The Astral Library by Kate QuinnMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Alexandria Watson - Alix - is down on her luck. She was fired from one of her three part-time jobs, her debit card was declined at the grocery store, and her roommate gave her one week to move out and find somewhere else to live. She visits her manager at the Boston Public Library to see if she can get more hours to work, but was unsuccessful. Frustrated, she goes through one of the BPL Reading Room doors only to discover that she has been transported to the Astral Library and her life is about to change!
This book is a fantastic immersion for the reader into the magical world of books! If you are in love with books, reading, book worlds, libraries, and librarians, then this book is for you! It's full of magical realism; set aside your real world expectations and get transported into various books.
What I loved about this book: the descriptions of the book worlds, the various period costumes, the elegant vocabulary (I wished I was reading the ebook instead so I could easily look up many of those unfamiliar words), the patterned edges of the book, the book's end pages. The author also mentions Henry Ford Centennial Library (in Dearborn, not Detroit as mentioned in the book); I worked at this library as one of my first library jobs!
What I didn't like about this book: the heavy handed overtones of The Library Board and many of the library detractors; it often felt like I was being lectured to. The middle section of the book got bogged down with going back and forth to many other books without any real destination or goal. Also, I have not read many fantasy novels so was not able to fully appreciate all the characters, locations, and authors mentioned.
"Have you ever wanted to live inside a book?" If so, then you will definitely enjoy reading this book!
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