Originally posted on my blog Nonstop Reader.
The Librarianist is a poignant character driven novel by Patrick deWitt. Released 4th July 2023 by HarperCollins on their Ecco imprint, it's 352 pages and is available in hardcover, audiobook, and ebook formats. Paperback format due out in early 3rd quarter 2024 from the same publisher. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout.
The narrative moves very slowly and develops over time, but the prose is lyrical and luminous and so well crafted. It's not an action driven book in any meaning of the word, and the disparate characters are often head-scratchingly oblique to the story, but it is certainly capable of holding readers' interest.
Although marketed as a story about stories (and how living a life *for* literature can make people miss their own life stories), there are very few actual stories or book tie-ins to be found here.
It's an odd and polarizing novel; readers will either love or hate it. Bottom line: it's very well written, develops very slowly, and seems to drag at several points.
Four stars. Definitely one for fans of introspective, introvert characters who will enjoy the prose and not mind the meandering narrative.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
Reviewed by annieb123 on
Reading updates
- 6 January, 2024: Started reading
- 6 January, 2024: Finished reading
- 6 January, 2024: Reviewed