The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry: A Novel

Zevin has written a fun and sad novel about a bookstore and its owner. The bookstore is located on a small island off of Massachusetts and is called "Island Books" and owned and operated by one A.J. Fikry. Fikry is depressed, hard to get along with, angry and a literary snob, which makes him very difficult to love and doesn't bring a lot of success to his bookstore. In fact, the bookstore is failing as the novel opens. Further, Fikry tells the book sales rep, Amelia Loman, that he does not like "postmodernism, postapocalyptic settings, postmortem narrators, or magic realism" (13) just to name a few of the literary things he does not like which include children's books and young adult. Fikry is trying to get by after the death of his wife the best he can. He drinks too much and says awful things when he should just be quiet. But then unexpectedly a baby comes into his life and turns everything around. After the baby, Maya, shows up, the novel moves quickly through her growing up and getting ready for college. We get to watch Fikry grow and change and most of all become more accepting. There's a love story included in here but I won't spoil it for you but you will simply love Fikry and his new love. There's a side story about Fikry's sister-in-law and her philandering husband along with the story of Fikry's new best friend, who just happens to be a cop. What makes this novel so wonderful is the story of the bookstore, it's not just used for background here, and each chapter opens with a short written piece by Fikry to his daughter Maya about a novel or short story he has read. One of my favorite of these is written over F. Scott Fitzgerald's "The Diamond as Big as the Ritz" which reads: "Gimmicky, oddball story of the challenges of owning a town made of diamonds and of the lengths the rich will go to protect their way of life. Fitzgerald is in fine form here. The Great Gatsby is unquestionably dazzling, but that novel occasionally seems overgroomed to me, like a garden topiary. The short-story format is a roomier, messier affair for him. 'Diamond' breathes like an enchanted garden gnome." This is a quirky entertaining novel which is not overly sentimental (though it could have been) and is at times funny, sad, and refreshing. On top of all that it tells about bookstores, bookclubs, books, and people who just love books. I only wish there were more novels out there like this one.

It was a struggle to read The Storied Life of A J Fikry because of the format I chose, but it was a more than worthwhile effort. Zevin weaves a wonderful story by creating marvelous characters. Other than A J, it seems at first that we’re heading toward caricature (Maya, Lambiase), but the characters surprise us. And the plot, likewise, seems headed toward a love affair between AJ and Amelia that is entirely predictable, but each of them is strong, so the predictability takes a back seat to the multi-faceted people. The twist (spoiler) is heart-rending but beautiful, because AJ, who starts in the prickly shell of of a literature esthete, keeps the good parts of shell but loses the rough edges through love. And then there’s Maya, the standard precocious child that inhabits so many books … except she turns out to be a lovely person. And Lambiase the local cop who develops a taste for literature. Alice Island could have been Martha's Vineyard (the hill and the truck that kills Daniel) or Nantucket (the store being "right in the center of the main strip (...) the second or third place you come to after you get off the ferry"). But it has the feel of the Cape. And then there’s the literature part. The book is a writer-nerd’s pleasure. The countless arguments in my critique groups about what belongs in which genre and what is good writing, often carried out over wine and beer, are played out in AJ’s cranky dismissal of Amelia on her first visit: ““How about I tell you what I don’t like? I do not like postmodernism, postapocalyptic settings, postmortem narrators, or magic realism. I rarely respond to supposedly clever formal devices, multiple fonts, pictures where they shouldn’t be—basically, gimmicks of any kind. I find literary fiction about the Holocaust or any other major world tragedy to be distasteful—nonfiction only, please. I do not like genre mash-ups à la the literary detective novel or the literary fantasy. Literary should be literary, and genre should be genre, and crossbreeding rarely results in anything satisfying.” The writing was good and clear. A bit hard to follow for mechanical reasons (see below) and because point of view wandered a bit between omniscient and close third person. In addition to being well-written, it was an easy, short, tear-jerking read. And then there was the excitement of trying to read it. That Amazon cares not a whit about the material it provides was evident. I need an e-book, and Amazon was willing to give me one … free. Except what Amazon gave me was a cover and a demand for $2.99 from a little bookstore in New Jersey. The file I got had most of Zevin’s words in it, but presented as if they’d gone through a Cuisinart. Sentences jammed together, making it hard to determine who was talking. Clearly a ripped off copy, presumably a copyright violation. I read it anyway and enjoyed it.

A grumpy bookshop owner finds a two-year-old girl abandoned in his store, and starts changing his life. I added this to the TBR queue after thoroughly enjoying ‘Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow’ by the same author. If anything, I loved this one even more. I feared it might be schmaltzy, but it wasn’t. Studded with mentions of other novels and short stories, with echoes of Silas Marner, life-and-literature-affirming, an easy read, but one that will linger in my mind. Great characters from an astutely witty author. I’ve sent off for her latest.

- Great flow - Easy language - Beautiful Story I read a good novel after a long time and if you like an easy and feel good read this is the book

It is on Alice Island where you can find the only bookstore called Island Books. The owner of this bookstore is 39 year old A.J. Fikry. A.J.'s life has been given over to books. He is set in his ways on what he likes to read and expects everyone to like what he likes. He lives upstairs in the bookstore. Life has not been going well for A.J. Over a year ago, his beloved wife, Nic, died in a car accident and now, sadness and loneliness have taken over his life. His business is not doing well either. He is drinking a lot, living on frozen dinners, not exercising and becoming withdrawn. A.J. has a good relationship with his sister-in-law. Chief Lambiase, the police officer on Alice Island is a kind man with a big heart, who checks up on A.J. at the bookstore and ends up buying a book. The Chief likes detective stories, but A.J. wants him to try reading something different for a change. When a new Sales Rep from Knightly Press comes into the store to show A.J. the new releases, A.J. is rude and refuses all her suggestions. He wants to do business with the former Sales Rep, who knew what A.J. liked, but sadly, he passed away. Now Amelia Loman is the new Sales Rep. A.J.'s attitude doesn't move her in the least. Amelia is not giving up on A.J. A.J. has plans of selling his bookstore and auctioning off his most valuable possession named Tamerlane, a rare collection of poems by Edgar Allan Poe worth 400,000$. It was locked in a glass case. When this is done, he can retire. On one of his nights of binging, Tamerlane is stolen right out of his home. It was not insured. He hurries to the police station to file a report of the theft. Chief Lambiase tells A.J. he will do all he can to retrieve it. A.J. doesn't lock his door any more, because there is nothing left to steal. One day, he decides to go outside and when he returns, he finds a package in the back of the bookstore and with it, there is a note. A.J.'s life would never be the same. The people of Alice Island hear about this strange package and they are so curious that they have to go to the bookstore to see for themselves. Of Course, they couldn't come without purchasing a book. The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry is not only a story about books and the love of books, it is a story about the ups and downs in life and how we choose to cope. The story includes love, loss and second chances. Gabrielle Zevin has written a book with a story that is entertaining and uplifting. The main character A.J. along with the supporting characters are characters you won't soon forget. We readers have busy and at times stressful lives. We need to make time for ourselves and to me, that means being transported to a different world with a well written book that has a good story along with interesting characters. Who can ask for anything more?

始めはページが進みにくかったのですが、途中から止まらなくなり最後はぽろぽろ泣いてしまいました。 読んでよかったです。

I enjoyed this book. The author has the ability to really paint a picture with words. I found it easy to follow the story as if a film was playing out in my head. Characters were well developed and not predictable. Although the time-lines seem to be inconsistent to some extent, it does not interfere at all. Highly recommended.