Midnight Library
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Description
Book Introduction
At midnight, in the magical library that opens only just before death. I give you a second chance at life #1 bestseller at major domestic bookstores and selected as Book of the Year in 2021 #1 New York Times Bestseller, #1 Amazon UK Overall Bestseller Since its publication in April 2021, Matt Haig's novel "Midnight Library" has captivated 300,000 readers in just ten months, bringing tears, laughter, and heartwarming emotions. This novel, in which the protagonist, Nora Seed, decides to die, wakes up in the mysterious library, Midnight Library, which exists between life and death, and is given a second chance at life, follows Nora's adventure in finding the most perfect life, and shows deep insight into 'being alive' and 'living.' “The moment I close the book, I look forward to tomorrow!” “I met the companion of my life” “I gained the strength to live again” and other such enthusiastic responses from readers led to this book being selected as the 2021 Book of the Year by major bookstores, and the enthusiasm continues to this day. From empathy for the lives of others to positivity for one's own life, to the profound insight that being alive itself is a reason to live, author Matt Haig's message of empathy and comfort has captivated readers across generations and genders around the world. It reached number one on the [New York Times] bestseller list and number one on the UK Amazon overall bestseller list, and was a long-term bestseller on the US Amazon and [New York Times] for over 60 weeks, and on Germany's [Der Spiegel] for 38 consecutive weeks. It is currently published in various countries around the world, including Denmark, Italy, Spain, Romania, Taiwan, and Iran, and is enjoying global popularity. |
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Into the book
Nineteen years before she decided to die, Nora Seed sat in the cozy little library of Hazeldene School in Bedford.
Nora sat at a low table and stared at the chessboard.
“No, Nora, it’s natural to be worried about the future,” said Mrs. Elm, the librarian, her eyes sparkling like frost in the sunlight.
Then he made his first move.
Knight jumped over the neatly lined up white phones.
“Of course you’ll be worried about the test.
But you can be anything you want, Nora.
Think of all the possibilities.
“How exciting.”
"yes.
“That’s right.”
“You have a bright future ahead of you.”
“It’s bright.”
“You can do anything, you can live anywhere.
“I mean, somewhere less cold and less damp.”
--- p.9 From “Conversation on a Rainy Day”
“I am truly sorry.”
Nora felt a familiar sadness.
It was just that I didn't cry thanks to the antidepressants I was taking these days.
"oh my god."
Nora held her breath as she stepped onto the cracked, rain-soaked stone of Bancroft Avenue.
A poor, furry brown animal lay on the asphalt, glistening with rain, next to the curb.
Its head rested lightly against the pavement, and all four legs were turned backwards, as if it were running after an unseen bird.
“Ah, Bolts.
no.
oh my god."
Nora should have felt pity and despair when she looked at her cat, and she did.
But I couldn't help but admit that there were other feelings as well.
As I looked at Voltaire's peaceful expression, completely motionless and without any trace of pain, an emotion welled up in a dark corner of my heart that I could not ignore.
It was jealousy.
--- p.18 From "The Man at the Door"
After drinking the wine, I was able to realize it clearly.
She wasn't suited for this life.
Every move she made was a mistake, every decision was a disaster, and every day she moved one step further from the person she had imagined.
Swimmer.
Musician.
Philosopher.
spouse.
Traveler.
Glaciologist.
A happy and loved person.
None of them worked.
Even the role of 'cat owner' was not properly fulfilled.
Or 'a piano lesson teacher for one hour a week'.
Or a 'human being capable of conversation'.
The medicine didn't work.
Nora finished her wine.
Without leaving anything behind.
“I miss you,” she said to the air, as if the spirits of those she had loved were with her.
Then I called my brother.
When Joe didn't answer the phone, he left a voice message.
“I love you, oppa.
I just wanted to say that.
There was nothing my brother could do.
It's all my fault.
Thank you for being born as my older brother.
love you.
“Take care.”
As it rained again, Nora opened the blinds and watched the raindrops fall on the window.
It was now 11:22.
One thing was certain.
Nora didn't want to face tomorrow.
I got up from my seat and took out a pen and paper.
It was a perfect time to die.
--- pp.39~40 from "Antimatter"
“There is a library between life and death,” she said.
“There are endless bookshelves in that library.
The book on that shelf contains the opportunity to live the life you could have lived.
It's an opportunity to see how things might have been different if you had made different choices...
If you had the chance to change your past, would you make even one different choice?
“So am I dead?” Nora asked.
Mrs. Elm shook her head.
"no.
Listen carefully.
“This is the middle ground between life and death.” Then he pointed down the passageway.
“Death is outside.”
“Then I guess I should go there.
“I want to die.” Nora started walking.
But Mrs. Elm shook her head.
“I can’t die just because of that.”
“Why?”
--- p.49 From "The Midnight Library"
“The books here, the books in this library, are all your other lives.
Except for this book.
This library is your library.
I exist for you.
There are countless endings in human life.
The books on this shelf are all your lives, and they all start at the same time.
Right now, at midnight on Tuesday, April 28th.
But not all of these midnight possibilities are equal.
“There are similar lives, but there are also very different lives.”
“That’s ridiculous.
“Except this one? Just this one?” Nora held out the gray book toward Mrs. Elm.
Mrs. Elm raised an eyebrow.
"okay.
Except for that book.
“That’s a book you wrote without writing a single word.”
"yes?"
“This is a book that contains the source and solution to all your problems.”
“What book is this?”
“It’s the Book of Regrets.”
Nora sat at a low table and stared at the chessboard.
“No, Nora, it’s natural to be worried about the future,” said Mrs. Elm, the librarian, her eyes sparkling like frost in the sunlight.
Then he made his first move.
Knight jumped over the neatly lined up white phones.
“Of course you’ll be worried about the test.
But you can be anything you want, Nora.
Think of all the possibilities.
“How exciting.”
"yes.
“That’s right.”
“You have a bright future ahead of you.”
“It’s bright.”
“You can do anything, you can live anywhere.
“I mean, somewhere less cold and less damp.”
--- p.9 From “Conversation on a Rainy Day”
“I am truly sorry.”
Nora felt a familiar sadness.
It was just that I didn't cry thanks to the antidepressants I was taking these days.
"oh my god."
Nora held her breath as she stepped onto the cracked, rain-soaked stone of Bancroft Avenue.
A poor, furry brown animal lay on the asphalt, glistening with rain, next to the curb.
Its head rested lightly against the pavement, and all four legs were turned backwards, as if it were running after an unseen bird.
“Ah, Bolts.
no.
oh my god."
Nora should have felt pity and despair when she looked at her cat, and she did.
But I couldn't help but admit that there were other feelings as well.
As I looked at Voltaire's peaceful expression, completely motionless and without any trace of pain, an emotion welled up in a dark corner of my heart that I could not ignore.
It was jealousy.
--- p.18 From "The Man at the Door"
After drinking the wine, I was able to realize it clearly.
She wasn't suited for this life.
Every move she made was a mistake, every decision was a disaster, and every day she moved one step further from the person she had imagined.
Swimmer.
Musician.
Philosopher.
spouse.
Traveler.
Glaciologist.
A happy and loved person.
None of them worked.
Even the role of 'cat owner' was not properly fulfilled.
Or 'a piano lesson teacher for one hour a week'.
Or a 'human being capable of conversation'.
The medicine didn't work.
Nora finished her wine.
Without leaving anything behind.
“I miss you,” she said to the air, as if the spirits of those she had loved were with her.
Then I called my brother.
When Joe didn't answer the phone, he left a voice message.
“I love you, oppa.
I just wanted to say that.
There was nothing my brother could do.
It's all my fault.
Thank you for being born as my older brother.
love you.
“Take care.”
As it rained again, Nora opened the blinds and watched the raindrops fall on the window.
It was now 11:22.
One thing was certain.
Nora didn't want to face tomorrow.
I got up from my seat and took out a pen and paper.
It was a perfect time to die.
--- pp.39~40 from "Antimatter"
“There is a library between life and death,” she said.
“There are endless bookshelves in that library.
The book on that shelf contains the opportunity to live the life you could have lived.
It's an opportunity to see how things might have been different if you had made different choices...
If you had the chance to change your past, would you make even one different choice?
“So am I dead?” Nora asked.
Mrs. Elm shook her head.
"no.
Listen carefully.
“This is the middle ground between life and death.” Then he pointed down the passageway.
“Death is outside.”
“Then I guess I should go there.
“I want to die.” Nora started walking.
But Mrs. Elm shook her head.
“I can’t die just because of that.”
“Why?”
--- p.49 From "The Midnight Library"
“The books here, the books in this library, are all your other lives.
Except for this book.
This library is your library.
I exist for you.
There are countless endings in human life.
The books on this shelf are all your lives, and they all start at the same time.
Right now, at midnight on Tuesday, April 28th.
But not all of these midnight possibilities are equal.
“There are similar lives, but there are also very different lives.”
“That’s ridiculous.
“Except this one? Just this one?” Nora held out the gray book toward Mrs. Elm.
Mrs. Elm raised an eyebrow.
"okay.
Except for that book.
“That’s a book you wrote without writing a single word.”
"yes?"
“This is a book that contains the source and solution to all your problems.”
“What book is this?”
“It’s the Book of Regrets.”
--- pp.53~54 from "The Book of Regrets"
Publisher's Review
★#1 Bestseller on Amazon UK
★Long-term bestseller on Amazon, The New York Times, and The Sunday Times
★#1 in the overall bestseller lists of major domestic bookstores
★2021 Book of the Year Selection
★〈About Time〉 production company confirms film adaptation!
“If I had the chance to turn back the clock,
Would you like to try another option?
23:22.
A perfect time to die.
In the midnight library full of green books
The journey to find the most perfect life begins!
★2020 Goodreads Best Fiction #1
★2020 Good Morning America Book Club Selections
★2020 BBC Between the Covers Book Club Selections
★2020 Library Leeds Selections
The death of her mother, a broken engagement, a job loss, and the death of her pet cat, Boltz… The protagonist, Nora, who can no longer bear life, decides to commit suicide.
I opened my eyes to find myself in a midnight library filled with green books.
Guided by a kind and caring librarian, Nora discovers that all the books on the shelf contain lives that Nora might have lived. She opens the Book of Regrets and lives a life in which she made different choices at the moment of her greatest regret.
We go through tens of thousands of new lives before finding the "perfect life": a life as a glaciologist, a musician, a local pub owner, a swimmer, a life that's ordinary but boring, a life with children, and so on.
But Nora keeps coming back to the Midnight Library and begins to question what constitutes a perfect life.
Author Matt Haig, who suffered from severe depression and experienced a mental breakdown in his twenties, has constantly pondered the question of 'why to live' and seeks his own answer in his new novel, 'Midnight Library'.
“The pain of living as I am, which is nothing less than a huge disaster, is much greater than the pain that others would suffer if I died.
Actually, if I die, everyone will be relieved.
“I am a useless person.” (p. 94)
Nora's cry of feeling so insignificant that she can only think of death is a result that anyone who has ever experienced regret and unhappiness, wondering, "What if I had made a different choice back then?" will understand well.
Starting with the idea of a library containing an infinite number of books, the author sought to describe the experience of depression by “writing down a list of regrets in her subconscious and opening and reading the countless books that tell the story of her life.”
Among these lives, with their infinite possibilities, can Nora truly find a life of complete satisfaction? Through Nora, the author allows us to experience countless lives in a multiverse shaped by trivial choices, and then poses a question to us.
When you look back on your regrets, is the result the life you desperately wanted?
Aren't you having any regrets in that life too?
“This was the life she was saddened by not being able to live.
It was a life of self-reproach for not being able to live.
“It was a moment I regretted not being able to exist.” (p. 87)
It has been ranked #1 on the UK Amazon overall bestseller list, has been a bestseller on US Amazon and the New York Times for 20 consecutive weeks, and has been a bestseller on the Sunday Times for 28 consecutive weeks (based on the date of publication). It has also become an immediate bestseller not only in the English-speaking world but also in Germany, Italy, and Spain, bringing laughter, tears, and emotion to readers around the world.
Furthermore, with the production company behind the beloved Korean film “About Time” having finalized a licensing agreement, there is even greater anticipation for how Matt Haig’s warm and uplifting novel will be adapted for film.
As we follow Nora's journey of accepting life's imperfections and finding value and happiness in it, we ultimately cannot help but love the life we have now.
Although it is regrettable, our lives today are the result of layer upon layer of choices we made at the time.
And the author uses the words of Mrs. Elm, who showed a small kindness to young Nora, to offer comfort to each of us who are living our own lives.
“It’ll be okay, Nora.
“It’ll be okay.”
★Long-term bestseller on Amazon, The New York Times, and The Sunday Times
★#1 in the overall bestseller lists of major domestic bookstores
★2021 Book of the Year Selection
★〈About Time〉 production company confirms film adaptation!
“If I had the chance to turn back the clock,
Would you like to try another option?
23:22.
A perfect time to die.
In the midnight library full of green books
The journey to find the most perfect life begins!
★2020 Goodreads Best Fiction #1
★2020 Good Morning America Book Club Selections
★2020 BBC Between the Covers Book Club Selections
★2020 Library Leeds Selections
The death of her mother, a broken engagement, a job loss, and the death of her pet cat, Boltz… The protagonist, Nora, who can no longer bear life, decides to commit suicide.
I opened my eyes to find myself in a midnight library filled with green books.
Guided by a kind and caring librarian, Nora discovers that all the books on the shelf contain lives that Nora might have lived. She opens the Book of Regrets and lives a life in which she made different choices at the moment of her greatest regret.
We go through tens of thousands of new lives before finding the "perfect life": a life as a glaciologist, a musician, a local pub owner, a swimmer, a life that's ordinary but boring, a life with children, and so on.
But Nora keeps coming back to the Midnight Library and begins to question what constitutes a perfect life.
Author Matt Haig, who suffered from severe depression and experienced a mental breakdown in his twenties, has constantly pondered the question of 'why to live' and seeks his own answer in his new novel, 'Midnight Library'.
“The pain of living as I am, which is nothing less than a huge disaster, is much greater than the pain that others would suffer if I died.
Actually, if I die, everyone will be relieved.
“I am a useless person.” (p. 94)
Nora's cry of feeling so insignificant that she can only think of death is a result that anyone who has ever experienced regret and unhappiness, wondering, "What if I had made a different choice back then?" will understand well.
Starting with the idea of a library containing an infinite number of books, the author sought to describe the experience of depression by “writing down a list of regrets in her subconscious and opening and reading the countless books that tell the story of her life.”
Among these lives, with their infinite possibilities, can Nora truly find a life of complete satisfaction? Through Nora, the author allows us to experience countless lives in a multiverse shaped by trivial choices, and then poses a question to us.
When you look back on your regrets, is the result the life you desperately wanted?
Aren't you having any regrets in that life too?
“This was the life she was saddened by not being able to live.
It was a life of self-reproach for not being able to live.
“It was a moment I regretted not being able to exist.” (p. 87)
It has been ranked #1 on the UK Amazon overall bestseller list, has been a bestseller on US Amazon and the New York Times for 20 consecutive weeks, and has been a bestseller on the Sunday Times for 28 consecutive weeks (based on the date of publication). It has also become an immediate bestseller not only in the English-speaking world but also in Germany, Italy, and Spain, bringing laughter, tears, and emotion to readers around the world.
Furthermore, with the production company behind the beloved Korean film “About Time” having finalized a licensing agreement, there is even greater anticipation for how Matt Haig’s warm and uplifting novel will be adapted for film.
As we follow Nora's journey of accepting life's imperfections and finding value and happiness in it, we ultimately cannot help but love the life we have now.
Although it is regrettable, our lives today are the result of layer upon layer of choices we made at the time.
And the author uses the words of Mrs. Elm, who showed a small kindness to young Nora, to offer comfort to each of us who are living our own lives.
“It’ll be okay, Nora.
“It’ll be okay.”
GOODS SPECIFICS
- Publication date: April 28, 2021
- Page count, weight, size: 408 pages | 498g | 138*205*21mm
- ISBN13: 9791191056556
- ISBN10: 1191056554
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카테고리
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