REVIEW:

THE MIDNIGHT LIBRARY BY MATT HAIG

Introduction:

When I picked up the Midnight Library by Matt Haig, I was not quite sure what to expect. I got the hardback for Christmas, and had heard rave reviews on bookstagram, and yet somehow, I still was not sold. The idea seemed almost childish, too simple… or maybe I was just sick of hyped books not living up to my expectations. This one, however, did. For all it is simplicity, for all it’s basic magical realism, this book is nothing short of extraordinary. I read it in one sitting, and I intend to read it again. I find myself knowing after a single read through of the novel that this is one of those books that is timeless in its execution. It can be read, reread, highlighted, dog-eared, and quoted, and it still does not lose its resonance with every single person braving the human experience.

It is a must read for anyone who has ever suffered anxiety or depression, or in fact, has ever known anyone who suffers anxiety and depression. Matt Haig achieves the heights of greatness with this book, which turns everything the reader knows about themselves against them for intense scrutiny and causes us to question everything we know about life. It is timeless, it is simply extraordinary, and I would recommend it to absolutely anyone no matter their circumstances or even if they find themselves regularly devouring novels. In this review, I want to focus less on style, and more on the profound insight this book gives us into the human condition, its pitfalls, its driving force, and its resilience.

This book changed how I think about being human, and I hope it does the same for you.

Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda…

The midnight Library by Matt Haig follows the everywoman protagonist of Nora Seed, as she moves dutifully through what we quickly learn is to be the last day of what she deems to be an unimportant existence. Her cat dies, she discovers her brother was in town and never called, she loses her job, and her only piano student seems to be wavering on the cusp of quitting after so much practice and hard work. However, after taking an overdose, Nora Seed does not die, but becomes stuck in a kind of limbo- The Midnight Library. The library holds many books, each of which allowing Nora access to an alternative life. She is free now to browse the shelves of the potential life outcomes of all the decisions she could have made differently, and all the chances she did not take. The Librarian, Mrs Elm, is a guide in the form of one of the most profound influences on Nora’s young life and helps her get started by showing her a book of regrets. She says that from these regrets, Nora should try to find which new life will suit her best.

However, as we move through Nora’s life hopping, we come to realise that her regrets are largely curiosity, or comparison rather than an actual guarantee that her life would have turned out any differently. She learns that the cat she regrets letting go outside would have died anyway, and the man she regrets not marrying would have ended up making both of them miserable. Sure, there are perks to each life, but Nora finds herself understanding that no matter which decision she made, she would have ended up regretting something, because the actual decision is not what makes us happy or miserable, it’s the outcome of it. And of that, we have no control- it is random and the guilt we put on ourselves is made entirely by ourselves, not because we are actually responsible.

What is Success?

I think for most people, given the opportunity to live any life, the first thing that you would ask for is that dream job, the million-dollar mansion, the worldwide fame and accolades, the brand-new Ferrari in the driveway. Nora Seed has the exact same thought, entering a life where she did not quit the band, she was a part of at University… and well, it doesn’t go as planned.

Sure, she is famous. She has got tons of money, and hoards of screaming fans, but at what cost? The life of a Rockstar has left her with a dead brother due to drug addiction which never would have become an issue if they had not got famous.

I read a quote by Jim Carrey recently and it reminded me of this part of Nora’s experimentation with which life provides the best fit, it goes like this:

“I think everybody should get rich and famous and do everything they ever dreamed of so they can see that it’s not the answer.”
-Jim Carrey

Nora Seed quickly discovers what Carrey means as she realises that with all the money and fans in the world, she still is not any happier. The things which to an individual have the most value, cannot always be bought, or appreciated and experienced with the same freedom once fame and money become an issue. Nora Seed disappears as quickly as she came from the centre spotlight of her rockstar life, as she realises that her definition of success, amazingly enough, is not what society is telling her it should be.

Why we matter, even when we feel invisible.

One of the things I loved most about this novel was the way it showcases the importance of every single individual and their interconnectedness with others. Even when we don’t feel like we are making a difference, or we feel useless, this novel shows us that we cannot possibly know the extent of our own affect on others. When Nora Seed loses her only piano client, she doesn’t realise how much of an impact she has had on the boy. However, in a past life, she realises that her tuition stopped her student from getting into crime and drugs. She realises as well that something as simple as ordering her elderly neighbour’s medication for him online allows him to maintain his independence and saves him from a miserable existence within a nursing home. She also comes to learn that despite the fact she feels she failed her cat, Voltaire, that his time as her pet was the happiest of his short life, and that without her care he would have been left to a life of uncertainty and potential abuse. She also realises that her actions aren’t always as important as others make out to be, such as the fact that the shop which fired Nora at the beginning of the novel and blaming her for poor sales still goes under even in realities where she never worked there at all.

What is happiness?

One of the most extraordinary things The Midnight Library shows us is how uniquely tailored happiness is for each individual. What life may be perfection to one will be a nightmare to another. It makes you think about how happiness is pedalled by marketers as being one size fits all, as if a certain body type, holiday destination, accommodation, or goal could possibly fit every single person in a single age group or of a single gender. I loved that Matt Haig shows us that in most cases, people want to be fulfilled and challenged rather than given everything without having to work for it. They want the lives they chose willingly, rather than what they’re told to aspire to. It makes you think about how much of what you think will make you happy is because you’ve been told it will by advertising. What makes each of us happy, Matt Haig says to us in this work, is entirely unique to every individual, and quite often, it is a hell of a lot simpler than you think to get there.

The Universal Human Experience:

The other thing which really captivated me about this novel was the way in which Haig presents a million different lives, but which all, at their very core, consist of the same human experience. The emotions felt by the homeless woman and the rockstar are the same, the love and pain felt by the millionaire and the factory worker are the same. They are just as intense, and just as temporary. Nora Seed realises that no matter what job she holds, no matter what her financial or physical situation is, she still has to grapple with the same emotions. There is no escaping loss, no escaping grief, and no life without some form of joy. As a reader, I find this endlessly comforting, knowing that no matter what decision I make, I am still entering a mix of pain and happiness. That is life, and there is no one alive who has felt one without the other, or who has lived a life without any kind of trial or loss. Thinking otherwise is naïve. I point you to the story of Kisa Gotami who had lost her son, and asked the Buddha to bring him back to her…

Kisa Gotami was the wife of a wealthy man of Savatthi. Her story is one of the more famous ones in Buddhism. After losing her only child, Kisa Gotami became desperate and asked if anyone could help her. Her sorrow was so great that many thought she had lost her mind. An old man told her to see the Buddha. The Buddha told her that he could bring the child back to life if she could find white pumpkin seeds from a family where no one had died. She desperately went from house to house, but to her disappointment, she could not find a house that had not suffered the death of a family member. Finally, the realization struck her that there is no house free from mortality.

Source: Wikipedia.com
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kisa_Gotami

Conclusion:

There are so many things I could say about this book. Will I be rereading it? Yes. Do I think everyone should read it? Also, a resounding yes. If you are in a place where you are seeking direction, where you are full of regret, or loss, or continually comparing your life to someone elses, this book gives you the tools to tackle those problems by flipping the whole notion of being trapped in the life you were born to upside down. It is fantasy, this is true, but as the best fantasy does, it takes the extraordinary to shine a light on the ordinary and make us view our everyday in brand new ways.

Buy it. Read it. Gift it to your friend with anxiety. Recommend it to your friend with depression. This book is a gift, and it is one I can’t stand the thought of keeping to myself.