The Library of Borrowed Hearts by Lucy Gilmore, narrated by Leanne Woodward, Aven Shore, Joe Jameson, and Bob Ball, explores the connections between library books and people throughout time and the town of Colville, Washington. Chloe Sampson is not quite a librarian but works in a library to earn enough to care for her siblings who were abandoned by their only parent, Ravenna, when Chloe thought she could go to college and begin her own life.
Chloe and her co-worker discover writing in the margins of Tropic of Cancer by Henry Miller, which was banned in the 1960s for its risque content. But the notes in these margins seem like the beginnings of an illicit love story. Thus, the scavenger hunt to find the next installment of this romance begins in the discarded stacks in the basement and in other bookstores.
What’s not to love about a book-based scavenger hunt?
Even as she’s hanging on the edge of her seat to see what happened to J and C’s romance, she’s thrown into a crisis thanks to her younger brother, Noodle, who injures himself during a sojourn in the woods after getting in trouble at school. As her life once again hangs in the balance, money margins are thin and their mother waits in the shadows to descend and upend the modicum of an oasis they’ve created for themselves. Enter the dashing hero, Zach, but where has this savior emerged from and why is he so interested in the love story in the books’ marginalia?
I loved the nuance of all these characters, particularly the curmudgeon-y neighbor, Jasper. He’s so prickly compared to Chloe’s guarded sunshine and her siblings antics. He keeps all the Frisbees they lose over the fence and many in the neighborhood fear him. Chloe and Jasper’s outer edges begin to soften as the mystery romance is unraveled, and while Zach plays a role, he’s a bit part to the larger story.
The narrators do an excellent job with inflection and characterization, but why are there so many narrators and are they all necessary? Not necessarily. But that’s being nit-picky.
Through the ups and downs of the romance in the 1960s and the family drama of the present day, readers are woven into the story of these characters. We learn the hurts they each carry and how they strive to survive to the next day. It’s a story of healing and survival where a borrowed love story (like many of the ones we read in novels) becomes a lesson and highlights the true meaning in our lives.
The Library of Borrowed Hearts by Lucy Gilmore is delightful and emotional, and well worth borrowing for the afternoon. Immerse yourself in these characters and live through them to learn what’s important in your life.
RATING: Cinquain
About the Author:
Lucy Gilmore is a celebrated novelist in a wide range of genres, including literary fiction, contemporary romance, and cozy mystery. She began her reading (and writing) career as an English literature major and ended as a book lover without all those pesky academic papers attached.
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