The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry

by Gabrielle Zevin

but what, in this life, is more personal than books?

And how rare is it to find someone who shares your tastes?

No, the real difficulty of living alone is that no one cares if you are upset.

People tell boring lies about politics, God and love. You know everything you need to know about a person from the answer to the question: What is your favourite book?

‘We aren’t the things we collect, acquire, read. We are, for as long as we are here, only love. The things we loved. The people we loved. And these, I think these really do live on.’

And I like talking about books with people who like talking about books. I like paper. I like how it feels, and I like the feel of a book in my back pocket. I like how a new book smells, too.’