The storied life of A.J. Fikry

This internationally bestselling sensation is a 'funny, tender, and moving' (Library Journal, starred review) tale about community, books and second chances set in a world you won't want to leaveA.J.

Fikry, the grumpy owner of Island Books, is going through a hard time: his bookshop is failing, he has lost his beloved wife, and his prized possession-a rare first edition book has been stolen.

Over time, he has given up on people, and even the books in his store, instead of offering solace, are yet another reminder of a world that is changing too rapidly. But one day A.J. finds two-year-old Maya sitting on the bookshop floor, with a note attached to her asking the owner to look after her.

His life - and Maya's - is changed forever. Gabrielle Zevin's enchanting novel is a love letter to the world of books--an irresistible affirmation of why we read, and why we love. Originally published as The Collected Works of A. J. Fikry. 'Readers who delighted in Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows's The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, Rachel Joyce's The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, and Jessica Brockmole's Letters from Skye will be equally captivated by this adult novel by a popular YA author about a life of books, redemption, and second chances.

Funny, tender, and moving' Library Journal, starred review'This novel has humor, romance, a touch of suspense, but most of all love--love of books and bookish people and, really, all of humanity in its imperfect glory' Eowyn Ivey, author of The Snow Child