The irascible A. J. Fikry, owner of Island Books – the only bookstore on Alice Island – has already lost his wife. Now his most prized possession, a rare book, has been stolen from right under his nose in the most embarrassing of circumstances. The store itself, it seems, will be next to go.

One night, upon closing, he discovers a toddler in his children’s section with a note from her mother pinned to her Elmo doll: I want Maya to grow up in a place with books and among people who care about such kinds of things. I love her very much, but I can no longer take care of her. A search for Maya’s mother, A. J.’s rare book, and good childcare advice ensues, but it doesn’t take long for the locals to notice the transformation of both bookstore and owner, something of particular interest to the lovely yet eccentric Knightley Press sales rep, Amelia Loman, who makes the arduous journey to Alice Island thrice each year to pitch her books to the cranky owner.

I decided to read this book after noticing its movie adaptation on a streaming app. Wanting to experience the story in its original form first, I chose to listen to the audiobook. The narrator did an excellent job, and at around seven hours long, it’s a relatively short listen. By speeding up the playback, I managed to finish it in a single day while working.

Initially, the story failed to capture my attention, leaving me bored and on the verge of giving up. However, I decided to stick with it, and it did improve to some extent. The arrival of the baby, Maya, added intrigue as I became curious about how the bitter, cynical, cranky middle-aged protagonist would manage this infant. There were some genuinely heartfelt and tender moments between A.J. and Maya. However, when A.J. decides to adopt her, the story glosses over the complexities of the adoption process, making it seem much easier than it actually is, especially for a single man. This aspect didn’t feel realistic for such a complicated issue.

I enjoyed getting to know A.J. throughout the story. Initially, he was quite off-putting, but as the narrative progressed, I began to warm up to him. He grapples with a lot of intense emotions—loss, grief, and depression, among others—so his behavior is understandable. When Maya enters his life, we see his icy heart begin to thaw as he grows attached to this unexpected little girl and takes on the role of a single parent. The story is filled with sweet, funny, and tear-jerking moments. Be sure to have tissues handy, as it’s an emotional journey. I found myself tearing up multiple times while listening to the story, and again when I watched the movie.

I also appreciated how this story caters to book lovers. With A.J. owning a bookstore and his love interest, Amy, being a bookseller (aka sales rep), there is plenty of discussion about books, reading, and buying them.

Additionally, I loved the setting of the coastal island with its small-town bookshop vibe. The story beautifully incorporates one of my favorite tropes: found family.

What I didn’t particularly like was the frequent cursing throughout the book. I felt that it wasn’t necessary to have so much foul language. However, I did appreciate that it features a closed-door romance without any explicit content.

I also found the frequent huge time jumps in the story unsettling and unexpected, lacking a smooth transition or buildup. Suddenly jumping forward ten years or more felt disjointed and disrupted the flow I was hoping for. Additionally, I was put off by what felt like emotional manipulation at times. The story seemed to rely on many clichés to evoke emotions from the reader, which came across as exploitative.

The movie was decent, featuring good actors. Like the book, it’s neither the best nor the worst adaptation. It stayed fairly faithful to the source material, which I liked. There were some inevitable differences, but they didn’t detract from the story. I’m glad I read the book before watching the movie because if I had seen the movie first, I might not have been motivated to read the book. In this instance, I think I actually preferred the movie over the book. (Plus, it’s a lot shorter.)

Overall, both the book and movie are decent. While I’m not sure if I would personally recommend them, if the plot intrigues you, perhaps give one (or both) a try. You might find them more enjoyable than I did. For me, they were just okay and not particularly memorable. However, I’m willing to try another book by this author to see if I prefer a different story of hers.