The Bookshop On The Corner

by Jenny Colgan

[layawaydragon]

I loved everything about The Bookshop on the Corner.

Except the name. It’s a bookmobile not a corner store, which gave me the wrong mental image. Same with the book cover. I want to see the van. It’s awesome. Come on, work with me here!

So I should say, everything substantial was perfect. I knew when I started the Message to Readers dedication this was going to be good. That was adorable and sweet. Don’t skip it! I LOVE Colgan’s voice/writing. Her backlog is now on my TBR list.

The Good:

LOVED Nina
Loved the writing
Loved the plot
Loved the message to readers in the beginning
Every character felt real
Quotable
Book recommendations

Nina is wonderful and flawed. I connected with her so much it hurt. She’s been coasting through her life with books and her life is in upheaval with the library’s new direction.

It’s a mid-life crisis. She’s a hopeless romantic. It’s brilliantly introspective rather than external cruising for dudes and make-overs. I am so impressed with how real her character is, her internal dialogue, and her progression.

The first third is set-up: her life at the library, what’s changing, and getting on the path to the aforementioned bookmobile store. At no point was I anxious to move on. I loved every minute of it.
She’d managed to hold reality at bay for the best part of thirty years, but now it was approaching at an incredibly speedy rate, and she was absolutely going to have to do something—anything—about it.

And then the fun of her new venture began. OH BOY! Here’s two non-spoiler pieces that I picked out: the ewe birth and silly conversation about what kind of a sofa Nina's is.

After that, I sped through it. I couldn’t stop to make Goodreads updates. I did make pages of bookmarks and highlights though. Including like every passage about book recommendations.

Not only was it a book lover's dream, it wasn't predictable. I didn't know who, how or why as far as the romance and Nina's business went.

There are some sex scenes later on. It’s glossy perfection rather than erotic details, which can be read in public without embarrassment. I was reading my copy at work because it was slow and I couldn’t resist.

P.S. very disappointed Up on the Rooftops isn’t a real book. I honestly searched for it after finishing The Bookshop on the Corner, desperate to read it. That’s just mean, Colgan.