Book Review: The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry

There is a genre of fiction/non-fiction you may not be entirely aware of.  These are the stories both true and imagined, of bookstores and booksellers.  The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry is one such tale.  It is of the fictional variety, but written so well, you can easily imagine A.J., Amelia and Maya, and all of their friends and family being real people.


A.J.'s bookstore is failing, someone has stolen his priceless copy of Tamerlane, he wife has died, and he is slowly drinking himself to death.  Just when all seems lost,  someone abandons a toddler in his bookstore, and the little girl changes his life.  She slowly reconnects him to his customers, and other people as a whole, allowing him to live a life of love, instead of a life of solitude and despair.


I really enjoyed The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry.  It is sentimental without being overly schlocky or corny.  And a bookstore plays a central role.  The main character is endearingly curmudgeony, and a bit of a book snob, but still charming in his own way.  The ancillary characters are well developed and a bit quirky, but quite believable.


The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry is an enchanting tale about books and the people who love them.  It is a story about the redemption we can find in children, and how life may not work out the way we expect, but it can still be magical.

The Storied Life of A.J Fikry is available in hardcover, on sale for $21.95 + tax.