjoy reading novels that are built around a unique idea, this is a good one. I definitely recommend it to those who get excited about book shops and history.
This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher and provided through Netgalley.
To be honest, in the beginning I wasn't completely enthralled with this story. I know as much about the technology described in this book as a pauper knows about the feel of gold coins. However, I fell in love with the bookish angle to this story and soon found myself caught up in the rest.
This novel is tender in places and sassy in others. I liked the main character and her attitude toward life and those around her. The descriptions were good and the pace of the book was perfect for the plot.
If you enjoy reading novels that are built around a unique idea, this is a good one. I definitely recommend it to those who get excited about book shops and history.
This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher and provided through Netgalley.
May 18, 2021
“I could feel all the stories around me. Not just the stories conjured by authors, or even the note writers, but the stories of the books themselves. Someone had bought each one of these books brand-new and fresh out of the box”
“But perhaps we are our truest selves with the ones who love us.”
As a lover of books and bookstores, I could not resist a novel about love, books and discovering oneself. An enjoyable, lighthearted read with a few interesting “characters” and some twists and turns to hold your interest.
“But perhaps we are our truest selves with the ones who love us.”
As a lover of books and bookstores, I could not resist a novel about love, books and discovering oneself. An enjoyable, lighthearted read with a few interesting “characters” and some twists and turns to hold your interest.
September 3, 2014
Originally posted at The Bookaholic Cat
4 ½ Stars
Maggie Duprès lost her job after the software company she founded with her best friend shipped her work to India. Now, she’s in between jobs and without a clue about what to do with her life. She has some savings, but they are being depleted by the day. Finding a new job in the current economy is not easy and spending her days reading ‘bodice-rippers and cowboy’ romance books at her landlord’s used bookstore doesn’t help with her cause.
After meeting some powerful women at a book club, Maggie knows that to get back in the game she needs to do something to prove to the world she can promote and make a business successful and profitable, and what better place to start with than The Dragonfly, the bookstore where she spends her days away.
The last thing Maggie was expecting was to find more than her calling in her new project.
The only thing I knew when I requested The Moment of Everything was that the story had a cat and a bookstore, which was enough for me to take the plunge. After finishing reading this book I can tell you I couldn’t be happier with my decision, The Moment of Everything is a little gem. A book so special that it felt it was written for me.
Maggie is a character I can easily identify with and to cheer for, I really wanted her to succeed and find what she needed in life, and that, being set in a bookstore was an extra bonus.
The secondary characters made of The Moment of Everything an even more unique and enjoyable book, from Maggie’s landlord and owner of the Dragonfly, Hugo and his TMI conversations, to Maggie’s best friend, Dizzy and his winning personality, to the different patrons of the bookstore; they all add something special to the story and made The Moment of Everything a very rich book.
Shelly King really caught the magic and atmosphere of a used bookstore. Her writing is so vivid and realistic it was so easy to see the shelves and smell the books; her writing made me feel I was in the Dragonfly along Maggie, Hugo and the others.
You never know what you are going to get when you start a new book from a new author (to you); you can only hope you will find something good in it, something that appeals to you, and if you are lucky maybe you will find something unique that will speak to you and maybe, maybe if you are even luckier it will even touch your heart. I’m happy to say I was very, very lucky with The Moment of Everything by Shelly King.
The Moment of Everything is an emotional story about friendship, family issues, finding your calling and maybe even finding love along the way. The Moment of Everything is beautifully written; throughout the pages Shelly King finds the perfect balance of emotional topics and witty humor to keep the readers invested in the story and its characters.
If you love books this is a book I’m sure you will enjoy. The Moment of Everything was my first book by Shelly King, but I’m sure it won’t be my last.
4 ½ Stars
Maggie Duprès lost her job after the software company she founded with her best friend shipped her work to India. Now, she’s in between jobs and without a clue about what to do with her life. She has some savings, but they are being depleted by the day. Finding a new job in the current economy is not easy and spending her days reading ‘bodice-rippers and cowboy’ romance books at her landlord’s used bookstore doesn’t help with her cause.
After meeting some powerful women at a book club, Maggie knows that to get back in the game she needs to do something to prove to the world she can promote and make a business successful and profitable, and what better place to start with than The Dragonfly, the bookstore where she spends her days away.
The last thing Maggie was expecting was to find more than her calling in her new project.
The only thing I knew when I requested The Moment of Everything was that the story had a cat and a bookstore, which was enough for me to take the plunge. After finishing reading this book I can tell you I couldn’t be happier with my decision, The Moment of Everything is a little gem. A book so special that it felt it was written for me.
Maggie is a character I can easily identify with and to cheer for, I really wanted her to succeed and find what she needed in life, and that, being set in a bookstore was an extra bonus.
The secondary characters made of The Moment of Everything an even more unique and enjoyable book, from Maggie’s landlord and owner of the Dragonfly, Hugo and his TMI conversations, to Maggie’s best friend, Dizzy and his winning personality, to the different patrons of the bookstore; they all add something special to the story and made The Moment of Everything a very rich book.
Shelly King really caught the magic and atmosphere of a used bookstore. Her writing is so vivid and realistic it was so easy to see the shelves and smell the books; her writing made me feel I was in the Dragonfly along Maggie, Hugo and the others.
You never know what you are going to get when you start a new book from a new author (to you); you can only hope you will find something good in it, something that appeals to you, and if you are lucky maybe you will find something unique that will speak to you and maybe, maybe if you are even luckier it will even touch your heart. I’m happy to say I was very, very lucky with The Moment of Everything by Shelly King.
The Moment of Everything is an emotional story about friendship, family issues, finding your calling and maybe even finding love along the way. The Moment of Everything is beautifully written; throughout the pages Shelly King finds the perfect balance of emotional topics and witty humor to keep the readers invested in the story and its characters.
If you love books this is a book I’m sure you will enjoy. The Moment of Everything was my first book by Shelly King, but I’m sure it won’t be my last.
Want to read
July 22, 2014Are you joking.
This sounds amazing.
May 29, 2021
For me three stars means the book was good and worth the expense of time and money involved in reading it. However, this book was not my cup of tea but I recognize the talent of the author and believe there are probably plenty of others that would appreciate this book more than me, like my wife and many of her bookclub friends.
My wife read this book and posted a GR review of it a few weeks ago. I read her review and it piqued my interest in the book. Our reading tastes rarely intersect but on occasion It does occur. She introduced me to Frederic Backman and for that I will always be grateful so I never ignore her books or their reviews as one never knows what might be discovered. I asked her about this book and knowing that I liked books about bookstores and books she thought I might like this one. I asked her what it was about and she had difficulty explaining the plot and just said it was about the people. That really didn't help much but now that I've read it I understand the difficulty. The plot is rather simple and almost predictable so explaining it without ruining it for others is quite a task so I will tread as carefully as I can.
As I stated I didn't really care for the book all that much but that doesn't mean I disliked the book. It is a charming story and the characters are, eventually, engaging. The protagonist is a 30 something woman named Maggie. She is the only child of well-to-do parents in South Carolina and has had a reasonably privileged childhood and education. After receiving her masters degree in library science she takes off for California with her gay male cousin. They arrive in time for the Dot Com Boom and they thrive. Then comes the Dot Com Bust and Maggie's job is outsourced to India and she now lives a couple of notches above being a bag lady. Her landlord, Hugo, is more her benefactor than landlord and he also owns a bookstore called The Dragonfly where Maggie spends most of her time loitering and aimless. Hugo is something of a bohemian with a multi-faceted history and a long list of satisfied lovers but he is older now and appears more of a father figure to Maggie and the neighborhood regulars at the Dragonfly. Maggie's gay cousin, Dizzy, is much more of a survivor and an opportunist and charms an invitation for him and Maggie to a bookclub meeting hosted by a top woman executive of their former employer. At Dizzy's insistence Maggie reluctantly accepts the invitation. The book to be discussed is Lady Chatterley's Lover. Discovering this Hugo gives Maggie an old used copy of the book from the shelves of the Dragonfly. Here is where the story really takes off and starts its appeal.
As Maggie, the former English Lit. major, prepares for the bookclub meeting she opens the book Hugo gave her. In this book she discovers handwritten notes in the margins and the date of 1961. She discovers that at some time in the past two people, a man named Henry and a woman named Catherine, used this book to communicate with each other anonymously. Maggie is enthralled with the emotions expressed in these messages but fails to read the book itself. Nevertheless, Maggie manages to bluff her way through the bookclub meeting and as Dizzy had hoped charms the hostess whom Dizzy hopes will get them both rehired. The hostess, Avi, asks how Maggie is keeping busy and she fakes a project she is doing pro bono of getting the Dragonfly into shape and more profitable. Avi is intrigued and asks to be kept informed of her progress. So if Maggie has any hope of getting back on top of the hill she was booted off of she has to make her fantasy project a reality and she attempts this using the story of Henry and Catherine. That is the story set-up and beyond that I dare not say more except maybe for why I didn't care for the book.
The beginning of the book is replete with all sorts of contemporary cultural references and computer coding lingo none of which I understood in the slightest. The story appeared very generationally focused and it wasn't my generation. In fact I was rather surprised at these references since the apparent generation targeted is not known for its interest in books or reading. I thought this a terribly ill-considered choice of desired readership but it seems to be a segment of the population that the author is familiar with and it's her book after all. This reader, however, was turned off by it and thought of abandoning the book but didn't. I continued reading and then discovered the reason my wife said the book was about the people as the characters did become more interesting as did their lives. There is a lot of conflict illustrated in these characters and their lives and much of that is about the hopes and expectations one has in youth and dreams for the future and what reality delivers and does to all of those hopes, expectations, and dreams. The book details how these characters resolve their conflicts and what choices they decide to make and how those choices not only affect them but how they also affect those around them. It's a good book, not great, not my kind of book, but still good. Enjoy.
My wife read this book and posted a GR review of it a few weeks ago. I read her review and it piqued my interest in the book. Our reading tastes rarely intersect but on occasion It does occur. She introduced me to Frederic Backman and for that I will always be grateful so I never ignore her books or their reviews as one never knows what might be discovered. I asked her about this book and knowing that I liked books about bookstores and books she thought I might like this one. I asked her what it was about and she had difficulty explaining the plot and just said it was about the people. That really didn't help much but now that I've read it I understand the difficulty. The plot is rather simple and almost predictable so explaining it without ruining it for others is quite a task so I will tread as carefully as I can.
As I stated I didn't really care for the book all that much but that doesn't mean I disliked the book. It is a charming story and the characters are, eventually, engaging. The protagonist is a 30 something woman named Maggie. She is the only child of well-to-do parents in South Carolina and has had a reasonably privileged childhood and education. After receiving her masters degree in library science she takes off for California with her gay male cousin. They arrive in time for the Dot Com Boom and they thrive. Then comes the Dot Com Bust and Maggie's job is outsourced to India and she now lives a couple of notches above being a bag lady. Her landlord, Hugo, is more her benefactor than landlord and he also owns a bookstore called The Dragonfly where Maggie spends most of her time loitering and aimless. Hugo is something of a bohemian with a multi-faceted history and a long list of satisfied lovers but he is older now and appears more of a father figure to Maggie and the neighborhood regulars at the Dragonfly. Maggie's gay cousin, Dizzy, is much more of a survivor and an opportunist and charms an invitation for him and Maggie to a bookclub meeting hosted by a top woman executive of their former employer. At Dizzy's insistence Maggie reluctantly accepts the invitation. The book to be discussed is Lady Chatterley's Lover. Discovering this Hugo gives Maggie an old used copy of the book from the shelves of the Dragonfly. Here is where the story really takes off and starts its appeal.
As Maggie, the former English Lit. major, prepares for the bookclub meeting she opens the book Hugo gave her. In this book she discovers handwritten notes in the margins and the date of 1961. She discovers that at some time in the past two people, a man named Henry and a woman named Catherine, used this book to communicate with each other anonymously. Maggie is enthralled with the emotions expressed in these messages but fails to read the book itself. Nevertheless, Maggie manages to bluff her way through the bookclub meeting and as Dizzy had hoped charms the hostess whom Dizzy hopes will get them both rehired. The hostess, Avi, asks how Maggie is keeping busy and she fakes a project she is doing pro bono of getting the Dragonfly into shape and more profitable. Avi is intrigued and asks to be kept informed of her progress. So if Maggie has any hope of getting back on top of the hill she was booted off of she has to make her fantasy project a reality and she attempts this using the story of Henry and Catherine. That is the story set-up and beyond that I dare not say more except maybe for why I didn't care for the book.
The beginning of the book is replete with all sorts of contemporary cultural references and computer coding lingo none of which I understood in the slightest. The story appeared very generationally focused and it wasn't my generation. In fact I was rather surprised at these references since the apparent generation targeted is not known for its interest in books or reading. I thought this a terribly ill-considered choice of desired readership but it seems to be a segment of the population that the author is familiar with and it's her book after all. This reader, however, was turned off by it and thought of abandoning the book but didn't. I continued reading and then discovered the reason my wife said the book was about the people as the characters did become more interesting as did their lives. There is a lot of conflict illustrated in these characters and their lives and much of that is about the hopes and expectations one has in youth and dreams for the future and what reality delivers and does to all of those hopes, expectations, and dreams. The book details how these characters resolve their conflicts and what choices they decide to make and how those choices not only affect them but how they also affect those around them. It's a good book, not great, not my kind of book, but still good. Enjoy.
September 9, 2024
3,5*
Романът е изтъкан от любов към книгите. Авторката сякаш повече разбира тях, отколкото човешките взаимоотношения. Създала е трудна героиня, която не е наясно със себе си и е изпаднала в депресия след загубата на престижната си работа. Маги е отчаяна и няма сили за нищо друго, освен да чете любовни романи за пирати и викинги в книжарница "Водното конче". Собственикът Хюго ѝ позволява да стои и да чете, а самата книжарница едва крета. Книгите са потънали в прах в очакване на своя втори или трети живот. След едно предизвикателство, Маги трябва да докаже, че все още може да ръководи бизнес и решава, че ще обнови "Водното конче". Получава одобрението на собственика, но в процеса на възраждане за нов живот на книгите и книжарницата, тя открива, че обича това място и тази работа. Книгите ѝ показват пътя на изцелението и разтърсват вътрешния ѝ свят до точката на осъзнаване. Маги се отърсва от летаргията и заживява своя втори живот сред любимите книги.
Писателката е наблегнала на обичта си към книгите и на вътрешния свят на героите си. Маги не ми допадна като характер. Отхвърляше всеки жест и смяташе, че работата в книжарница е под достойнството ѝ. Не знаеше как да обича и отхвърли любовта с лека ръка. Накрая виждаме нейното израстване, но ми беше все едно. Дотогава поведението ѝ вече ми действаше на нервите и не можах да изпитам симпатия. Хареса ми частта с книгите, уюта в книжарницата, откриването на писма между редовете на книгите и самия книжар Хюго, който проявяваше такова разбиране към Маги, което аз не проявих :).
Романът е изтъкан от любов към книгите. Авторката сякаш повече разбира тях, отколкото човешките взаимоотношения. Създала е трудна героиня, която не е наясно със себе си и е изпаднала в депресия след загубата на престижната си работа. Маги е отчаяна и няма сили за нищо друго, освен да чете любовни романи за пирати и викинги в книжарница "Водното конче". Собственикът Хюго ѝ позволява да стои и да чете, а самата книжарница едва крета. Книгите са потънали в прах в очакване на своя втори или трети живот. След едно предизвикателство, Маги трябва да докаже, че все още може да ръководи бизнес и решава, че ще обнови "Водното конче". Получава одобрението на собственика, но в процеса на възраждане за нов живот на книгите и книжарницата, тя открива, че обича това място и тази работа. Книгите ѝ показват пътя на изцелението и разтърсват вътрешния ѝ свят до точката на осъзнаване. Маги се отърсва от летаргията и заживява своя втори живот сред любимите книги.
Писателката е наблегнала на обичта си към книгите и на вътрешния свят на героите си. Маги не ми допадна като характер. Отхвърляше всеки жест и смяташе, че работата в книжарница е под достойнството ѝ. Не знаеше как да обича и отхвърли любовта с лека ръка. Накрая виждаме нейното израстване, но ми беше все едно. Дотогава поведението ѝ вече ми действаше на нервите и не можах да изпитам симпатия. Хареса ми частта с книгите, уюта в книжарницата, откриването на писма между редовете на книгите и самия книжар Хюго, който проявяваше такова разбиране към Маги, което аз не проявих :).
March 10, 2015
First off, I almost put the book down after the first page that says books don't change people the way they think, no more so than spinning around in the teacups at Disney world....wtf? Um, no, books CAN change people...greatly in some cases. I had the uncomfortable feeling that the author just wanted something challenging to say to "rock the boat" of accepted perceptions about books and reading.
I also felt the constant barrage of lingo was jarring and, honestly, will date and make the book laughable in 3-5 years. We all use or have heard of the technologies mentioned but I don't want to read near constant company name-dropping on every page. I started cynically wondering if the author was taking kickbacks from the amount of online and brick-and-mortar stores mentioned, holy smack.
I also agree with another reviewer that the book's entire premise of finding this beautiful exchange between two people in a shared used book was dropped like a hot potato early on--leaving....nothing for the rest of the book to capture my attention. When a book is described as a "book about books", you KINDA have to deliver on that. Just because a book is set in a bookstore and the protagonist went to a book club once, that doesn't mean it's about books or that book lovers will love it.
I'm so sad this one wasn't as described :(
I also felt the constant barrage of lingo was jarring and, honestly, will date and make the book laughable in 3-5 years. We all use or have heard of the technologies mentioned but I don't want to read near constant company name-dropping on every page. I started cynically wondering if the author was taking kickbacks from the amount of online and brick-and-mortar stores mentioned, holy smack.
I also agree with another reviewer that the book's entire premise of finding this beautiful exchange between two people in a shared used book was dropped like a hot potato early on--leaving....nothing for the rest of the book to capture my attention. When a book is described as a "book about books", you KINDA have to deliver on that. Just because a book is set in a bookstore and the protagonist went to a book club once, that doesn't mean it's about books or that book lovers will love it.
I'm so sad this one wasn't as described :(
August 4, 2016
So based on that adorable cover, I thought this to be a somewhat adorable but in a way, cute story. I mean it was in moments but for the most part, it was a little sad at times.
But at the same time, you start to like the characters as the book went along.
The first half 3 stars and the second half 3.5 then a 4 near the end.
I was not expecting to in that direction but at the same time, I was like huh, well okay then. And I like that some stuff was in a way left open.
Why yes, tis another bookstore setting type bookish theme book I been reading lately. The writing in a book communicating part reminded me a bit of another book, Dash and Lily Book of Dares.
Then I got reminded of that music video for that song Bad Day for some reason. Where instead of drawing it was books.
Anyway, this was a good at times, kind of sad but the setting helped kind of read.
But at the same time, you start to like the characters as the book went along.
The first half 3 stars and the second half 3.5 then a 4 near the end.
I was not expecting to in that direction but at the same time, I was like huh, well okay then. And I like that some stuff was in a way left open.
Why yes, tis another bookstore setting type bookish theme book I been reading lately. The writing in a book communicating part reminded me a bit of another book, Dash and Lily Book of Dares.
Then I got reminded of that music video for that song Bad Day for some reason. Where instead of drawing it was books.
Anyway, this was a good at times, kind of sad but the setting helped kind of read.
January 23, 2018
Het boek was anders dan verwacht, maar in positieve zin. Het was een leuk verhaal om te lezen. Het leven van Maggie, de hoofdpersoon, is soms wat chaotisch, maar dat maakte het juist leuk. Ook zat het mysterie rondom Henry en Catherine anders in elkaar dan gedacht. Dat maakte het wel verrassend. Sowieso was het geen voorspelbaar verhaal. Naast het verhaal van de hoofdpersoon is dit boek ook wel een soort ode aan boeken en de wereld er om heen, zoals leesclubs en zelfstandige boekwinkels (in dit geval van tweedehands boeken). Ook staan er veel leuke uitspraken in over boeken.
Daarom is dit boek ook zeker een aanrader voor boekliefhebbers. De schrijfster heeft aan het einde ook tien vragen opgenomen die je kunt gebruiken als je het boek wil bespreken bij een leesclub. Dat vind ik ook wel leuk. Ik ga ze denk ik straks even beantwoorden, ook al heb ik dit boek niet met een club gelezen.
Daarom is dit boek ook zeker een aanrader voor boekliefhebbers. De schrijfster heeft aan het einde ook tien vragen opgenomen die je kunt gebruiken als je het boek wil bespreken bij een leesclub. Dat vind ik ook wel leuk. Ik ga ze denk ik straks even beantwoorden, ook al heb ik dit boek niet met een club gelezen.
May 17, 2020
Abbastanza deludente. Se fosse stato il primo libro del genere che leggevo, forse avrebbe anche potuto piacermi, ma già la storia della ragazza che lavora in libreria quasi per caso, perché non trova altro lavoro e si affeziona al proprietario, che vede come un padre (e che da padre la tratta alla fine) l'ho trovata in minimo altri tre libri.
I messaggi sul libro di seconda mano lasciato sugli scaffali della biblioteca di una coppia di innamorati su cui la protagonista indaga mi hanno fatto pensare a un libro di Jojo Moyes e il bizzarro scambio "epistolare" anche a un libro per ragazzi scritto in coppia da David Levithan e Rachel Cohn (anche se lì utilizzavano un taccuino, non un scarabocchiavano un libro...)
La girandola delle proposte di lavoro a Maggie, prima rifiutate, poi accettate, poi di nuovo rifiutate - ma non c'era più la sede della libreria - mi ha davvero rintronata. Il tira e molla sembrava durare troppo a lungo e l'indecisione di Maggie ancora di più, e alla fine mi ero stufata di leggere.
I messaggi sul libro di seconda mano lasciato sugli scaffali della biblioteca di una coppia di innamorati su cui la protagonista indaga mi hanno fatto pensare a un libro di Jojo Moyes e il bizzarro scambio "epistolare" anche a un libro per ragazzi scritto in coppia da David Levithan e Rachel Cohn (anche se lì utilizzavano un taccuino, non un scarabocchiavano un libro...)
La girandola delle proposte di lavoro a Maggie, prima rifiutate, poi accettate, poi di nuovo rifiutate - ma non c'era più la sede della libreria - mi ha davvero rintronata. Il tira e molla sembrava durare troppo a lungo e l'indecisione di Maggie ancora di più, e alla fine mi ero stufata di leggere.
September 4, 2014
Folks, we're only 8 days away from the publication date of Shelly King's The Moment of Everything, as well as her launch that same evening at 7:00 at Books, Inc. in Mt. View. After reviewing books for my blog for over 3.5 years, I am still blown away by the tremendous amount of excellent authors we have in the Bay Area; not to mention all of the debut novels I have read and enjoyed. In this case, not only did I thoroughly enjoy Shelly's book, we're even going to feature her and The Moment of Everything at our Recycle Book Club meeting, in downtown Campbell, on October 28. Does that tell you how much I liked the book? Do you want to know what it's about? Of course you do. Here is our old pal Goodreads to give us a rundown:
Maggie Duprès, recently "involuntarily separated from payroll" at a Silicon Valley start-up, is whiling away her days in The Dragonfly's Used Books, a Mountain View institution, waiting for the Next Big Thing to come along.
When the opportunity arises for her to network at a Bay Area book club, she jumps at the chance -- even if it means having to read Lady Chatterley's Lover, a book she hasn't encountered since college, in an evening. But the edition she finds at the bookstore is no Penguin ClassicsChatterley -- it's an ancient hardcover with notes in the margins between two besotted lovers of long ago. What Maggie finds in her search for the lovers and their fate, and what she learns about herself in the process, will surprise and move readers.
Here is a quote from my notes (yes, I take notes): "Funny and well-written without the paragraphs or the descriptions being too long." (I don't have to be grammatically correct in my note-taking!) I appreciate humor as long as it doesn't take away from the poignancy of the book. And, in this case, it doesn't. Nice going, Shelly. In fact, at one point, I even thought to myself that this is very Beth-like. And you all know what I think of Beth Hoffman and her books.
There is a scene at the Bay Area book club mentioned in the synopsis where she is talking to the very fancy woman who runs the club and who owns the house that is hosting the event. The woman asks Maggie what she's been doing since she lost her job at the high tech start-up. Here is her answer. The italics reflect what she really means in her response. This is pretty darn clever.
"I've been doing some pro bono consulting at a small used bookstore my neighbor owns." I've been wasting time at the Dragonfly and learning 1500 new ways to describe a man's privates. "Sales have been soft with the downturn in the local economy." No one gives a flying frog's butt about the Dragonfly with Apollo across the street. "I'm working with him to improve his margin." I'm sitting in a dusty window reading trashy novels.
It's definitely fun to read a book that takes place in a used bookstore (that syncs up nicely with our book club now taking up residence in a used bookstore). And it's fun to be familiar with Castro Street in Mt. View, where most of the book takes place. BUT, if you don't live in the Bay Area, or don't know downtown Mt. View, not to worry. You will enjoy the book as much as the rest of us.
I will give you one more quote. Lolly Winston, whose books I have very much liked, says of Shelly's book: "Shelly King is among my all-time favorite writers. Her prose brims with beauty and her plots always pack a well-earned punch." That about sums it up.
Maggie Duprès, recently "involuntarily separated from payroll" at a Silicon Valley start-up, is whiling away her days in The Dragonfly's Used Books, a Mountain View institution, waiting for the Next Big Thing to come along.
When the opportunity arises for her to network at a Bay Area book club, she jumps at the chance -- even if it means having to read Lady Chatterley's Lover, a book she hasn't encountered since college, in an evening. But the edition she finds at the bookstore is no Penguin ClassicsChatterley -- it's an ancient hardcover with notes in the margins between two besotted lovers of long ago. What Maggie finds in her search for the lovers and their fate, and what she learns about herself in the process, will surprise and move readers.
Here is a quote from my notes (yes, I take notes): "Funny and well-written without the paragraphs or the descriptions being too long." (I don't have to be grammatically correct in my note-taking!) I appreciate humor as long as it doesn't take away from the poignancy of the book. And, in this case, it doesn't. Nice going, Shelly. In fact, at one point, I even thought to myself that this is very Beth-like. And you all know what I think of Beth Hoffman and her books.
There is a scene at the Bay Area book club mentioned in the synopsis where she is talking to the very fancy woman who runs the club and who owns the house that is hosting the event. The woman asks Maggie what she's been doing since she lost her job at the high tech start-up. Here is her answer. The italics reflect what she really means in her response. This is pretty darn clever.
"I've been doing some pro bono consulting at a small used bookstore my neighbor owns." I've been wasting time at the Dragonfly and learning 1500 new ways to describe a man's privates. "Sales have been soft with the downturn in the local economy." No one gives a flying frog's butt about the Dragonfly with Apollo across the street. "I'm working with him to improve his margin." I'm sitting in a dusty window reading trashy novels.
It's definitely fun to read a book that takes place in a used bookstore (that syncs up nicely with our book club now taking up residence in a used bookstore). And it's fun to be familiar with Castro Street in Mt. View, where most of the book takes place. BUT, if you don't live in the Bay Area, or don't know downtown Mt. View, not to worry. You will enjoy the book as much as the rest of us.
I will give you one more quote. Lolly Winston, whose books I have very much liked, says of Shelly's book: "Shelly King is among my all-time favorite writers. Her prose brims with beauty and her plots always pack a well-earned punch." That about sums it up.
December 23, 2015
I think most bibliophiles will find this book a great deal of fun like I did. Although it was a quick read (perfect for my treadmill time), it really sang with smart, engaging prose. The main setting is a used bookstore called The Dragonfly (one I’d REALLY want to visit, myself, if it existed) plopped right in the middle of Silicon Valley and all the technology and business and commercialism that comes with it. This juxtaposition was so well done by King and of particular enjoyment for me. A competing chain bookstore also rivals the Dragonfly, right across the street.
And while this book is, in so many ways, about the kind of people who “don’t just own books; they need them, crave them, find it impossible to breathe without them,” (direct quote rom the book) it’s also about family, finding one’s place, following one’s heart, and accepting love. There is a wonderful mystery element to the book, references to all kinds of books – ranging from classics to bodice-rippers, and a lot of subplots thrown up in the air and juggled with professionalism by the author. There is a grouchy cat. And a central theme involves used books, the people among whose hands they have passed and the histories old books carry.
I was fascinated when I read an article by the author about her own penchant for visiting used bookstores specifically to find the notes that others have left behind on the pages of books. They are stories within stories. Literally. This concept is a key piece of this novel, and a lovely one.
While I’m not generally a fan of “tidy” endings, this one still felt satisfying and fit the personality of the book. I was rooting for all of these characters at the end and grew to like them immensely. Shelly – if you read this – I couldn’t stop thinking that comedian/actor Billy Eichner (the actor who played Craig Middlebrooks on Parks and Recreation) should play Jason. I just kept hearing his crazy voice and seeing his mannerisms! (I loved Jason, by the way).
Fun read! It made me fall in love with books – and bookstores of all sorts – all over again.
And while this book is, in so many ways, about the kind of people who “don’t just own books; they need them, crave them, find it impossible to breathe without them,” (direct quote rom the book) it’s also about family, finding one’s place, following one’s heart, and accepting love. There is a wonderful mystery element to the book, references to all kinds of books – ranging from classics to bodice-rippers, and a lot of subplots thrown up in the air and juggled with professionalism by the author. There is a grouchy cat. And a central theme involves used books, the people among whose hands they have passed and the histories old books carry.
I was fascinated when I read an article by the author about her own penchant for visiting used bookstores specifically to find the notes that others have left behind on the pages of books. They are stories within stories. Literally. This concept is a key piece of this novel, and a lovely one.
While I’m not generally a fan of “tidy” endings, this one still felt satisfying and fit the personality of the book. I was rooting for all of these characters at the end and grew to like them immensely. Shelly – if you read this – I couldn’t stop thinking that comedian/actor Billy Eichner (the actor who played Craig Middlebrooks on Parks and Recreation) should play Jason. I just kept hearing his crazy voice and seeing his mannerisms! (I loved Jason, by the way).
Fun read! It made me fall in love with books – and bookstores of all sorts – all over again.
October 25, 2019
Having worked in and around Silicon Valley for 30 years, I found myself cringing, laughing and saddened by so much in The Moment of Everything: high tech excess, the notion that without a foot in high tech you're nobody, and the hope that the million-dollar Idea/Company/Stock Option is just around the corner. The heroine, book lover Maggie Dupres, has started working in a used bookstore because she's lost her cushy high tech job. The cast of eccentric characters she meets at the bookstore startles her at first, but they grow on her as time passes--as they grew on me, too. Here's what cinched this book for me as a winner: Maggie forms a lovely friendship with, and eventually a love interest in, a neighbor, who is Indian. I found this plot thread so refreshing because there are so many immigrants from India in Silicon Valley that to leave them out of a modern-day story is tantamount to saying they don't exist. But exist they do, and King's sensitive treatment of several Indian characters in the novel was heartwarming, meaningful and real. This reader appreciated it.
August 26, 2014
This was a very touching story of a woman who followed her best friend to California and started a tech company with him. As the company grows, she is displaced due to restructuring. Depressed and unable to find another job, she spends her days in Dragonfly Books to pass the time. Suddenly, what she sees as a temporary way to occupy her time becomes a major part of her life and a new beginning for her.
Filled with great characters, a wonderful setting, and interesting storyline, The Moment of Everything is a compelling book that was difficult to put down. It will stay with me for a long while.
Filled with great characters, a wonderful setting, and interesting storyline, The Moment of Everything is a compelling book that was difficult to put down. It will stay with me for a long while.
September 8, 2017
Историята ми напомня на "Думи в тъмносиньо"-книжарница за стари книги, в която влизат чудати хора; Двама души, които си пишат по страниците на един роман и около тази история книжарницата добива голяма популярност. Въпреки обещаващото начало, според мен авторката не успява да развие добре историята, героите си остават загадка и в един момент книгата става хаотична. Не очаквайте велика любовна история, защото книгата не е за това. Все пак има и моменти, които ми допаднаха като този цитат: "Книгите са минали през много ръце и ще минат през още толкова. Миришат на човешко докосване и на всички възможни преживявания, които идват с него".
August 27, 2014
We’ve reviewed several novels in the past year that featured bookstores. I just can’t resist them. The Moment of Everything by Shelly King is another one I couldn’t pass up. If you’re a certified bookaholic like I am, you’ll understand why. The interesting twist to this one for me is that it also involves the dot-com industry, in which I’ve worked for years. It’s like Ms. King wrote this novel just for me (no ego there or anything). You may feel she wrote it just for you when you learn more when you read my review at http://popcornreads.com/?p=7654.
March 20, 2019
Even een tussendoortje bij het dikke, vrij moeilijke boek dat ik aan het lezen ben. Kon al voorspellen dat het een lichtgewicht zou zijn, dat zie je al aan de cover. Een kat tussen een stapel boeken, en als titel: ‘De leestip’. Maar dat dit boek zo’n onbenul zou zijn, dat had ik zelfs in mijn meest cynische bui niet voorzien. ‘De leestip’ is niet meer dan een romantisch lichtgewicht. Eender welke pocket uit de Bouquet-reeks is beter en zeker overtuigender qua romantiek. Dom verhaal, stomme personages, verschrikkelijke stijl, en geschreven door een jonge socialemediamadam. Een beloftevol debuut, zegt de achterflap. Dit is echt de laatste keer dat ik een tekst op de achterflap geloof. Mijn tip aan de schrijfster? Beperk je tot sociale media, daar hoeft het niet zo hoogstaand literair te zijn. Deze pocket gaat naar het boekenkastje, ik hoef er zelfs geen boek voor in de plaats.
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December 26, 2016Много е говорено за това как за книгата не трябва да се съди по корицата. По този въпрос никога няма да има съгласие. Винаги ще има хора, които ще се влюбват в красивата корица на някоя книга и ще поискат да прочетат историята зад тази корица. И може би няма да съжаляват, ако историята не се окаже точно това, което са очаквали. Винаги ще има и такива, които ще са склонни да подминат книга само защото изглежда невзрачно. И едните, и другите са прави за себе си, и в това, което правят, няма нищо лошо.
Чудя се обаче, дали има такива, които изпитват привличане към една книга в мига щом видят заглавието?
Това се случи с мен, когато видях "Всичко започна в книжарничката на Хюго" от Шели Кинг.
Странно е колко асоциации, мисли и чувства може да събуди едно такова заглавие. Интерес. Любопитство. Леко подозрение. Предчувствието, че знаеш какво ще последва. Казваш си: "Аха, поредната книга за книжарници". Но все пак ти е любопитно. И се потапяш. Гмурваш се във владенията на "Водното конче"...
Трудно ми е да кажа кое ми хареса най-много - дали историята около стария екземпляр на "Любовникът на лейди Чатърли", дали описанието на самото "Водно конче" и купищата стари книги, дали Маги, която сякаш още не е сигурна каква точно иска да бъде, но знае едно - че не иска това, в което ще се превърне, да е образ, наложен й от властната й майка. Или пък отношенията между героите - понякога тези отношения са далече от идеалните, но когато става дума за тяхното "Водно конче", те са единни. Те са хора, които обичат своята книжарница, своите книги, усещането и атмосферата, които тази "купчина стари книги с каса за пари" създава. Защото за своите верни почитатели тя е символ, тя е от онези места, където можеш да се разровиш така, сякаш търсиш съкровище... а понякога дори и да го намериш. Големите нови книжарници със спретнато подредени книги са нещо прекрасно, но понякога е още по-прекрасно да попаднеш на стара и пожълтяла книга с чупливи страници, която има да разкаже много повече от историята между кориците.
Не съм противник на новото. Но тук е загатнат агресивният понякога стремеж към налагане на новото, което автоматично се приема за по-добро и по-хубаво. Новото е прекрасно. Но понякога имаме нужда и от мъничко от онова, старото, "овехтялото", като книгите във "Водното конче". Което да ни напомня, че макар отвсякъде да ни приемат като "потребители", все още има място, където поне за малко можем да бъдем търсами на /книжни/ съкровища.
Чудя се обаче, дали има такива, които изпитват привличане към една книга в мига щом видят заглавието?
Това се случи с мен, когато видях "Всичко започна в книжарничката на Хюго" от Шели Кинг.
Странно е колко асоциации, мисли и чувства може да събуди едно такова заглавие. Интерес. Любопитство. Леко подозрение. Предчувствието, че знаеш какво ще последва. Казваш си: "Аха, поредната книга за книжарници". Но все пак ти е любопитно. И се потапяш. Гмурваш се във владенията на "Водното конче"...
Трудно ми е да кажа кое ми хареса най-много - дали историята около стария екземпляр на "Любовникът на лейди Чатърли", дали описанието на самото "Водно конче" и купищата стари книги, дали Маги, която сякаш още не е сигурна каква точно иска да бъде, но знае едно - че не иска това, в което ще се превърне, да е образ, наложен й от властната й майка. Или пък отношенията между героите - понякога тези отношения са далече от идеалните, но когато става дума за тяхното "Водно конче", те са единни. Те са хора, които обичат своята книжарница, своите книги, усещането и атмосферата, които тази "купчина стари книги с каса за пари" създава. Защото за своите верни почитатели тя е символ, тя е от онези места, където можеш да се разровиш така, сякаш търсиш съкровище... а понякога дори и да го намериш. Големите нови книжарници със спретнато подредени книги са нещо прекрасно, но понякога е още по-прекрасно да попаднеш на стара и пожълтяла книга с чупливи страници, която има да разкаже много повече от историята между кориците.
Не съм противник на новото. Но тук е загатнат агресивният понякога стремеж към налагане на новото, което автоматично се приема за по-добро и по-хубаво. Новото е прекрасно. Но понякога имаме нужда и от мъничко от онова, старото, "овехтялото", като книгите във "Водното конче". Което да ни напомня, че макар отвсякъде да ни приемат като "потребители", все още има място, където поне за малко можем да бъдем търсами на /книжни/ съкровища.
September 12, 2014
Thank you so much NetGalley, Shelly King and Grand Central Publishing for allowing me to read this book!!
I LOVE books, I LOVE books about books, I LOVE books about people who love books! - So... positive start - and it only gets better.
Shelly King so utterly captivated me with these people - I want to meet them all and take them to lunch, and talk all day with them!
I enjoyed all of the relationships that Maggie has, with her friend Dizzy, her arch-enemy Jason, her landlord/bookstore owner Hugo, her mother Georgine, Rajhit, Ali. All were completely developed and thought provoking.
The story of finding messages written in a copy of "Lady Chatterley's Lover" (the used one Hugo gives her, not the pristine one for the Silicone Valley Women Executives Association Book Club that Dizzy gives her) and guessing who Henry and Catherine really were/are, was added fun and mystery.
The lessons of loss and letting go (or what to hold on to) was poignant and lovely. Learning to find what you love and cherishing that is what "The Moment of Everything" is all about for me. It will be recommended, given as gifts and re-read for certain.
I LOVE books, I LOVE books about books, I LOVE books about people who love books! - So... positive start - and it only gets better.
Shelly King so utterly captivated me with these people - I want to meet them all and take them to lunch, and talk all day with them!
I enjoyed all of the relationships that Maggie has, with her friend Dizzy, her arch-enemy Jason, her landlord/bookstore owner Hugo, her mother Georgine, Rajhit, Ali. All were completely developed and thought provoking.
The story of finding messages written in a copy of "Lady Chatterley's Lover" (the used one Hugo gives her, not the pristine one for the Silicone Valley Women Executives Association Book Club that Dizzy gives her) and guessing who Henry and Catherine really were/are, was added fun and mystery.
The lessons of loss and letting go (or what to hold on to) was poignant and lovely. Learning to find what you love and cherishing that is what "The Moment of Everything" is all about for me. It will be recommended, given as gifts and re-read for certain.
December 29, 2014
In so many ways, this is the perfect book for me. The book takes place in Silicon Valley (where I live) at a used bookstore in Mt. View on Castro Street (I've shopped at the used bookstore on Castro St.). The protagonist is a former Silicon Valley refugee who becomes a bookseller. I am a former high tech engineer and I currently work at a bookstore, just 10 miles north of where this story takes place. If I were a bookseller (which I am), I would even recommend this book to myself. And maybe it's because I had these high hopes and expectations for that perfect story about a book lover that makes this book a slight disappointment. There are parts of this book that flow beautifully, and the characters are well developed. But both the pacing or the plot of this story fall short of making this a memorable book for book lovers or anyone else. Enjoyable, but it could have been great.
October 29, 2014
The best I can say for The Moment of Everything is that it's a novel without major flaws, but utterly unmoving and quickly forgettable. I finished it just a couple of days ago and am struggling to remember anything about it. The characters and plot were thin, the language unremarkable. There was nothing whatsoever in this book which made me think, or surprised me, or prodded me to look at anything from a new perspective. While I can't point out any serious flaws of commission, there were flaws of omission to spare. It will do in a pinch if all you need is something to occupy your eyeballs. Obviously, I don't recommend it.
October 21, 2015
Psaní recenze mě donutilo se nad knihou víc zamyslet, také jsem recenzi psala s jistým odstupem od dočtení, tudíž jsem na to měla trochu jasnější pohled, proto nakonec srážím hodnocení ze 4 hvězdiček na 3 hvězdičky. :)
A celá recenze se nachází na blogu: http://yours-fantasy.blogspot.cz/2015...
A celá recenze se nachází na blogu: http://yours-fantasy.blogspot.cz/2015...
May 2, 2015
La recensione è presente nel mio blog:
http://voglioesseresommersadailibri.b...
http://voglioesseresommersadailibri.b...
September 16, 2019
Generally it was easier to take what you found rather than to find what you wanted. p4
I am not even sure what I wanted from this book with its appealing cover and bookstore setting. A diversion from all of the harsh books I've been immersed in, yes, but also a break from the complex literary and self awareness books I've been reading to divert myself from the worlds pain for a while. Something completely different but surely not a romance set in silicon valley. I read a few pages and put it back at the bottom of my library box.
That's where I found it, overdue. Did I mention how cute the cover is? A cat peering out of a bookshelf. On its way out, I opened the book again and began at the beginning. A woman in transition. Questioning her role in life and the values that she realized were changing as she examined them. Her best friend is a gay man, and she is in silicon valley because she moved there with him to work on a start up which has now found her redundant. She spends her days in the Dragonfly, the second hand bookstore owned by her eccentric landlord, reading romance novels and helping out a bit while lost in the ennui of unemployment. Grendle the cat is actually snooty and unpredictably nasty. I started to warm up to Maggie, in spite of her reading choices.
I'd always thought of the hard times in my life as being like a book. The problem is resolved and then you move on. But it wasn't like that. The hard times didn't just end. The borders weren't that clear. They blend into the good times and link arms with the bad times. p245
I liked being alone. But I did not like being lonely. p241
...all the books around me were conveyors of hopes that we're not alone. p156
The quiet of the library quivered with life...p21
Ultimately, this is an examination of the stories that we tell ourselves that rule our lives. It's about how our actions impact reality and how little we really know the people around us,from the ones for whom we care the most to the ones we neglect to consider much at all. It's about complicity and class and entitlement, commitment and community; and yes there is a love affair, complicated, compromised. And a mystery that reveals itself just when a reader may have forgotten about it.
People tell each other all sorts of things. They take on personas and the personas take over them. p167
I'd clung to my impermanent heart that expected so little and gave so little in return. p109
Love finds for us what we do not know we want. p23
This is a 5/7 in my system, but I've rounded it up to a 4 for GR. And I will keep my eye out for Shelly King who overcame my cranky first appraisal and gave me more than I hoped for.
I am not even sure what I wanted from this book with its appealing cover and bookstore setting. A diversion from all of the harsh books I've been immersed in, yes, but also a break from the complex literary and self awareness books I've been reading to divert myself from the worlds pain for a while. Something completely different but surely not a romance set in silicon valley. I read a few pages and put it back at the bottom of my library box.
That's where I found it, overdue. Did I mention how cute the cover is? A cat peering out of a bookshelf. On its way out, I opened the book again and began at the beginning. A woman in transition. Questioning her role in life and the values that she realized were changing as she examined them. Her best friend is a gay man, and she is in silicon valley because she moved there with him to work on a start up which has now found her redundant. She spends her days in the Dragonfly, the second hand bookstore owned by her eccentric landlord, reading romance novels and helping out a bit while lost in the ennui of unemployment. Grendle the cat is actually snooty and unpredictably nasty. I started to warm up to Maggie, in spite of her reading choices.
I'd always thought of the hard times in my life as being like a book. The problem is resolved and then you move on. But it wasn't like that. The hard times didn't just end. The borders weren't that clear. They blend into the good times and link arms with the bad times. p245
I liked being alone. But I did not like being lonely. p241
...all the books around me were conveyors of hopes that we're not alone. p156
The quiet of the library quivered with life...p21
Ultimately, this is an examination of the stories that we tell ourselves that rule our lives. It's about how our actions impact reality and how little we really know the people around us,from the ones for whom we care the most to the ones we neglect to consider much at all. It's about complicity and class and entitlement, commitment and community; and yes there is a love affair, complicated, compromised. And a mystery that reveals itself just when a reader may have forgotten about it.
People tell each other all sorts of things. They take on personas and the personas take over them. p167
I'd clung to my impermanent heart that expected so little and gave so little in return. p109
Love finds for us what we do not know we want. p23
This is a 5/7 in my system, but I've rounded it up to a 4 for GR. And I will keep my eye out for Shelly King who overcame my cranky first appraisal and gave me more than I hoped for.
November 26, 2021
Znate ono kada jedno kasno poslijepodne slučajno uđete u knjižaru zato što vani pada kiša i slučajno na policama pronađete neku knjigu koja bi možda mogla biti zanimljiva? Ukoliko ste nekad imali takav dan, onda ste sigurno pronašli jednu ovakvu knjigu. Baš to se desilo meni.
Radnja ovog djela počinje kada glavna junakinja slučajno u knjižari pronađe knjigu koja sadrži romantične poruke dvoje ljudi. Ona je očarana njihovim osjećajima i riječima. Dane provodi u jednoj staroj knjižari koja prodaje polovne knjige. U njoj se nalazi još nekoliko radnika, i jedan mačak koji tu živi.
Nije ovo knjiga koja će oduševiti čitaoca i ostati u sjećanju dugo vremena. Međutim, ima nešto lijepo i dirljivo u njoj. Možda zato što se radnja dešava u knjižari, ili možda zato što su likovi simpatični. Ovo je knjiga o knjigama, a meni su te uvijek drage. Iako je ova imala svojih dosadnih trenutaka, izvukla se svojom šarmantnom radnjom i tom doista čarobnom knjižarom. Od mene je trebala dobiti tri zvjezdice, ali se iz nekog razloga plačipička u meni probudila u posljednjih dvadeset stranica i morao sam povećati svoju ocjenu. Nekako mi je knjiga pred sam kraj bila sve bolja. Neke divne rečenice se nalaze na zadnjim stranicama ove knjige.
"Postoji jedan neočekivani deo bola. Posle mnogo dana kad misliš da nikad nećeš moći da ustaneš iz kreveta i posle tumaranja s osećanjem da ti je utroba prazna a koža od papira, počneš da se sećaš. Ne setiš se smrti i prizora voljenog bića u bolničkom krevetu sa cevčicama. Setiš se kakav je bio pre toga, kad mu je bilo dobro i kad si ti bio ceo. To sećanje te sustiže i tad znaš da onaj kog si izgubio nije ipak nestao, već je postao deo tebe i zbog toga si i sam bolji."
Nisam siguran da će svima biti divna i da će je svi voljeti, ali možda vrijedi da dobije šansu i da vas u jedno kasno poslijepodne, dok vani pada kiša, zabavi i ispuni.
Radnja ovog djela počinje kada glavna junakinja slučajno u knjižari pronađe knjigu koja sadrži romantične poruke dvoje ljudi. Ona je očarana njihovim osjećajima i riječima. Dane provodi u jednoj staroj knjižari koja prodaje polovne knjige. U njoj se nalazi još nekoliko radnika, i jedan mačak koji tu živi.
Nije ovo knjiga koja će oduševiti čitaoca i ostati u sjećanju dugo vremena. Međutim, ima nešto lijepo i dirljivo u njoj. Možda zato što se radnja dešava u knjižari, ili možda zato što su likovi simpatični. Ovo je knjiga o knjigama, a meni su te uvijek drage. Iako je ova imala svojih dosadnih trenutaka, izvukla se svojom šarmantnom radnjom i tom doista čarobnom knjižarom. Od mene je trebala dobiti tri zvjezdice, ali se iz nekog razloga plačipička u meni probudila u posljednjih dvadeset stranica i morao sam povećati svoju ocjenu. Nekako mi je knjiga pred sam kraj bila sve bolja. Neke divne rečenice se nalaze na zadnjim stranicama ove knjige.
"Postoji jedan neočekivani deo bola. Posle mnogo dana kad misliš da nikad nećeš moći da ustaneš iz kreveta i posle tumaranja s osećanjem da ti je utroba prazna a koža od papira, počneš da se sećaš. Ne setiš se smrti i prizora voljenog bića u bolničkom krevetu sa cevčicama. Setiš se kakav je bio pre toga, kad mu je bilo dobro i kad si ti bio ceo. To sećanje te sustiže i tad znaš da onaj kog si izgubio nije ipak nestao, već je postao deo tebe i zbog toga si i sam bolji."
Nisam siguran da će svima biti divna i da će je svi voljeti, ali možda vrijedi da dobije šansu i da vas u jedno kasno poslijepodne, dok vani pada kiša, zabavi i ispuni.
September 17, 2017
Голяма какафония от мисли, чувства и действия.
Неубедителна като цяло.
Идеята е добра, има интересни моменти, но не се е получила магията.
На места даже е пресолена манджата с използването на специфични термини.
Неубедителна като цяло.
Идеята е добра, има интересни моменти, но не се е получила магията.
На места даже е пресолена манджата с използването на специфични термини.
June 29, 2019
Le chat de la couverture n'est absolument pas celui du livre 😂 à part ça, joli roman mais je n'ai pas ressenti vraiment d'émotion en le lisant, je ne sais pas si c'est moi, ou si c'est le livre... et ce n'est pas une romance.
August 20, 2018
Comment aurais-je pu résister à une couverture pareil ? Ce petit chat à l'air bien curieux n'est pas celui que l'on rencontre dans le livre, mais la personnalité bien particulière de Grendel était tout de même bien amusante. Mais cette histoire, c'est celle de Maggie, une trentenaire qui après une défaite professionnelle, cherche encore ce qu'elle pourrait bien faire de sa vie. Pas très proche de ses parents, elle a bien des amis, comme Dizzy, ami d'enfance et ancien collègue de travail et aussi Hugo, ce gentil monsieur à l'âme bohème, voisin et propriétaire d'une librairie de livres usagés. Grande amoureuse de la lecture, Maggie passe son temps à flâner au Dragonfly, en attendant de trouver des réponses qu'elle n'est pas tant pressée de connaître. Fan de romance, elle a bien eu quelques aventures, mais elle n'attend pas le prince charmant et on pourrait même dire que l'amour lui fait un peu peur ou la rend perplexe. Lorsqu'elle découvre une correspondance amoureuse dans les pages d'un livre, c'est ainsi que sans le savoir, son histoire à elle prendra des chemins inattendus.
Outre le chat sur la couverture, c'est tout de même le résumé qui m'a convaincu de lire ce livre. Ça me semblait parfait pour une amoureuse de la lecture comme moi. Quand j'ai débuté le récit, j'ai cru que j'allais adorer ce livre. Probablement parce que je me suis reconnue dans cette jeune femme qui ne sait pas toujours comment gérer ses émotions et qui adore lire des romans d'amour. Puis, au milieu du roman, lorsque j'ai compris que les choses n'allaient pas se dérouler comme je l'avais espéré, j'ai commencé à penser que finalement, j'allais être déçue, bien que la lecture était agréable. Et ensuite sont arrivés les moments de surprise et aussi de tristesse, mais qui sont généralement utiles pour faire avancer les personnages et alors, j'en ai finalement conclu que ce bouquin avait fait son travail : celui de faire éprouver des émotions au lecteur/lectrice. On sent l'amour des mots et de la lecture dans l'écriture de l'auteure. Ma critique pourrait laisser croire que je suis indécise sur mon appréciation du livre, mais après avoir terminé la dernière page, je n'avais plus de doute ; à la fois charmant et touchant, avec une petite touche d'humour, Le Coeur Entre Les Pages a ce petit je-ne-sais-quoi que l'on ne retrouve que dans les livres, tout en nous proposant une romance (et des amitiés) bien ancrée dans la vraie vie.
"La couverture était illustrée d'une rousse flamboyante dont la poitrine débordait d'une robe élisabéthaine. Un homme torse nu avec une coupe de cheveux à la Bon Jovi millésime 1996 se tenait en retrait et la fixait d'un oeil menaçant. Ou passionné ? Je vous jure, parfois j'étais incapable de trancher."
"À la télé, des gens en larmes quittent leur boulot au milieu des étreintes et des adieux en emportant un carton d'où dépasse une plante verte. Dans la réalité, vous arrivez un beau matin et trouvez un chèque de deux semaines de salaire avec votre nom écrit de travers et un vigile qui inspecte votre sac à la sortie."
"Il me fallait en général sept ou huit pages pour effectuer le trajet entre le Dragonfly et mon appartement, soit deux de moins qu'il n'en faut pour se faire servir un Savage Hammerhead Mocha au Cuppa Joe, et trois de plus pour qu'arrive une commande de porc moo shu à emporter au petit chinois du coin."
"Les mots semblaient s'étirer et se contracter dans l'écriture de Henry et de Catherine, des mots semblables à ceux des romans que j'avais lus toute la journée au Dragonfly. Étreinte, désir, attente... Des mots de livres, pas des vrais mots comme en utilisaient, ou n'en utilisaient plus, les vrais gens."
Outre le chat sur la couverture, c'est tout de même le résumé qui m'a convaincu de lire ce livre. Ça me semblait parfait pour une amoureuse de la lecture comme moi. Quand j'ai débuté le récit, j'ai cru que j'allais adorer ce livre. Probablement parce que je me suis reconnue dans cette jeune femme qui ne sait pas toujours comment gérer ses émotions et qui adore lire des romans d'amour. Puis, au milieu du roman, lorsque j'ai compris que les choses n'allaient pas se dérouler comme je l'avais espéré, j'ai commencé à penser que finalement, j'allais être déçue, bien que la lecture était agréable. Et ensuite sont arrivés les moments de surprise et aussi de tristesse, mais qui sont généralement utiles pour faire avancer les personnages et alors, j'en ai finalement conclu que ce bouquin avait fait son travail : celui de faire éprouver des émotions au lecteur/lectrice. On sent l'amour des mots et de la lecture dans l'écriture de l'auteure. Ma critique pourrait laisser croire que je suis indécise sur mon appréciation du livre, mais après avoir terminé la dernière page, je n'avais plus de doute ; à la fois charmant et touchant, avec une petite touche d'humour, Le Coeur Entre Les Pages a ce petit je-ne-sais-quoi que l'on ne retrouve que dans les livres, tout en nous proposant une romance (et des amitiés) bien ancrée dans la vraie vie.
"La couverture était illustrée d'une rousse flamboyante dont la poitrine débordait d'une robe élisabéthaine. Un homme torse nu avec une coupe de cheveux à la Bon Jovi millésime 1996 se tenait en retrait et la fixait d'un oeil menaçant. Ou passionné ? Je vous jure, parfois j'étais incapable de trancher."
"À la télé, des gens en larmes quittent leur boulot au milieu des étreintes et des adieux en emportant un carton d'où dépasse une plante verte. Dans la réalité, vous arrivez un beau matin et trouvez un chèque de deux semaines de salaire avec votre nom écrit de travers et un vigile qui inspecte votre sac à la sortie."
"Il me fallait en général sept ou huit pages pour effectuer le trajet entre le Dragonfly et mon appartement, soit deux de moins qu'il n'en faut pour se faire servir un Savage Hammerhead Mocha au Cuppa Joe, et trois de plus pour qu'arrive une commande de porc moo shu à emporter au petit chinois du coin."
"Les mots semblaient s'étirer et se contracter dans l'écriture de Henry et de Catherine, des mots semblables à ceux des romans que j'avais lus toute la journée au Dragonfly. Étreinte, désir, attente... Des mots de livres, pas des vrais mots comme en utilisaient, ou n'en utilisaient plus, les vrais gens."
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