Matt Haig – 4/5 Stars
CONTENT WARNING: Suicide
Read this if you:
· have an interest in metaphysics/parallel universes
· have a humungous book of regrets
· always wondered if you would be happier if you made different choices in your life
Synopsis:
Nora Seed is battling depression. She lost her father, gave up a swimmer career that could have landed her at the Olympics, gave up her dream of being in a famous rock band, then left her fiancé two days before her wedding. Most recently, her cat has passed away and she has lost her job. Believing that she is of no value to anyone, Nora commits suicide. In between life and death, she finds herself at the Midnight Library where she is faced with a book containing everything she has ever regret in life. She is then giving the opportunity to go back and change any one of these decisions so that she can see for herself how her life would have ended up. After moving through hundreds of different lives, she must make a decision about what she finds to be fulfilling in life and what makes it worth living.
My thoughts on the book:
This book is incredibly hyped up all over the internet right now and while I did really enjoy it, I didn’t think that it lived up to the hype. I found this book really enjoyable to start off. I felt awful for Nora when she decided to end her life and was so glad that her story didn’t end there – she was able to get a second chance to try to “improve” her life. The metaphysics of this book seriously messed me up. The idea that there are infinite universes running in parallel to the one we are currently living honestly makes me nauseous but I kind of like the idea that we’re currently living all kinds of lives that we thought we never could. I enjoyed reading about Nora’s journey through different lives but found that the stories got a little repetitive and the middle of the book dragged on a bit. Reading about Nora returning to her life and knowing that she is in the right place for her was incredibly heartwarming and I was so happy she found her will to live.