“The Midnight Library”

Books can be a very effective way to escape the here and now and be swept to a different place, another time or into the middle of some stranger’s life. Seldom has a bit of escapism been more desirable than in the more than challenging present.

Matt Haig’s “The Midnight Library” is not just a magical, fable-like, modern-day tale, it also touches on questions we’ve all asked ourselves – about how our lives may have developed in a completely different direction “if I’d only just…”. So without realising it at first, I found myself nudged towards reflecting on my own choices and how they defined who and where I am today. 

But this is Nora’s story. Nora Seed is 35 years old and even though she is gifted in so many ways, she doesn’t have all too much to show for it. Living in the slightly dull city of Bedford in England, Nora is stuck in a mediocre job with bleak prospects. Being estranged from her best friend as well as her older brother who is her only remaining relative, she’s full of regrets and feels more than lonely. Losing both her job and her cat in a single day finally puts her over the edge and she decides to end her life.

This is where Matt Haig’s simple, yet wonderful idea comes in. On the way to the afterlife, Nora passes through a giant library where her old school librarian, Mrs. Elm, explains to her that the endless number of volumes on the shelves contain different versions of her life – just waiting to be opened and explored: an infinite number of lives, resulting from an infinite number of possible choices. Being tormented by regrets and wishing, in hindsight, that her decisions had led to a more fulfilling life, our heroine starts on her venture into possible parallel universes. All turn out more controversial than Nora would have expected. Just as the librarian had warned her, “choices are not the same as outcomes”. In not ONE life does Nora gain complete happiness and fulfilment as she discovers that not just the big decisions matter, but that all the little choices we make day to day have an effect on ourselves and on others as well.

We all find ourselves accompanied by regrets – some of us more, some less. We all make decisions which set the course for the future. As much as this book is about Nora, it’s about every single reader as well. I’m convinced that whoever picks up this book will unpreventably start wondering not just about Nora’s choices but about their own.

What Matt Haig’s book did for me is something a lot of the psychology self-help books WANT to achieve but fail at due to their over-complexity: to truly cause the reader to reflect – in a gentle, soothing kind of way.

It’s a strange coincidence that just when I was reading this novel, I was also going through a box of old diaries, calendars and letters from the late 80s and early 90s. Since then, so many turns have been taken, so many choices made and so many coincidences have ended up determining where I am today that I realised how very easily my life could have ended up being completely different from the way it is. “If I hadn’t …”, “if you weren’t…”, “if we wouldn’t have…” is a conversation my husband and I could have for a long time since there were so many points in both of our lives when just one decision could have led to our paths never crossing.

Matt Haig has written a magical novel about decisions and how they form who we are. The message which the almost-too-perfect ending leaves the reader with has to do with our here-and-now: let go of your regrets and stop comparing! As easy as that may sound, it’s quite the feat. Even though we know that comparing is hardly the path to happiness, we seemingly cannot help but do it anyway, thanks at least in part to social media, where the grass is always oh-so-green. Whether it’s comparing our life to that of others or comparing our current self to a better, more perfect version, there is always that nagging feeling of inadequacy.

Matt Haig’s story is uplifting in spite of its bleak outset. It’s fun to read and lends itself to discussions as well as self-analysis. A friendly, positive, kind of analysis. One that’ll leave you smiling and treating yourself more kindly. Just what most of us need.