Reviews

The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin

braese's review against another edition

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hopeful medium-paced

4.0

kaebirdie's review against another edition

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4.0

I did like this book and I found it pretty compelling. Some of the characters needed maybe a bit more filling in, or tweaking to seem more cohesive. I think I would've liked to hear from Maya more, for instance. But the writing was lovely and I'd read it again.

ginehring's review against another edition

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

4.75

birdinflight1's review against another edition

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4.0

Sweet story of curmudgeon meets baby.

alexismeyer's review against another edition

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4.0

A beautiful story that is perfect for anyone that loves books, literary references, and a cozy tale.
"We read to know we're not alone; we read because we are alone; we read and we are not alone."
4.5 stars

aryan_a's review

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fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

rmizerek's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted sad fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

callienicole's review against another edition

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3.0

So just to be upfront, this story had several f-bombs and misuses of Jesus's name, which I don't appreciate as a Christian. This automatically knocks off a star or two for me. Also, some sex references that were a bit too much (and the sexual situations in this book are all coming from a secular perspective, obviously). But the book gets three stars because I liked seeing how this grouchy bookseller's life turned out. The story follows A.J. Fikry, a drunken, widowed bookseller who has a baby abandoned in his shop. As he bonds with the girl and decides to adopt her, she is the catalyst for slowly turning his life around. The book is written in a really interesting way - present tense from the perspectives of different characters. And I loved how everything in this book centered so much around. . .books. So yes, books + grumpy man adopts a baby + satisfying ending = it gets 3 stars from me just because I can't not love that kind of story.

veronikar's review against another edition

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emotional inspiring medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

serenaaldo's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25