The Midnight Library

[Trisha]

This thread is to discuss The Midnight Library by Matt Haig.

Pages: 288 pages

Length: 1 Month (February)

Participants: Trisha, Ushashi, Ilona, Stuti, Courtney, Sandra, Wendy, Irma, Angie, Sakiz.

Everyone reads at their own pace during a Buddy Read. Because participants can be at different parts of the book at different times, it is extremely important to mark spoilers so that the book is not ruined for someone who is not as far along as others!!!

Mark spoilers by placing {spoiler} before the text and {/spoiler} after the text but use the < and > instead of the { and }.


Happy Buddy Reading!

[Sameer Khan]

This book is in my TBR list

[Irma]

I am excited for this one. Comes highly recommend.

[Jessica]

Hi :) I just joined this group, and this was one of my planned reads for February. I had a hold at my local library since the beginnning of November that is FINALLY ready!! I'd love to join in this!!

[Stuti]

I’m so excited to buddy read this with all of you!

[Surabhi]

this is in my TBR too!!!

[Yules]

Hi, I just joined the group and I'm excited to read this book in February :)

[Trisha]

Welcome all! Let’s do this! :D

[Kimberly~☆♡Love of Books♡☆]

Hi!
I already read this. Its a great book. For me 5 stars:) hope you all enjoy it!✌

[Ilona]

Hi all! I started reading this book today :)

[Alyana]

I would like to join this buddy read too. I'll probably start on Monday or Tuesday.

[Ushashi]

I will be starting in a couple of days too.

[Mitali]

good luck everyone to whoever is reading this book :+)

[Trisha]

I picked this last night and finished 46% of it in one sitting. (view spoiler)[ It’s a short book and quite simple in its writing. The concept is mind-blowing but I don’t like the way it is dealt with. The idea behind the book is fantastic (I know I’m repeating that but I need to express how impressed I am with the concept), but the writing is kind of shallow for me. The protagonist, Nora Seed, is dull; the character doesn’t seem to be fleshed out well enough to make me feel for her. After about 35% of the plot, we get to know that she has had a difficult childhood with parents who were not into each-other and hardly cared about her. I do feel sad for her, sure! but the pace at which these details are being revealed prevents me from connecting with her. That said, I’m enjoying the story, just not the writing.

There are ample life lessons throughout the book and some of them hit us hard. It was liberating to realise that most of our regrets of not doing certain things in life are pointless and doing those things would have still ended up being a regret. Nora regretted not marrying Dan and when she got to live that life momentarily, she realised how bad a decision that would have been. All the bad attributes that she noticed in Dan when she was playing his wife, were always in him, but she had ignored them out of love. I hated how she gave up on her dreams to live his dream and he didn’t even feel grateful for that.

Overall, I am craving to know more about Nora as a person, get into her skin. There’s still half the book left, hoping it’ll get better. (hide spoiler)]

Editing to add:
I’m 57% in and so much has happened in the last 10% of the book. (view spoiler)[

1. The premise seemed to be magical realism before, but it has abruptly shifted to science fiction. We are talking quantum physics now! I was pleased with the explanation Hugo provided as to who all make it to this in-between place, people who wanted to die but had a strong desire of a different fulfilling life. Interesting!

2. There are way too many life lessons and at times, it feels like a self-help book. This latest realisation to dawn upon Nora (and on me too) that if she kept on trying lives, she might not be able to live at all. And, that no life will be an ideal one, there will always be a longing for things you didn’t do or could have done differently. Sad! Expectation is the root of all heartache- who said that? Shakespeare?

3. There was also addition to Nora’s family history and like Nora, her grandparents and parents had lived unfulfilling lives and were full of regrets. This definitely helps me in understanding Nora better, a poor child who saw unhappy people all around her and was made to believe that one can never be truly happy. (hide spoiler)]

Edit#2:
Did I mention that I love the titles of the chapters?

More soon! :)

[Jamie]

My first book for February. Loving it so far

[MeganWritesAndCrafts]

I just ordered my book. Really excited to read this!

[Trisha]

81% in, as of last night. Some thoughts:
(view spoiler)[

Nora can never be happy because all these lives have a dreamy quality, and she would always be confused about how things work, whom she knows or loves or hates and how was she really like in that particular life. She would miss out on so much if she decides to live any of these lives. Besides, there would never be an ideal life where you don’t have any regrets or failures. She needs to find reasons to make herself happy - pursue her passion, make friends, have a second shot at love; she has to learn to live, like Mrs Elm says. Ups and downs are both an essential part of our lives, and you will never realise what happiness is until you’ve been unhappy.

I hope she chooses to go back to her root life before she committed suicide - a life where she decides otherwise so she can live it again without regretting her choices and giving her best shot. Is it allowed to back to one’s root life? The Midnight Library has crazy rules!

Even though I like the story, I am still not appreciating the writing which is so bland, especially the dialogues. Moreover, every time she enters a new life and is all confused, she asks stupid questions like ‘remind me, where I am’, or ‘what are we doing again’, etc. and no one seems to mind those. In fact, the answers are so elaborate and fill her up with all the details she had missed out. So convenient! If I was ever rude with my neighbour, my husband might ask me the reason behind my rudeness but he would definitely not ask ‘why were you rude to Jason, our neighbour from 3 years with whom we visited Langkawi last year’. That’s such a silly way of questioning! Even the press interview when she was living her rock-star life was silly to the bone - the questions were so elaborate with the answers hidden in the questions. I would have preferred a confused Nora who finds things on her own, gradually of course, than just filling her up right away with everything she has missed out. (hide spoiler)]

Editing to add:
Through 91% now. More thoughts:
(view spoiler)[

Nora is now seeing consequences of the butterfly effect. Her decisions didn’t just change her own life but lives of several others around her - Ash, Mr Banerjee & Leo amongst those impacted directly. I’m guessing Mr Banerjee would have decided to move into a care home considering he had no one to look after him. In Nora’s root life, she used to get his medicines and water his plants which would have been of great help to the old man. The impact on Leo’s life was heartbreaking but believable.

Sometimes I think she is dreaming all of this and she will just wake up in her room or perhaps in a hospital, and realise that she isn’t dead yet. (hide spoiler)]

[Trisha]

Finished the book a couple of hours ago. Here's what I think about it; I will sleep on it tonight and see if I feel any differently about it tomorrow - that happens with me a lot of times.

Looking forward to hearing everyone's thoughts.

[Dikshita]

I read it 2 weeks back. I hope you guys enjoy the book as much as I did.

[Jessica]

I've just finished this a few days ago. Really good! Looking forward to your thoughts about it :D x

[Ilona]

I just finished this book as well and I completely agree with you, Trisha! (view spoiler)[The premise of the story is good, but the writing style was just so simple and akward. It did not make me feel the emotions that I was supposed to feel. (hide spoiler)]

[Angie]

I haven't even started yet! Part way through something else that is taking me longer than I thought it would, but I really need to finish it before I start anything else.

[Louise]

This will be my first Buddy Read. I've got Midnight Library on hold at my library and it looks like I'll get it pretty soon now.

[Alyana]

I'm at halfway of the book. I agree with Trisha, (view spoiler)[ the concept is really nice but I feel the writing is little dragging for me, like I want this book to end now. (hide spoiler)]

[Trisha]

Alyana wrote: "I'm at halfway of the book. I agree with Trisha, [spoilers removed]"

I used to zone out every time (view spoiler)[she said oh, yes, of course, obviously, I know. She definitely said some of those a million times. (hide spoiler)]

[Genny]

25% in. :)

[Alyana]

I just finished the book. (view spoiler)[Same sentiments. Meh! I love trying new genres, makes me go out of my comfort zone but this is one of not my kind of book :( (hide spoiler)]

[Ushashi]

I finally started. Some 10 chapters in. It may be too soon, but I think I'm getting what you all meant about the writing style.

[Trisha]

Ushashi wrote: "I finally started. Some 10 chapters in. It may be too soon, but I think I'm getting what you all meant about the writing style."

That’s exactly where I started to feel the (view spoiler)[shallowness. (hide spoiler)]

[Ushashi]

25 chapters in. It is a really interesting concept. (view spoiler)[ I know that Nora is suffering from depression and obviously has a lot of regrets, but I am finding her to be too complaining, borderline whiny. It's like she finds faults in everything and can never really be happy, because let's face it, life is never perfect. Am I the only one who feels this or that's how the characterization is? (hide spoiler)]

[Alyana]

Ushashi wrote: "25 chapters in. It is a really interesting concept. [spoilers removed]"

It's probably how the characterization should be.

[Stuti]

I'm not quite sure how I feel about this book. I really really wanted to like it and while it was good, it wasn't what I expected it to be. I'm not sure if that was because I was so hyped up about it or what it was. (view spoiler)[ I wanted there to be more, more about Nora's life in the alternates that she had, more about the regrets that made her leave those lives, more about what made her want to stay in the life she chose. Was it just that she had no choice? Or was that what she really wanted. I had a hard time with Nora's character, I wanted to know why she was the way she was and why she was so disappointed in her current life. I know that sometimes you just are disappointed and if that's the case, then that's what it is, and I'd like to know that. I will say that it made me think a lot about how I view my life and how hard I feel that people are on where they are in their lives. It was a thought provoking read just maybe not in the way that I had expected. (hide spoiler)]

[Courtney]

I'm relieved so see so many of you are feeling the same way as me on this book. Because of all the hype, I was afraid I was going to come in here and be the only one who is apprehensive about it. I'm about half way through, but already tired of wading through shallow dialogue and narration. It's strange though because, to describe the book to others, it sounds fascinating. There is so much to appreciate about the message, but I'm left wanting for greater depth in the characters and the plot.

[Ushashi]

I finished finally. So much potential this concept had, but sadly the writing was plain. (view spoiler)[ I could see that ending coming from Nora's second life. Also I am not sure if the entire quantum physics multiverse theory was necessary. It could just be left as Nora's subconscious doing tricks (which I think it was, at least that would justify all the conversations conveniently giving away information Nora needed to get by in the new lives). And Nora was the sole MC in the story and yet seemed underdeveloped. (hide spoiler)]
I expected a lot more from the Goodreads best fiction of the year.

[Jessica]

I'm not far in yet, maybe 30%. I found myself very bothered by how we found ourselves AT The Midnight Library itself. Maybe I'm just dumb for not realizing that was gonna be the case but it seems like that could be triggering for many people

[Jessica]

Alright I'm 65% through. I'm really upset with mental health representation in this book. It feels like any life she tries out and she sees that she's that she's on any kind of medication (anxiety, depression) that's considered a failure. As someone who suffers from these things, that really strikes a bad note with me. Why can't a life be a happy life just because you're anxious or need medicine to help balance your brain out. I just feel like the way this is portrayed in the book is all wrong and honestly pushing negative stigmas

[Niharika]

Hi,
I have this book on my TBR for February.. I know I am 11 days late.. but can I join in and be a part of this buddy read..!!

[Ushashi]

Niharika wrote: "Hi,
I have this book on my TBR for February.. I know I am 11 days late.. but can I join in and be a part of this buddy read..!!"

No worries. Feel free to join in the discussion.

[Jessica]

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Ultimately very let down.....2 stars. Full review above. I did include spoilers

[Yules]

30% of the way in and (view spoiler)[ I think the library might be The Bad Place (hide spoiler)]...
65% of the way in and I'm still confused about what seems to me a major plot hole. The Library is supposed to be infinite, each life branching off of the most minute decision, yet Nora chooses books/lives based on the broadest of strokes, quickly becomes disappointed, and then "un-regrets" not becoming profession x, y, z (view spoiler)[ swimmer, glaciologist, musician, etc (hide spoiler)]. Yes, I understand it would be boring for the reader to sit through very similar lives, but it just doesn't make sense to give up on entire professions when they have unexpected consequences you could presumably *avoid* by making some smaller decisions differently. (i.e. (view spoiler)[ become a swimmer, but skip the competition where your dad meets Nadia; become a musician, but spend a little more time with your brother and get him to rehab (hide spoiler)]). Because this plot hole is so glaring, it interferes with the moral we are supposed to learn from the whole exercise.
100% So my plot hole problem ended up not being relevant, anyway. Because the heart of the problem was (view spoiler)[the library itself, which we could have guessed from how un-liveable the lives actually are, as she has no memory or knowledge of anything about the life she lands in and thus can't really live it in any meaningful way (hide spoiler)].
Anyway, I would not recommend this book. The idea sounded great in the synopsis, but the details of it didn't work logistically, and the writing was not good. It's a shame.

[Irma]

(view spoiler)[ the book reminds me of the show Being Erica. Dealing with regrets, going into alternate realities - oddly similar! Half way through the book. (hide spoiler)]