Editor's Book Pick: The Midnight Library

TW: suicide, depression

An instant New York Times bestseller and the number one Sunday Times bestseller, The Midnight Library has captured the attention of readers worldwide for its novel take on depression. However, if one plans to read the book (especially if they are prone to suicidal thoughts), they must read the full story from beginning to end. Matt Haig explores the nuances of depression through philosophy in an entertaining manner. Depression often arises from clinging onto the past, and whether it is through a list of regrets that appears whenever one closes their eyes or simply a lack of purpose, it is essential to acknowledge that life is a cumulative experience and not a to-do list. 

Haig constructs the protagonist, Nora, as a woman who decides to end her life but is instead caught in the middle of life and death, at a "midnight" between one day and the next, so to speak. She is caught in a delicate balance between the depression of her old life and the potential of what could be. Ultimately, only she can decide what is to happen with her life moving forwards in a vast, infinite library filled with unlimited lives for her to peruse. In this hilarious, gut-wrenching, and relatable masterpiece by Haig, the reader is exposed to a beautiful melange of mindsets towards life, whether from Henry David Thoreau, Nora's own mind, or the objective realities of life itself. The tenuous nature of life is not something that is easy to capture, but Haig pulls from firsthand experience and makes the book explain one simple fact: life is worth living.

The Midnight Library