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thebookberrie's review against another edition
1.0
I wanted to love this book so much but unfortunately I just had too many problems with it.
The Library of Lost Things is about a girl named Darcy who loves books. One day at her job at a bookstore, a boy from school named Asher walks into her life. But Darcy has a secret- she's dealing with her mother's crushing hoarding problem and with a nosy new apartment manager, time is running out on her ability to hide it.
I don't know what it is with books about characters who love to read but they always gatekeep the FUCK out of being a bookworm and I'm honestly so tired of it. "You're not a reader if you x y or z!!" No, if you like stories and like to read you are a reader and there are no exceptions. You don't have to have been a fan of reading your entire life or even read 20 books a month to call yourself a reader and anyone who says otherwise can choke.
This book wants to pretend it's written for lovers of books but it is really: if you aren't a genius obsessive geek like Darcy who thinks about books 24/7, you are just a fake fan. Speed reading? Oh yeah doing it wrong. Even reading on an ereader is bad! Darcy makes the most bullshit comment ever and I literally almost dnf'd the damn book right there because of how much that pissed me off.
Stories are stories and ereaders are just another way to easily access them (ESPECIALLY the accessibility for people who can't get print copies easily due to location / digital ends up being cheaper because of sales / borrow digital from library easier than print / have trouble holding a heavy book because of various medical issues or disabilities / terrible eyesight / space issues- seriously I could keep going. But fuck those people in particular I guess!)
We're in 2019 still with that bullshit hot take that "wItH a ReAl BoOk, yOu FeEl tHe StOrY mOrE". I read this ON my ereader and huh, still felt the bullshit story here. I am a fan of books because of the stories they tell, not just the damn feel of paper. Turn on your location Darcy, I just want to talk.
So although I was okay with Darcy in the beginning, as I got to know her more, I started to dislike her so much. She's super pretentious and just endless in how perfect and genius she is. She has a photographic memory and get this- it is explained she got that way because she has "fallen in love with words" and from all the reading she's done. Wtf, where is my skill then?? I have tons of reader friends and none of us can do that either, dang. Oh right- we aren't all real readers anyway because ereaders or digital.
The Library of Lost Things is about a girl named Darcy who loves books. One day at her job at a bookstore, a boy from school named Asher walks into her life. But Darcy has a secret- she's dealing with her mother's crushing hoarding problem and with a nosy new apartment manager, time is running out on her ability to hide it.
I don't know what it is with books about characters who love to read but they always gatekeep the FUCK out of being a bookworm and I'm honestly so tired of it. "You're not a reader if you x y or z!!" No, if you like stories and like to read you are a reader and there are no exceptions. You don't have to have been a fan of reading your entire life or even read 20 books a month to call yourself a reader and anyone who says otherwise can choke.
This book wants to pretend it's written for lovers of books but it is really: if you aren't a genius obsessive geek like Darcy who thinks about books 24/7, you are just a fake fan. Speed reading? Oh yeah doing it wrong. Even reading on an ereader is bad! Darcy makes the most bullshit comment ever and I literally almost dnf'd the damn book right there because of how much that pissed me off.
Stories are stories and ereaders are just another way to easily access them (ESPECIALLY the accessibility for people who can't get print copies easily due to location / digital ends up being cheaper because of sales / borrow digital from library easier than print / have trouble holding a heavy book because of various medical issues or disabilities / terrible eyesight / space issues- seriously I could keep going. But fuck those people in particular I guess!)
We're in 2019 still with that bullshit hot take that "wItH a ReAl BoOk, yOu FeEl tHe StOrY mOrE". I read this ON my ereader and huh, still felt the bullshit story here. I am a fan of books because of the stories they tell, not just the damn feel of paper. Turn on your location Darcy, I just want to talk.
So although I was okay with Darcy in the beginning, as I got to know her more, I started to dislike her so much. She's super pretentious and just endless in how perfect and genius she is. She has a photographic memory and get this- it is explained she got that way because she has "fallen in love with words" and from all the reading she's done. Wtf, where is my skill then?? I have tons of reader friends and none of us can do that either, dang. Oh right- we aren't all real readers anyway because ereaders or digital.
readingrobin's review
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
A just okay story about a bookworm learning to come out of her shell and make connections with the world around her. Definitely will speak to introverts and those with an encyclopedic knowledge of literature. It was simply okay, though it would have benefited from a quicker pace and just more happening.
jay_mack9712's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This book had a lot of potential and there was some really good bones to it. But I struggled to connect with Darcy and found myself frustrated with a lot of the plot. However I think this book is perfect for those introverted teens that are wanting to see themselves in books.
hdbblog's review against another edition
4.0
Oh wow, this book hit me hard. For those of you who don’t know, I’ve started my Master’s Program and reading hasn’t come easily lately. It’s been a struggle to do the very thing that defines who I am. So it’s no surprise at all to me that I instantly fell in love with Darcy. She’s a girl who is built of stories. Words are her fuel, and she builds herself a life within the pages of books. I’m Darcy. Darcy is me. This book and I already were meant to be before I even picked it up.
Can I please thank Laura Taylor Namey for really nailing down what it’s like to live inside your own head? Darcy’s growth from page one, right on to the end, felt realistic to me. Battling her mother’s hoarding, trying to stay afloat in a world that wanted to knock her down, and just trying to be a person who had a place in the world, all of that was pure Darcy. I was so glad to see that there was no sugar coating around her world. Darcy’s brain was a a place that I could take shelter in, because it made sense. Namey hit the introvert gene, the anxiety driven thoughts, the books used as walls, all right on the head. If you’ve ever felt the least bit like Darcy, you’ll know as soon as you start reading this story.
Oh, and the other characters were so well fleshed out as well! Not one person in this book is overlooked. Marisol’s family was vibrant, and full of wild love. Asher was sweet, but not overly perfect. Even Jase, Bryn, and Landon, who didn’t get as much page time, were all just perfect puzzle pieces in the overall story. I felt like I was living this right alongside Darcy. I felt like I was part of their small world of plays, bonfires, and magical memories. This is the first time in a while that I’ve really felt nostalgic for high school, and it was a feeling that I’ll cherish.
I could gush on and on, if you’d let me. I could share with you the page of quotes that I jotted down while reading this, smiling the entire time. I’ll let you experience it for yourself though, because this book is well worth your time. Pick up The Library of Lost Things. Get lost in the pages. Grow with Darcy. You won’t regret a minute of it.
Can I please thank Laura Taylor Namey for really nailing down what it’s like to live inside your own head? Darcy’s growth from page one, right on to the end, felt realistic to me. Battling her mother’s hoarding, trying to stay afloat in a world that wanted to knock her down, and just trying to be a person who had a place in the world, all of that was pure Darcy. I was so glad to see that there was no sugar coating around her world. Darcy’s brain was a a place that I could take shelter in, because it made sense. Namey hit the introvert gene, the anxiety driven thoughts, the books used as walls, all right on the head. If you’ve ever felt the least bit like Darcy, you’ll know as soon as you start reading this story.
Oh, and the other characters were so well fleshed out as well! Not one person in this book is overlooked. Marisol’s family was vibrant, and full of wild love. Asher was sweet, but not overly perfect. Even Jase, Bryn, and Landon, who didn’t get as much page time, were all just perfect puzzle pieces in the overall story. I felt like I was living this right alongside Darcy. I felt like I was part of their small world of plays, bonfires, and magical memories. This is the first time in a while that I’ve really felt nostalgic for high school, and it was a feeling that I’ll cherish.
I could gush on and on, if you’d let me. I could share with you the page of quotes that I jotted down while reading this, smiling the entire time. I’ll let you experience it for yourself though, because this book is well worth your time. Pick up The Library of Lost Things. Get lost in the pages. Grow with Darcy. You won’t regret a minute of it.
nhi_nguyen's review against another edition
4.0
There's nothing cuter than a book about bookish romance! It dealt excellently with family (Darcy's father left her when when she was born and her mother never recovered from that), friendship (Darcy has one of the greatest best friend characters ever), and relationship (hot guy alert), along with self discovery. The romance was slow but definitely worth it in the ed. I love all the bookish references. Overall, this was such a fun read!
mvtyler5's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
0.5
This is awful. The plot is so confusing