Welcome to Litsy!

“Some people don't see anyone from one week to the next apart from at the library. This is a lifeline for those people.”

Libraries contain so much more than just access to books, and this book does a phenomenal job at highlighting that. The connections made and the lives changed are heartwarming. But really, I couldn‘t say it any better than the book itself, “a chance encounter at the library had changed so many things”.

6-13-24: My local library in South Philadelphia 💖📖

1. Last Fall my daughter and I visited my local library and she looked at all the books she wants to read her children. 🌸🌼
2. Amazon 🤦🏼‍♀️
3. The Book of Lost Friends - slow reading as we‘ve been busy the past month!

@Eggs #wondrouswednesday

This was a very lovely written story of a library bringing two strangers together; a 16 year old boy and a 72 year old woman. Well-written and a heartwarming story.

One of the most gorgeous books I've ever read.

An introverted, awkward 16 year old boy and a lonely, quirky 72 year old woman form an unlikely friendship after meeting at their local library. Their bond goes from strength to strength as they lean on one another for support and help one another through some agonising loneliness and grieving.

I cried throughout. Both tears of sadness and joy. Like the Grinch, my heart has grown in size. Flawless.

A found family multi generational read. Teenage Tom and Senior Maggie need each other to help recover from tragedies in their lives. They just don't know it at first. They soon find a common purpose, along with a rag tag group of friends, to save their community library. 4 stars.

Superb. Heartwarming. Five stars.

📚 yes! Alphabetically by author‘s last name! Except for my giveaway shelf and they are mismatched 🤪

📚in my home library! It took me 46 years, but I finally have one!!

📚I buy hardcover if possible, but some are paperback

#ThoughtfulThursday

I'm doing a bit more work in the library so I wanted to post a few more pics! #homelibrary #workinprogress #readingroom post 1/4 The room (note the cats toys on the floor 😂 they're everywhere!) #catsoflitsy

The Library. One library scheduled to close. As a small group of library lovers come together in an attempt to keep the library open, 2 of those people form an unlikely friendship. One, A purposeful and proud book lover. The other an accidental closet book lover. One bold and outspoken. The other, shy and self described as invisible. One brave and full of confidence. The other, meek and timid. One old(er), one young. (Cont in comments)...

Two very different people meet at the library and connect over books sparking an unlikely friendship between a socially awkward 16 year old boy and a pensioner. I loved the interactions between Tom and Maggie. There as some heavy material- grief, addiction, bullying, and standing up for yourself. It also has a lot of levity, though, and through it all, it was a charming read.

I am loving this book! Tom is such a great character and I love his relationship with Maggie. Seriously, go buy this book lol.

I just started this one as an ARC for Netgalley only to find their release date (May 1st) is not necessarily correct. I bought the eBook for $5 because I know I will want to quote this in my review. On chapter 8 and in love with these characters. I have a soft spot for our socially inept teen.

I had not realised quite how local to me this author is and hence the setting in this book. It‘s a sweet tale of unlikely friendships and the role of a library in the community.

Such a sweet story. I‘ll admit it was predictable, but it also included some beautiful and poignant passages. I loved both Maggie and Tom and their unlikely yet desperately needed friendship. They randomly meet at the library, a 72 yo widow and a 16 yo boy, both with heartaches and regrets in their lives. But as they work to save their small library they find peace and purpose from each other. Feel-good story. 4/5⭐️

“It was great disappearing into a story but the shame of anyone discovering I was reading romance books was nagging away at me like toothache. Just the thought of it made me nauseous but the truth was I loved them. I was probably a bit addicted. Mainly because they were basically self-help guides for useless men.” *

—The Library by Bella Osborne

*Subject to change upon publication.

Speaker: Tom, a teenaged boy

😂😂😂😂💙

“An embrace can be on many different levels but the basic sensation of emotional and physical warmth given freely by another is most noticeable when it is no longer there.” *

* Subject to change upon publication.

—The Library by Bella Osborne

“If she‘d realized the last time she was hugged was significant she would have paid more attention, committed it to memory so that she could recall the sensations at will for the many times since, when all she had needed had been for someone to hold her.” *

—The Library, by Bella Osborne

* Subject to change upon publication.

Set in England, we are introduced to Tom and Maggie. Tom is 16 years old and is dealing with the loss of his mother and his father his spiraling downwards. Maggie is 72 and is appears to be a happily retired woman working at the local library. When Tom enters one day asking to check out some books for his “mother”, Maggie has an instant connection to this young man.