I have postponed writing about this book because I'm just not sure what to say about it. It was ok, but not what I'd expected or hoped. A lot of things start to happen in The Storied Life of AJ Fikry, but very few of them continue. We're introduced to AJ as a grouchy and lonely bookshop owner who has gotten into a habit of drinking until he passes out. But right after this tidbit, he is left in charge of a little girl, and suddenly he's a different person. Then we meet Amelia, a NYC book rep who has just acquired AJ's account. At first she is spunky and interesting and determined to convince AJ to branch out in his ordering selections. But after that first bit she just becomes dull. Finally, Zevin's failure to develop the mystery of the stolen copy of AJ's rare Edgar Allen Poe novel was a huge missed opportunity that could have turned this book from a mindless read into something really interesting.
I did like the book review notes AJ writes to his wife and daughter throughout the story but I couldn't detect a connection between the selected book review and the lives of the characters.
If you have time and just want a simple story then this is a good choice.
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