A review by lv_ct
The Midnight Library by Matt Haig

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

TW: Suicide, Death


Nora Seed feels as though her life is collapsing around her, and she is just a black hole.
Enter The Midnight Library.
In this library are books containing alternate universes, all surrounding Nora's potential lives and the regrets she holds not pursuing certain decisions in her "root life." Led by her old school librarian, she explores these lives, with a promise that when she finds a life she wants to stay in, she can. However, the ultimate question stands - what is it that Nora Seed was missing from her root life? And will she find the life she wishes to live before time runs out?


Notice: I do not believe this book is glorifying suicide. While there is something to say about suicide being used to "kick things off," Haig also uses Hugo's character to show that suicide is not how you enter the Midnight Library/explore these alternate universes/go on an adventure.
  • Furthermore, I feel as though this book is not supposed to fully be an anti-suicide PSA, but more so a "live your life how you dream it." It is an inspirational tale of how the ordinary can be important. If you're someone like me who does fight depression and has dreamed of more fantastical living (*cough* daydreaming you were a Marvel hero *cough*) and felt as though you were missing out on your life, then I highly recommend this book.


Pros:
  • This book feels very hopeful and inspirational, filled with many lessons to learn.
  • I enjoy the style of writing that Matt Haig uses (but this is a personal feeling, I know others have said they do not enjoy it.)
  • I am glad that Matt Haig does not make the moral of the story "Well she just needs to be married and have a child to feel better." Nora discusses how her own parent's mental health affected her and her brother's lives. 
  • This book got me emotional a good few times! There are moments where Haig's writing helps to depict Nora's emotions and it helped me envision those feelings.
  • The "main regrets" Nora held were explored well. All of them feel pretty naturally depicted in their flaws (except for:
    Arctic Explorer life.
    )
  • Lots of good philosophical quotes/lessons!

Cons:
  • The lessons are not as subtle as they could be, unfortunately. Often they are spelled out for the reader.
  • I do wish there was more time to explore some of the "side lives" Nora experiences towards the end of the book.
  • The fact that what was "disappointing" in
    her Arctic Scientist/Explorer life (and what subsequently brought her back to the library) was the unsatisfactory sex with Hugo felt kind of silly to me.
  • I wish the relationship with her brother was dived a bit more into in the earlier parts of the book than the mid/later sections. It would have made a lot more moments a bit more poignant.
    • Furthermore, I wish we could have just had a bit more of how her brother's life was affected by their parents.
      We get an explanation of how his gay identity made life a bit more difficult when trying to live up to their parent's expectations, but it was kinda just thrown in.
  • I believe this book could have benefited from being a bit longer just to flesh out some bigger details.

Conclusion:
I enjoyed this book! It actually interested me in looking into more of Matt Haig's writings (How To Stop Time is up next for me!) and I think there are some good inspirational messages within it. It left me with a feeling of appreciation, and there were many moments in which I had to take a second to self-reflect. It's ultimately a book that shows that we all create our own destiny - a message that I believe a lot of people need to hear.
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