(4 / 5)
A wonderful story sure to capture the hearts of all book lovers. Please note I did not say “readers” although I’m sure this story will appeal to many of those as well. At its core The Storied Life of AJ Fikry is a wonderful tale of how reading and the love of books directly impacts and often improves the lives of those who read. Readers will delight in the literary references and quite possibly unearth a desire to better acquaint themselves with short stories, I know I did.
This novel has a little of everything-tragedy, mystery, romance (a very little), coming of age, etc. It doesn’t dive too deeply into any particular theme but manages to be satisfying in each. And although I found some parts predictable, it didn’t matter. It was always a pleasure to turn back to this book.
For me the best part was the first quarter, I really loved watching AJ make such amazing strides in his character growth. But really, it’s all good, it pulls along nicely and quits exactly when it needs to. As a result, the book isn’t very long, perfect for when you need a quick refreshing read.
Violence: Low Language: Low/Medium Adult Material: Medium