The Midnight Library: The No.1 Sunday Times bestseller and worldwide phenomenon

by Matt Haig

*Pre-order Matt Haig's new novel The Life Impossible now*

THE SUNDAY TIMES NUMBER ONE BESTSELLING WORLDWIDE PHENOMENON
READERS' MOST LOVED BOOK OF 2021
WINNER OF THE GOODREADS CHOICE AWARD FOR FICTION

'BEAUTIFUL' Jodi Picoult, 'UPLIFTING' i, 'BRILLIANT' Daily Mail, 'AMAZING' Joanna Cannon, 'ABSORBING' New York Times, 'THOUGHT-PROVOKING' Independent

Nora's life has been going from bad to worse. Then at the stroke of midnight on her last day on earth she finds herself transported to a library. There she is given the chance to undo her regrets and try out each of the other lives she might have lived. Which raises the ultimate question: with infinite choices, what is the best way to live?

• ISBN10: 1786892715
• ISBN13: 9781786892713
• Publish Date: 13 August 2020
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: GB
• Imprint: Canongate Books
• Edition: Main
• Format: eBook (EPUB)
• Pages: 304
• Language: English

Reviews

[layawaydragon]

Got bored and quit halfway through. Not sure why, but maybe it hit too close to home.

[maggiefan]

YOLO

[Berls]

I feel like everyone needs to know before starting this book that the first 20% is VERY depressing. Matt Haig takes us to a very dark place where the main character is ready to end her life... so it's depressing. And then it gets really truly good. So don't give up on it too fast.

I really enjoyed going with Nora on her journey of self-discovery. She starts off in a truly dark place where she feels that her life is at an absolute dead end and thanks to the journey she finds life's potential. Along the way Nora learns so many valuable lessons, such as that we have to really live for ourselves not others, that sometimes that decision you regret wouldn't have been everything you dreamed it to be, that sometimes you just need to give it some time and things will look entirely different.

All these lessons are wrapped up in a really neat world of the Midnight Library - a library full of all the infinite different paths Nora's life could have taken with every single decision she could have made differently. Such a neat concept and really well executed.

I listened to The Midnight Library, narrated by Carey Mulligan. I'm pretty sure this is the first book I've read a book Carey has narrated but I would happily listen again. It was a solid performance and the characters were delivered really well. I listened comfortably at my normal 2x speed.

[Quirky Cat]

If I had to choose just one book that I read in 2022 that utterly wrecked me, it would be The Midnight Library by Matt Haig. I almost regret that it took me nearly two years to get around to reading it. I may have waited even longer if not for a friend's recommendation.

How would you react if you learned that there is an entire library of potential lives for you to live? Each book contains a different path, created through a different series of choices you could have made. Which life would you choose?

Nora Seed has been presented with this challenging question. After finding herself wanting to die, she woke up in the Midnight Library. Now she must choose which life she would like to live, out of an infinite number of choices.

“Never underestimate the big importance of small things”

Words cannot fully describe what this book did to me. The Midnight Library ripped me open, gleefully showed me my own beating heart, and then put me back together again. In other words, it utterly wrecked me.

The Midnight Library covers many heavy subjects, and it is admittedly not suited for everyone. Nora Seed is suicidal at several points in this book, including the beginning. She loses loved ones, and not all of those losses are kind. Likewise, she does experience the death of a pet. Additionally, some of the deaths that occur involve cancer or overdoses. So please consider yourself warned of these subjects before diving in.

All of that being said, this is a powerful read. If you think you can handle all of my warnings above, then please make an attempt to read it. It is so worth it. It is worth every minute of pain and every tear shed. I promise you this.

“A person was like a city. You couldn't let a few less desirable parts put you off the whole. There may be bits you don't like, a few dodgy side streets and suburbs, but the good stuff makes it worthwhile.”

The Midnight Library takes a look at what it takes to be a person – to live. It's introspective and causes the reader to look at all the choices they've made in life. But it also teaches us to appreciate those choices, for they made us who we are. There is something so simple and so beautiful in that fact.

I opted to listen to the audiobook of The Midnight Library, which was narrated by Carey Mulligan. She did a wonderful job here, and so I am very grateful that she was able to lend her voice to this story.

Read more reviews over at Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks

[Joséphine]

Initial thoughts: For the most part, I really enjoyed The Midnight Library. It satisfies that curiosity many of us carry around, "What if?" We wonder how life would've turned out if we had done something differently. When these are tied up with regrets, a lot of complicated feelings emerge. The concept of the book did really well in addressing that and weaving many stories into one.

Towards the end though, I felt that The Midnight Library took on the form of Mitch Albom's brand of story telling. It's not a bad thing, really, but not entirely my cup of tea anymore either. I was hoping for a fair bit more complexity in Nora's development and was a little disappointed at how linear the overarching narrative was. It almost felt like the focus was much more on the moral of the story more than the plot. Then again, perhaps that was the entire point and I just missed it.

[jen20]

2.5⭐️

[brdsk]

A very cool premice and a disappointing book.

The story starts with a seriously depressed character committing suicide. Which is detailed and written well, but reads incredibly triggering. DO NOT READ THIS BOOK IF YOU ARE THINKING OF COMMITTING SUICIDE. In fact, I had to lay the book down and contact support lines as the graphic description and deep despair of the character made me feel equally awful and hopeless, and made want to do the same as the character did.

That could be considered good writing, by some. But I was shocked and disappointed there was no warning for the suicide in the book.

From there the book becomes incredibly condescending and boring in a manner or self help books written by people that think medical depression can be treated with going for walks.

As a book that is obviously trying to say that there are many ways to live our lives and that while we are alive we can change, it does a remarkably bad job actually understanding what real depression is. This book keeps telling you "stop feeling this way, feel better". Which can be a very harmful message to hear as it completely invalidates how multidimensional depression and its sources can be.

If you are as depressed as the main character is, please reach out to others and get help. You are not alone.


The main character is pretty one dimentional beyond her depression. Most of the plot simply goes over different lives she could have lived. Those experiences are what helps the character get better. These read as well-meaning but ultimately fall flat. They feel repetitive in a way that inspires boredom. It took me weeks to get thorough this book, when usually I read even long fiction books in just a few sittings.

In between those lives, there are pages and pages of "stop regretting things", & "your perspective is wrong" conversations. Which again feel like a lecture from a nice mentally healthy person who does not understand depression.


Overall, for a book with so much praise this is a serious disappointment. I think the same concept could have been a genuinely great book, but it simply fails and is mostly boring to read. I do not recommend this book.

I loved the premise of this book. It reminded me of the movie Sliding Doors, not that it’s anything like it but the idea of parallel universes and if you had made a different choice what your life may have looked like. I really loved this book. I love any kind of fantasy book dealing with parallel universes or things of that sort. Beautifully written and I enjoyed every minute of it.

[mrs_mander_reads]

Another solid Haig read. I loved the concept of each decision creating a parallel life and choosing between those. Such a good book.

[kimbacaffeinate]

The tale that unfolds is magical, insightful, and pure genius. If you are a fool for It’s A Wonderful Life and watch it every Christmas like me, you will love Haig’s meaningful tale.

The library books contain all of Nora’s alternate lives. Every decision made is a new version of a life Nora would have lived. With Mrs. Elm’s guidance, Nora opens books and dives into these alternate life. Sort of trying them on for size. This isn’t always easy particularly because Nora remembers her “root life” but knows nothing of these new lives.

Do you remember wanting to grow up to be a doctor, the first woman on the moon, an explorer who travels Antarctica? Well, Nora get’s to explore all of hers. She owns a pub, becomes a gold medalist, a rock star, a philosopher, a traveler, a glaciologist, wife and mother. Each has its pros and cons. For example, in some timelines her best friend has died or her brother is ill.

Through the books, Nora gains knowledge and appreciation for the seemly pointless life she had. I loved Haig’s writing. His writing is poignant, empathetic and inspiring. It is as if he’s walked in these character’s footsteps.

Carey Mulligan narrates and was the perfect pick for Nora’s perspective. The story flowed wonderfully and she enhanced an already brilliant story through inflection, pacing and tone. This review was originally posted at Caffeinated Reviewer