I have had this book on my shelf for so long now that I can’t even remember getting it! I kept meaning to pick it up… and then just not. But I was in the mood for something a bit light this week, and I saw this, and it seemed like the way to go.
This is the story of a librarian who is losing her job. She tries to train for a new position, but isn’t excited about the prospect of the new role, and keeps thinking: wouldn’t it be great to buy a van, fill it with books, and run a bookshop? (This also fits with the hundreds and hundreds of books she has “rescued” from her library that is closing down, and that her roommate is not happy to have in her house!)
I enjoyed this bookish aspect to the novel, and honestly without it I doubt I would have made it through. I loved all the discussion of readers and their favourite books, I loved her devotion to searching out the right book for each person she comes into contact with, and the dream job she crafts for herself. I also adored the Scottish setting – I’d happily move to this town tomorrow if I could!
The book is, though, primarily a romance. It follows a familiar path – more than one prospective romantic interest, some star-crossed elements, some uncertainty and deception and a complicated romantic past. There’s drama, confusion, mis-communication (or lack of communication) and some feelings that take a little while to percolate. I didn’t mind the romantic story, though I didn’t buy it for a second. It was fine. But honestly, it’s not the part of the book I liked.
I think this is a book that would really work for romance aficionados who are better practiced at the suspension of disbelief needed to fully engage with this kind of romantic story, or anyone who enjoys a side of books with their romance. I enjoyed it while I was reading, and didn’t care all that much whether or not I really bought it. Aside from the bookish theme, my favourite part of this book was actually the setting and the community Nina finds. I loved several of the background characters, and I really enjoyed the relationship that develops between Nina and the young woman she hires part time to help her out. Any emotional connection I felt with the book was thanks to those relationships more than the central romantic ones.
I enjoyed this one well enough to check out the next book in the series, and I could see myself picking up some of Colgan’s books from time to time when I’m just looking for something sweet and fluffy. I can almost forgive her for the title being completely inaccurate to the actual story! (It’s a van not a shop, and it’s not “on the corner” because IT’S A VAN. IT MOVES.) Okay, so maybe I haven’t quite forgiven her for that yet. I’ll keep working on it. Pick this up if you’re a fan of romance stories that involve lots of great character development, some fantastic friendships, lots of book love and a truly idyllic Scottish small town backdrop!
Nina Redmond is a literary matchmaker. Pairing a reader with that perfect book is her passion… and also her job. Or at least it was. Until yesterday, she was a librarian in the hectic city. But now the job she loved is no more.
Determined to make a new life for herself, Nina moves to a sleepy village many miles away. There she buys a van and transforms it into a bookmobile—a mobile bookshop that she drives from neighborhood to neighborhood, changing one life after another with the power of storytelling.
From helping her grumpy landlord deliver a lamb, to sharing picnics with a charming train conductor who serenades her with poetry, Nina discovers there’s plenty of adventure, magic, and soul in a place that’s beginning to feel like home… a place where she just might be able to write her own happy ending. – Goodreads
Book Title: The Bookshop on the Corner
Author: Jenny Colgan
Series: Yes – Scottish Bookshop #1
Edition: Paperback/Audiobook
Published By: William Morrow Paperbacks/Rakuten Kobo
Released: February 11, 2016
Genre: Fiction, Literary, Romance, Bookish
Pages: 384
Date Read: July 30-31, 2022
Rating: 5/10
Average Goodreads Rating: 3.84/5 (71,998 ratings)
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