Madeline
The Midnight Library was put on my to read list in two very significant ways. At the very same time, my bookclub voted to read it, and it was a nominee of the best in fiction 2020 on the Goodreads Choice Awards. And it later won the category.
Premise of The Midnight Library
The Midnight Library starts with a women who has a very depressing life. She had had many opportunities to have an amazing life but the choices she has made did not align. And very quickly in the book, she kills herself. But it is not the end.
She finds herself in a library with the librarian from her childhood. The library is full of an infinite amount of books, each a different path in life she could have taken. One by one, she gets to experience what a specific choice would bring her at the same moment she killed herself. She has the opportunity to see where she would have ended up. And each time she is disappointed in that life, she is brought back to the library. I bet you can’t guess what the moral of the story is.
Compared to Other Nominations of Best In Fiction 2020
As mentioned in my post, My Quick Reads for the Goodreads Awards, I sped read a number of books on the best in fiction 2020 list. I enjoyed The Midnight Library; however, of the five books on the list I read, I would not have put this as my number one. That would probably go to Such a Fun Age.
One thing about the Goodreads Choice Awards is that it is done by popular vote. This means that if a book has enough hype and is read by enough readers, it will likely receive the award. Again, I am not saying I disliked this book, but if more people read it, it is likely to get more votes.
There was a close second in the best in fiction 2020 category, Anxious People, which lost to The Midnight Library by a measly five votes. I have not read it, but having enjoyed The Midnight Library, it is now very high on my list of books to read.
Final Thoughts
I really enjoyed The Midnight Library. I believe it deserved some recognition in the best in fiction 2020 Goodreads Choice Awards; however, I enjoyed many other books on the list. That being said, there are a number of great books that were nominated this year.
