From the Bookshelf of Nothing But Reading Challenges…

The Midnight Library

Matt Haig

Start date: June 1, 2021

Finish date: June 30, 2021

Discussion: Books of the Month

Find A Copy At

Libraries

Group Discussions About This Book

Showing 2 of 163 topics — 23,393 comments total

Books of the Month

* The Names by Florence Knapp - Sep 25 Adult / Non-Fiction BOM (starts 16 Sep)
By Moderators of… , Challenger-in-Chief · 19 posts · 103 views

last updated Sep 24, 2025 01:40AM

* The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese - Sep 25 Theme BOM - South and South East Asia (Starts 5 September)
By Moderators of… , Challenger-in-Chief · 44 posts · 82 views

last updated Sep 22, 2025 08:30AM

showing 10 of 103 topics view all »

Other topics mentioning this book

Level 3 of the Serious Reader Challenge for 2020
By Moderators of… , Challenger-in-Chief · 42 posts · 315 views

last updated Jan 09, 2021 11:44AM

Team Tienuurtj
By Moderators of… , Challenger-in-Chief · 231 posts · 261 views

last updated Dec 17, 2020 08:44PM

Level 10 of the Serious Reader Challenge for 2020
By Moderators of… , Challenger-in-Chief · 9 posts · 255 views

last updated Nov 12, 2020 05:37PM

NBRC 26 Alphabet 26: Yoga & Meditation: A to Z (Spell-it-Out)
By Moderators of… , Challenger-in-Chief · 224 posts · 664 views

last updated Jan 12, 2025 07:17PM

Cleaning Out the TBR Closet 2021
By Moderators of… , Challenger-in-Chief · 1181 posts · 1201 views

last updated Jan 03, 2022 03:36PM

Cheryl's 2021 Reading List
By Cheryl · 10 posts · 58 views

last updated Dec 30, 2021 10:01AM

This topic has been closed to new comments.

* Our SECOND Million Pages for 2020 (A NBRC Group Challenge)
By Moderators of… , Challenger-in-Chief · 455 posts · 333 views

last updated Jan 01, 2021 11:03AM

Decades Challenge 2020 (Feb 2, 2020-Feb 21, 2021)
By Moderators of… , Challenger-in-Chief · 134 posts · 542 views

last updated Feb 25, 2021 01:05PM

Serious Readers Challenge 2021: Level 1
By Moderators of… , Challenger-in-Chief · 116 posts · 1022 views

last updated Nov 09, 2021 01:12AM

Our FIRST Million Pages for 2021 (A NBRC Group Challenge)
By Moderators of… , Challenger-in-Chief · 1327 posts · 717 views

last updated Sep 17, 2021 01:32AM

What Members Thought

Apr 19, 2021 Amy rated it liked it

I enjoyed the metaphor of living thousands of lives through reading libraries of books. I also like the purpose of getting the readers to the awakening instead of going through a near-death, life-defining, traumatic experience.

However, The Midnight Library is a cliché that got philosophical too fast. It gave me the vibe of The Alchemist. Nora lives spectrums of lives over a period of 1 minute 27 seconds which echoes decision making in Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking. The book's th ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Apr 16, 2021 Dareth McKenna rated it it was amazing

This book was one of the best I've read in awhile. Although its topic- suicide - is weighty, the book explores this topic in a tender and tasteful manner. I think it portrays the circumstances leading up to it in a succinct but very relatable way, and then when we dive into the Midnight Library and all the possibilities it offers the contemplation of what makes "a good life" and how we view regrets is thoughtful and wise. I was crying through half the book, but it was so good. ...more

Like · see review

Jan 29, 2021 Rachel Willis rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Was looking for a bit of hope

This book is definitely the bright spot that I was looking for. And (spoilers maybe) it's true:

the problem is regret. It's the regret itself. What's done is done and if it were done any other way who knows what wouldn't be right.

Instead of focusing on regret or want or lack, focus on possibility. Today, so says this book, I cam do anything. Today is a blank page that I cam turn into anything I want.

... Which I mean may be sleep right now but still. The point is ther ...more

Like · see review

Dec 12, 2020 Lisa marked it as to-read