Gabrielle Zevin has written a lovely novel for those who can make a day of paging through the shelves of a small, independent bookstore. To fully appreciate the story, it’s best if you touch the paper pages and mark your place with a scrap of paper or the dust cover flap.
A.J. Fikry is a throwback. A man in his 30’s, he is the owner/proprietor of a small bookstore on a rather isolated island in Massachusetts. Quite cantankerous for a young man, he was embittered by the sudden death of his wife and partner, an Alice Island native, for whom the creation of a bookstore and event locale was the realization of a lifelong dream.
Bereft in his widowhood, A.J. is only interested in stocking books to his taste, eschewing popular children’s titles or books that might appeal to the island’s summer people. Author events are too messy, emails and the internet an unnecessary intrusion. And then in rapid succession a novice publisher’s representative disrupts his solitary routine, a prized Poe first edition is stolen, and an abandoned baby appears with instructions for A.J. to raise her.
Alice Island is a tight-knit and quirky community held together by a love of place and acceptance of one another. As Fikry’s life is turned upside down dealing with new and different circumstances, those around him change as well. Take the time to meet A.J. and the rest of the people of Alice Island. It will be time well spent.
Zevin cleverly uses quotes from favorite authors to front each chapter and show Fikry’s transformation. From page to page and chapter to chapter, Gabrielle Zevin has written a love letter to readers who cherish the special book on the shelf and the writers and booksellers who put it in their hands.
IN A NUTSHELL
- Genre: Fiction
- Locale: Massachusetts
- Time: Contemporary
- Book Group Potential: Excellent
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