Author: Lucy Gilmore
Genre: Found family, Literary Fiction, Book Club
Pages: 352
Release Date: March 28, 2023
My Thoughts on The Lonely Hearts Book Club
Sloane lives in a small-town and with her passion for books, works as a librarian. Her daily verbal spars with a grouchy old man, Arthur, quickly becomes one of her favorite parts of the day. When Arthur, who is always punctual at 10am, doesn’t show up, Sloane takes it upon herself to find out what’s wrong, even if that goes against library rules.
After finding his address, Sloane finds Arthur kicking out, yet another nurse sent to help him. With no new nurse in sight, Sloane decides she must help him. Along the way, they pick up friends and family from both their lives and add them to a makeshift book club, hosted at Arthur’s while he recovers.
One thing that surprised me about this book was the different point of views. I thought it would revolve around Sloane and Arthur’s POVs, but each character that was added to the book club received their own little section of chapters. I found it super interesting, and everyone had their own issues going on – which was reflected in the books they read and their stories when shared.
We’ve got Sloane, the librarian and main heroine, who’s built an unorthodox friendship of sorts with Arthur. Arthur, our former professor, and grumpy old man who has fallen ill in his old age. Maisey, who lives across the street from Arthur. She’s got a cool job as a telephone psychic, but issues with her teenage daughter who lives with her dad. There’s Greg, who’s the estranged grandson of Arthur, and wants to make sure his grandpa is okay, but doesn’t know how. Mateo, also a librarian and friend of Sloane, who has trouble when it comes to relationships – both with his partner and his “famous in town” mother. Lastly, there’s Nigel who just wants to join the book club.
This was such a sweet and wholesome read. It’s perfect for a book club. The characters are of varying ages, and they all have something to learn from each other. They call each other out and give helpful advice on how to fix their problems. The intricacies of the books woven into the story were incredible, and the author definitely spent a lot of time making them tie in neatly. This book will make you cry and smile!
Farewell Thoughts
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