The Midnight Library
Matt Haig (2020)
“A suicidal woman discovers a library between life and death where every book is a life she could have lived — and none of them are what she expected.”
At a Glance
Nora Seed, overwhelmed by regret and depression, attempts suicide and wakes in the Midnight Library — an infinite space between life and death where every book on the shelves represents a life she could have lived if she had made different choices. Guided by her childhood librarian Mrs. Elm, Nora tries on alternate lives: Olympic swimmer, glaciologist, rock star, philosophy professor, vineyard owner. Each life contains its own disappointments and losses. Nora eventually discovers that the only life worth living is her own — not because it is perfect, but because it is hers. She chooses to return to her root life and truly live it.
Read full summary →Why This Book Matters
Published during the COVID-19 pandemic, The Midnight Library became one of the defining novels of the early 2020s, selling over six million copies worldwide and spending more than a year on the New York Times bestseller list. It was selected for numerous book clubs, including the Today Show and Good Morning America, and has been translated into over 40 languages. The novel crystallized a cultural moment of collective existential reckoning.
Diction Profile
Informal to middle register — conversational prose punctuated by philosophical observation
Moderate