“It is quite a revelation to discover that the place you wanted to escape to is the exact same place you escaped from. That the prison wasn’t the place, but the perspective.”
Nora Seed’s life hasn’t turned out anything like she has planned. She is estranged from her brother, she is working at a record store where she is about to get fired, her neighbor no longer needs her to pick up medication, her piano student is quitting and her cat dies. Nora decides the universe no longer needs her, so she decides to end her life. As she closes her eyes, she is transported to The Midnight Library. It’s a place where every life she could have had is written in a book and placed on a shelf. She is given the chance to try those lives on to see if they’re a better fit.
I added The Midnight Library to my to-read list after seeing it listed as a bestseller. The synopsis sounded interesting. I waited several weeks for it to become available as an ebook. It is probably a very popular read right now. The book isn’t very long, though, and I read it over two days.
Nora’s first book to read is her book of regrets. It weighs her soul down, but forces her to figure out what she would like to be different in her life. As she goes through each life, as soon as she becomes dissatisfied, she goes back to The Midnight Library. In each life, she learns something new, but she starts to realize she will never escape the library until she figures out if life is worth living or if she truly wants to give up.
I enjoyed reading The Midnight Library. It’s a modern-day fable told in a very fascinating way. It teaches the same lesson learned in Into the Wild – “Happiness is only real when shared.” We all need love and relationships in our lives to make them feel like they’re worth living.
Do you enjoy modern-day fables? Share your favorite in the comments.