Book Review - The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin

Title: The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry
Author: Gabrielle Zevin
Genre: Fiction/ Contemporary
Published: 2014
 
Description: A.J. Fikry’s life is not at all what he expected it to be. His wife has died, his bookstore is experiencing the worst sales in its history, and now his prized possession, a rare collection of Poe poems, has been stolen. Slowly but surely, he is isolating himself from all the people of Alice Island – from Lambiase, the well-intentioned police officer who’s always felt kindly toward Fikry; from Ismay, his sister-in-law who is hell-bent on saving him from his dreary self; from Amelia, the lovely and idealistic (if eccentric) Knightley Press sales rep who keeps on taking the ferry to Alice Island, refusing to be deterred by A.J. bad attitude. Even the books in his store have stopped holding pleasure for him. These days, A.J. can only see them as a sign of a world that is changing too rapidly.
 
And then a mysterious package appears at the bookstore. It’s a small package, but large in weight. It’s that unexpected arrival that give A.J. Fikry the opportunity to make his life over, the ability to see everything anew. It doesn’t take long for the locals to notice the change overcoming A.J.; or for the determined sales rep, Amelia, to see her curmudgeonly client in a new light; or for the wisdom of all those books to overcome again the lifeblood of A.J.’s world; or for  everything to twist again into a version of his life that he didn’t see coming.
 
Review: A.J. Fikry is a bookshop owner, who has, after his wife’s death, become a little bitter and isolated. But when someone leaves something for him in his story, it changes his life forever. And for the better.
 
I have read “Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow” earlier this year, by author Gabrielle Zevin. Absolutely loved that book. I really wanted to pick up her other work, starting with “The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry. And I’m glad I did.
 
This story is warm, funny and moving and a true declaration of love for books. But also the unexpected twists and turns in life, that can sometimes look like challenges, but turn out to be the best thing to ever happen to you.
 
A.J. Fikry is a grumpy widower, whose life changes forever and he gets a chance for a new beginning. I loved this story and A.J. Fikry is a memorable character. The humor the books brings with itself and the message about second chances and finding joy in the unexpected really grabbed me.
 
As a booklover, I always love books about books. About writers, booksellers, readers, you name it. You share a love for books with the characters you’re reading about and you can more easily relate to them. At least with that aspect of the character.
 
There are a ton of other great characters in the book, like Ismay, A.J. sister-in-law. A woman who married a handsome man, but realizes she isn’t happy with him anymore. Because she never had him alone, he is not a good man. He never was. She just settled for it. And Amelia is also a lovely character, headstrong and never gave up on A.J., even though he was rude to her in the beginning. I love Lambiase, the police officer, who become a book lover because of A.J.
 
You don’t expect a contemporary fiction book like “The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry” to have major twists, but it does have a couple. And I liked them. But overall it’s a pretty straightforward story. I do feel like the conclusion was wrapped up a bit too fast. Something happens to A.J. at the end of the book, which Zevin doesn’t pay enough attention to, in my opinion. I had hoped that it would have been explored in more depth.
 
Should you pick this up? Definitely, it’s a beautiful story with amazing characters and a heartwarming story.
 
Rating: 4/ 5

Book Review - Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin

Title: Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow
Author: Gabrielle Zevin
Genre: Fiction/ Contemporary
Published: 2022
 
Description: On a bitter-cold day, in the December of his junior year at Harvard, Sam Masur exits a subway car and sees, amid the hordes of people waiting on the platform, Sadie Green. He calls her name. for a moment, she pretends she hasn’t heard him, but then, she turns, and a game begins: a legendary collaboration that will launch them to stardom. These friends, intimates since childhood, borrow money, beg favors, and, before even graduating college, they have created their first blockbuster, Ichigo. Overnight, the world is theirs. Not even twenty-five years old, Sam and Sadie are brilliant, successful, and rich, but these qualities won’t protect them from their own creative ambitions of the betrayals of their hearts.
 
Review: In “Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow” the world of gaming and literature meet. In itself, that seems like a clash of generations and cultures, but author Gabrielle Zevin manages to seamlessly connect those worlds in this novel.
 
Sam and Sadie have known each other since childhood, with videogames being the thing that connected them in the first place. They haven’t seen ach other for nine years, and they meet again. Both still into gaming, they decide to work together. But where Sam and Sadie can lose themselves in a videogame, there is no escaping the real world.
 
We follow Sam and Sadie in their lives together and apart, how they each deal with their success differently, but also with things like grief, love, friendship, depression, illness. It deals with pretty heavy themes at times, but it never gets too heavy.
 
“Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow” is an ode to friendship, with the gaming worlds as its background. I can understand that people who are not into gaming, it might not interest you. I’m not a gamer, at least not like these characters are, but I could relate to both Sam and Sadie at several stages in this story. I understand the hype of the book, I feel it, because this book grabbed me and I was captivated from start to finish. The writing is beautiful and I loved reading about this friendship. But I do also understand people who don’t get the hype.
 
I found a new favorite in “Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow””, but won’t recommend it to just anyone who loves reading. Because the theme of the gaming industry will make or break this book for most people.
 
Rating: 5/ 5