Ok. So...I read about this novel in some publication (newspaper, magazine, can't really recall) and thought it sounded clever so I ordered it. It then sat on my shelf (Thank you, Outlander obsession) until a friend suggested that I read it, so now that I am between Outlander books, I picked it up and read it. And I am sadly disappointed.
A reviewer (Nancy Simpson-Brice, Book Vault) is quoted on the inside cover:
This heartwarming story is the answer for those who loved The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry. Book lovers will applaud Sara and her love of books. Book clubs will delight in this delightful caper through book-loving middle American. Read this and smile!
Sigh...Where do I begin?
1. The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry is in a league of it's own. Although I was excited to read this comparison and thought for sure I'd like Broken Wheel because of this connection. The two stories are nothing alike. Nothing.
2. Perhaps I should not put stock in a reviewer who uses "delight" and "delightful" in the same sentence. My 9th grade daughter even knows better than to do that. English 101 people. Come on.
3. Yes...Sara loved books. Sara loved books so much because it was easier to read than live. Her books and her love of reading was shared with her friend Amy, the Broken Wheel townie who she leaves Sweeden to visit, only to find her DOA. Seriously. But, I don't applaud Sara's love of books. If she was doing something fabulous with her love of books, yes, I'd applaud. But she hides from the world because of her books. Even when she opens the bookstore, she doesn't do what she could do to make her town love to read. Which leads me to...
4. Book-loving middle America? Hardly. Sara opens a bookstore and no one reads the books. Well...one or two people do, but Sara hardly inspires the town to read. She inspires the gossips to come out and check out her store but she only sells 2-3 books a day. This town doesn't read! At all! Ok...John reads Bridget Jones' Diary. And finds it to be hilarious. Which I find to be hilarious, but one man does not a town make.
5. I did like the story. I like Sara and Tom and I think the use of Amy's letters is clever but I think the novel as a whole fails in it's attempt to be a book about a book lover who inspires others to read books.
I'd also like to say that the laundry list of characters in the novel was hard to keep straight in my head because there was nothing about each character that made me remember him/her. Except Josh and Caroline. They are my favorites and I'd read a book about just them. Maybe Bivald can explore this for her second novel.
As with any book, I think readers should make their own decisions about books and whether or not to read them. Just because I didn't love it, doesn't mean you won't. Maybe I wasn't in the right frame of mind. Maybe I was so in love with A.J. Fikry that even Shakespeare wouldn't have compared in my mind. Of course, it may also be true that Bivald's first attempt at writing didn't produce the desired results. Bottom line, Reader, you be the judge. This is just my opinion and you are entitled to yours!
Happy reading!
-Dodie
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