The Library by Bella Osborne

 

The Library is the story of an unexpected friendship between two very different people. Tom is a lonely teen who feels invisible. His mum is dead and his dad is an alcoholic. Tom struggles to talk to people, especially girls. Then he gets the idea that maybe reading a few romances will help him with that. So he heads to the small village library. And there he meets Maggie. She's a pensioner in her 70s, and she loves to talk to people. But living alone on her small farm gets lonely. Her Saturday trips to the library for her book club is the highlight of her week. And when she starts to talk about books and life with Tom, she realizes, "She'd found a kindred spirit in the most unlikely place and she was going to hang onto him as if her life depended on it."

This is such a delightful read! I loved Tom and Maggie, and how Maggie becomes the family Tom needed so much. His surreptitious reading of romances made me laugh, while his struggles with his dad felt heartbreakingly real and so poignant. This book definitely has all the feels. Maggie's rallying the community to save their library from being shut down did feel very familiar and predictable, but everything else about this book was so good, I didn't mind the lack of surprises at the end. This is another 4-star read for Susan's Bookish Books Reading Challenge.

Happy Reading!

Similar books (that I also loved):

The Music of Bees by Eileen Garvin

The Lonely Hearts Club by Lucy Gilmore

The Last Chance Library by Freya Sampson

The Banned Bookshop of Maggie Banks by Shauna Robinson

 "Cover the bookstore while I'm out." Her voice became more animated. "From August to December. You could stay with me, get away from your parents, and work at the store. You could use the time to figure out what you want to do next."

 Maggie Banks is at loose ends. So when her friend, Rochelle, needs someone to work at her bookstore while she's out on maternity leave, Maggie heads to Bell River, a small town near Washington D.C. Maggie's not much of a reader; she especially doesn't like reading classic novels, which is all that the Bell Society will allow Cobblestone Books to sell.

But Maggie's never been one to follow the rules. She begins sneak-selling more modern books...first romances, then mysteries. Then, to bring in more revenue, she starts hosting literay mashup events. And she's having a lot of fun. But if the Bell Society finds out, Rochelle might lose the bookstore. 

What I loved about this novel:

• Maggie learning to love books and reading...even a few of the classics.
• The banter between Maggie and Malcolm, the Bell Society's 'spy', and their slowburn friendship. (Their 'dates' are very entertaining.)
• The clever mashup events Maggie hosts with local authors who turn Moby Dick into a romance and The Great Gatsby into science fiction.
• Maggie's exuberance and ability to connect with so many people in town.
• The humor and the happy ending. 

This is a very charming bookish book...perfect for Susan's Bookish Books Reading Challenge.

Happy Reading!

The Book Charmer by Karen Hawkins...

 

First line:  On the Saturday after her seventh birthday, a book spoke to Sarah May Dove. 

Plot summary:  The small town of Dove Pond is in financial trouble. Businesses are closing, people are leaving. But Sarah Dove, Dove Pond's librarian, has hopes that things are about to change. Because Grace Wheeler has just moved to Dove Pond with her eight-year-old niece, Daisy, and her former foster mother, Mama G, who's struggling with Alzheimer's. For Grace it's a temporary move, but the books are whispering to Sarah that Grace is just what Dove Pond needs. She might be just what Sarah's gruff neighbor and best friend, Travis, needs, too.

My thoughts:  Like its title suggests, this book is a charming and heartwarming read. The town of Dove Pond is full of quirky, fun characters--I mean, who could resist a character that can speak to books, or a library full of books that know just who needs to read them but won't always say why? Grace is another easy-to-like character. I had a lot of sympathy for her as she struggled to deal with her grief over her sister's death, and be a good mom to her niece. And I loved her relationship with Mama G! And I loved how the entire town of Dove Pond turned out to help them when they needed it. Her reluctant friendship with Travis also made me smile.  There's a bit of magical realism in this one, too, which just added to the enchantment. Family and friendship, humor and heart...this book has it all. 

Happy Reading!

In the Waning Light by Loreth Anne White

 

The story: Twenty years ago, Meg Brogan's older sister, Sherry, was raped and murdered. Meg herself nearly died that same night. When she woke from her coma she couldn't remember what she'd seen or what really happened to Sherry. Now, a successful true crime writer, Meg's returned to Shelter Bay, Oregon, to investigate her sister's murder. But no one in town wants her to rake up the past. And as Meg digs deeper, she begins to realize everyone around her is keeping secrets or telling lies about what happened that night. But she refuses to give up. Even when it puts her own life in danger. 

My thoughts:  Loreth Anne White knows how to write a compelling and suspenseful mystery. And Meg makes for a memorable character; she's stubborn, and feisty, and a little fragile at times as she struggles to retrieve her own uncertain memories of that awful day. My other two favorite characters were Blake Sutton, Meg's high school sweetheart whom she hasn't seen since she was eighteen, and his young son, Noah. Blake's keeping his own secrets about that day, which only added to the tension between them. The one thing I didn't love was reading all the snippets and excerpts from The Stranger Among Us, the book Meg is writing about her sister. I didn't feel like it added anything to the story. But the rest of the book is really good. So even though this is not my favorite Loreth Anne White novel, I still liked it a lot. 

Happy Reading!

Other books by Loreth Anne White that I've read:

In the Barren Ground

In the Dark