Scan barcode
buzzlebee's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness
Moderate: Death of parent, Panic attacks/disorders, and Alcohol
Minor: Self harm, Drug abuse, and Alcoholism
gwchance336's review against another edition
dark
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Minor: Drug abuse and Suicide attempt
joshjohn's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide and Death
Minor: Animal death, Domestic abuse, and Drug abuse
_nata1ia_'s review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.75
Not for me. Too many sad events happening one after another, didn’t ever feel like it would get better for her and was too saddening for me personally. But very good writing and still glad that I read it!! :)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, Animal death, and Drug abuse
emtees's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Nora Seed is deeply depressed. She lives alone with just her cat, works a dead-end job, and has no really meaningful relationships. Her life is a string of failures: the swimming career she gave up as a teenager, the band she quit when they were on the verge of signing a record deal, the broken engagement and faded friendships. When she loses her cat and her job on the same day, it is enough to push her over the edge into a suicide attempt. But rather than her life coming to an end, Nora finds herself in the Midnight Library, a mysterious world between life and death where her childhood mentor guides her through the books of all her lives, each one branching off from a decision she made differently. Nora is given a choice - if, before her real life comes to an end, she can find a life in the infinite options of the library that would have made her happy, she can go there and carry on as if those were the choices she made. So Nora sets out to explore her different lives - the one where she got married, the one where she is a world-famous rockstar or an Olympic gold medalist, the one where she followed her childhood dream of studying glaciers or moved to Australia - hoping desperately to find a life where she is happy. But as each life just brings with it more disappointment, Nora begins to worry that the problem isn’t the choices she made, but something inherent in her that makes true happiness impossible.
It took me a while to begin to appreciate this book but once I did I was really happy that I had read it. The concept of a character being able to live out all her potential lives isn’t a new one, but it’s a trope I always enjoy and was the reason I picked up this book. It’s a trope that tends to lend itself to more literary fantasy, as here, but there was a surprising amount of consistent world-building in the way the Midnight Library worked. But what I really came to think of as the strength of this books as the way Nora’s character was handled and how the author resisted the urge to make some big point about the meaning of happiness at the expense of her reality. Nora isn’t an enjoyable character to spend much time with, but that’s sort of the point; she’s alienated everyone in her life, including herself. As she found that in life after life she was the same lonely, depressed person, I really wondered where the story could possibly be going. But eventually, through her exploration of the endless lives, Nora began to find the things she did care about, the common threads that made all her lives, even her real one, worthwhile. Though it wasn’t predictable from the beginning, The Midnight Library ended up being a deeply hopeful book, but not because it came up with some facile cure for depression or disappointment. Instead, it is the type of story looks at the mundane, crushing darkness of depression and finds a way to shine a light against it. I really appreciated that Nora’s mental health struggles were central and real in this story. It would have been easy to put down her depression as a product of her choices or her attitude, and in fact, that’s what Nora herself initially does; she’s looking for a life where she isn’t depressed. But depression is a part of Nora’s story and I was glad the book didn’t gloss over it. What Nora was looking for, and ultimately found, was a life where she could find happiness in spite of depression, and that’s a level of nuance that I really appreciated.
It took me a while to begin to appreciate this book but once I did I was really happy that I had read it. The concept of a character being able to live out all her potential lives isn’t a new one, but it’s a trope I always enjoy and was the reason I picked up this book. It’s a trope that tends to lend itself to more literary fantasy, as here, but there was a surprising amount of consistent world-building in the way the Midnight Library worked. But what I really came to think of as the strength of this books as the way Nora’s character was handled and how the author resisted the urge to make some big point about the meaning of happiness at the expense of her reality. Nora isn’t an enjoyable character to spend much time with, but that’s sort of the point; she’s alienated everyone in her life, including herself. As she found that in life after life she was the same lonely, depressed person, I really wondered where the story could possibly be going. But eventually, through her exploration of the endless lives, Nora began to find the things she did care about, the common threads that made all her lives, even her real one, worthwhile. Though it wasn’t predictable from the beginning, The Midnight Library ended up being a deeply hopeful book, but not because it came up with some facile cure for depression or disappointment. Instead, it is the type of story looks at the mundane, crushing darkness of depression and finds a way to shine a light against it. I really appreciated that Nora’s mental health struggles were central and real in this story. It would have been easy to put down her depression as a product of her choices or her attitude, and in fact, that’s what Nora herself initially does; she’s looking for a life where she isn’t depressed. But depression is a part of Nora’s story and I was glad the book didn’t gloss over it. What Nora was looking for, and ultimately found, was a life where she could find happiness in spite of depression, and that’s a level of nuance that I really appreciated.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Suicide attempt, and Drug abuse
Moderate: Death of parent and Self harm
The main story centers on a suicide attempt by the protagonist. There is a realistic depiction of depression and multiple references to drug abuse and self-harm.aas's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Death of parent, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Car accident, Drug abuse, Alcohol, Mental illness, Grief, Suicidal thoughts, Addiction, and Self harm
mo_leabhraichean's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
fast-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
3.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide
Minor: Drug abuse and Alcoholism
ashlo26's review against another edition
4.0
I read this in one day, which was very surprising. I think it waffled a bit, and the quantum physics stuff went over my head. But I related to the story, the feeling of stickiness and lack of potentials. And I related to coming out on the other side of that. This is a lovely book for those struggling with depression, or who have recently come out of depression.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Drug abuse
gaillypoo's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
slow-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
There was no warning about the self harm and that would have been an easy and helpful thing to add
Content Warnings
Graphic: Self harm, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Addiction, Mental illness, Cancer, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Car accident, Sexual content, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Vomit, Addiction, Animal death, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Gaslighting, Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Grief, Mental illness, Stalking, and Medical content
khughes611's review against another edition
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Mental illness, Self harm, Suicide, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Death of parent
Minor: Alcohol and Alcoholism