A Strong Premise and an Uplifting Message: Matt Haig’s ‘The Midnight Library’

35-year-old Nora Seed struggles with depression. Her only living relative is an older brother with whom she has a strained relationship. Since her best friend moved to Australia, things have not been the same between them. Then Nora loses her job, her cat dies, and she is informed that her only pupil is considering giving up piano lessons in quick succession. As a result, Nora feels that she cannot live any longer and decides to overdose.

Instead of death being the end or entering into some form of afterlife, Nora finds herself in a special kind of library where the shelves go on forever and each book represents a potential life she could have lived had she made slightly different decisions. All Nora has to do is open a book in order to try out that alternative life. If she finds a life she loves, she can stay in it forever. In one of these possible lives, Nora is a successful rock star who tours around the globe. In another, she continued to pursue swimming and made it into the Olympics. In others, she moves to Australia with her best friend, fulfils her childhood dream of becoming a glaciologist, marries people she barely knows in her ‘root life’, and has children with them. It is not just Nora’s life that is different in these books, but also the lives of those around her. A small cast of characters crop up repeatedly in these alternative lives and we get to see how Nora’s decisions have strengthened or weakened her bond with these individuals (although, of course, some things are beyond her control). However, Nora quickly learns that undoing some of her regrets is not necessarily the solution to her misery; there is no such thing as a ‘perfect life’, for each possible life contains a mixture of happiness and sorrow.

This book’s attractive premise has meant that it has been one of the most popular books of the past year. It is easy to see why The Midnight Library has proved to be such a hit, given that it appeals to a mass audience; I am sure that everyone has wondered at some point in their life how things might have turned out differently had they made different decisions. Given that Matt Haig has been churning out so many books in a relatively short period of time, I wondered whether the quality of his writing would have suffered as a result. However, his writing is clean and accessible and I appreciated the humorous one-liners sprinkled throughout the book. In addition, Nora is always dropped into these different versions of her life with no prior knowledge, which results in some inevitable slip-ups and Nora often having to blag her way through awkward situations. This adds interest and entertainment value, for Nora has to give motivational speeches about achievements she never accomplished in her ‘root life’ and is interviewed by journalists about songs she cannot recall writing. I was also impressed that The Midnight Library has a decent pace to it. The process of Nora trying out all of these different lives could have easily dragged on for too long but it did not, in my opinion, so I commend Haig for that.

Whilst I did enjoy reading this book, there were a few things that let it down a little for me. Although it makes sense why Haig chose to conclude the book in the way he did, I do not think that any readers will be at all surprised by the ending. Although there are details that will catch you by surprise throughout the narrative, the overall trajectory of the book is very predictable. Consequently, if you are looking for a book that has many twists and turns then this will sadly not be for you. Additionally, I struggled at times to connect with the protagonist, Nora, and as someone who is a big fan of characterisation, this detracted from my enjoyment of the book slightly. I must admit that initially I was not convinced by the book at all, as her life felt like one big cliché. Thankfully, the book quickly improved and I enjoyed the anticipation of seeing how she would negotiate the situations she was thrown into. However, the biggest problem I have with this book is that it was too didactic for me. It is as though Haig does not trust his readers to correctly join up the dots and draw their own conclusions from the narrative. The message of the book is simple enough to grasp independently, yet Haig repeatedly spells it out just for good measure. Here is one such example:

‘It is easy to mourn the lives we aren’t living. Easy to wish we’d developed other talents, said yes to different offers. Easy to wish we’d worked harder, loved better, handled our finances more, been more popular […] gone to Australia, said yes to the coffee or done more bloody yoga […] We can’t tell if any of those other versions would have been better or worse. Those lives are happening, it is true, but you are happening as well, and this is the happening we have to focus on.’ (p.277)

Perhaps I am being super cynical but I found it a bit unnecessary to have things spelled out for readers so often. For example, in the first life that Nora tries out, she is still with her ex-partner, Dan. He has always dreamt of owning a pub, and in this life, his dream has become a reality. However, Nora soon realises that staying with Dan would not have made her happy. He is not an attentive partner; he drinks heavily and shows very little interest in things she is passionate about. On top of that, they are trying for a baby even though he has been unfaithful to her not once but twice. Before being transported back into the library, the narrator reflects that ‘This was not the life she imagined it to be’ (p.59, italics in the original). Yeah, no kidding! There are lots of moments like this where readers realise something without needing to have it explicitly stated. As a result, this book had the potential to leave a bit to the imagination but instead feels oversimplified. Also, I know the message of the book is meant to be uplifting but the fact that Nora has to kill herself to get to the midnight library in order to realise that having regrets is what makes us who we are sends a slightly uncomfortable message in my opinion.

Given that my feelings towards this book are quite complicated, I would rate The Midnight Library 3.5 stars out of 5. Although I found it an enjoyable and fairly straightforward read, I am not sure I would recommend it to others. Perhaps try watching the iconic film, Sliding Doors (1998), instead – it has a somewhat similar premise but with a less preachy vibe (and Gwyneth Paltrow stars in it so what is not to love!).