The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin

[Flo]

5 stars!

I read this for my book club and I didn't think I was going to enjoy it because it's very different from the kind of book I normally read, but I actually super got into it. My friend described it as a "book about books" which is true - it's pretty much a nerdy little book full of references to other books as well as about the life of a bookseller and the love of books. As someone who loves books, this book really resonated with me. It felt really cozy, like the feeling one would get of curling up with a good book by a fire. That was the feeling I got when I read this book.

I also really like the trope of ~sad gruff man meets someone who melts his heart and opens himself up to his found family. That's one of my favorite tropes and is basically the plot of this book. The found family aspect was super cute and I really liked all the side characters. I would definitely recommend this book to people who like happy (mostly?) family stories, tons of references to other modern culture, and of course, books.

[Amy]

I liked this one. But I think in the wake of so many good novels, it touches for awhile, and then leaves. it was a great read, though. Enjoy your bookclub...

[Ellen]

I liked this one too.

[Karin]

I liked this one, but listened to it rather than read it. The audiobook improved it for me.

[Jennifer]

I liked it too. Sweet & sad but good.

[Joi]

All right, your review convinced me to add this to my TBR. I'm a sucker for references, and for books about books. Plus just looked it's only 270 pages!

[Barbara M]

One of my favorites the year I read it! I also listened to the audio which was a treat.

[Jennifer]

I liked that the book references were to readers books not necessarily "intellectual" books if that makes sense. Like I think I actually got most of the references....