This month I chose from my reading goal list: a book whose setting is in a bookshop or library.
The Library at the Edge of the World by Felicity Hayes-McCoy was a perfectly cozy read for February. It was heartwarming to read about the struggles of librarian Hannah Casey, who plots and strategizes to save the library from the clutches of self-serving local politicians and greedy land developers.
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| image from Google |
Hannah has returned home to her mother Mary after a disastrous marriage and has found safety and comfort managing the Lissbeg Library. Besides functioning as chief librarian in the brick and mortar library, Hannah rambles around the fictional Finfarran Peninsula of Ireland (oooohhh just love that country) as she delivers books in the mobile library van to the far-flung citizens. The scenery is lovely. It's Ireland for goodness's sake! The plot even features an old thatched cottage, complete with peat-burning fireplace set right on the edge of the ocean....just yummy. Let the dreaming begin.
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personal photos from 2002 family trip to Cork and Ring of Kerry
In addition to the Gaelic setting, part of the book's charm is the many quaint characters that populate the peninsula, including an irascible builder (aptly named Mr. Fury), an equally stubborn nun, and a fledgling librarian who gently tries to push Hannah into the technology era. Does Hannah's bruised and battered heart have the strength left to fight the political machine that threatens to destroy the tenuous new life she is making for herself? Can she adapt to even more changes in her life and embrace the techno age? Or will she discover it is easier to concede in the face of superior foes?
I empathized at times with Hannah and felt her fears. It is not too far fetched to envision a time when books are no more, replaced with digital files and fancy e-readers. It is not too unrealistic to think her role as a librarian could become obsolete. This is just one of the many things I pondered as I read The Library at the Edge of the World. I'd love to know what thoughts it made you think about. |
HAPPY READING!
