This book is one of those heartwarming, gentle books that is an easy but joyful read. I read it during a particularly stressful week and found it a wonderful, soothing respite – I found the same joy dipping into The Lido as the characters did. The May to December friendship that develops between the young and desperately lonely journalist Kate and the 86-year-old lifelong Lido enthusiast, Rosemary, is a beautiful thing. It was inspiring to see their friendship transcend age. Their efforts to save their local lido bring Kate into contact with so many others, opening her up to all that she has been missing. This is a book about friendship and community – how sometimes we do not realise the importance of things until they are gone.

I loved this book! It's such a heartwarming story of friendship, loneliness, community and love. The flashbacks describing Rosemary and George's relationship were a delight, and the importance of public services is a hot topic right now, especially for me! I particularly liked the burgeoning friendship between Rosemary and Kate; it highlighted that loneliness is not specific to the elderly. Kate blossoms between the pages and thought the ending was perfect. I think The Lido will be one of my favourites.

I finished this book a while ago and still find myself thinking about the characters and what’s happening to them now and that in my mind is what a good book is all about. Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read this absorbing story of unlikely friendship, community and the courage to believe in something even when all the odds are against you.

The Lido by Libby Page

Believe the hype!!

A wonderfully uplifting, you can do it! Kinda book.

Beautifully written with warmth, humour and a real sense of wanting to belong. Highly recommend

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is a lovely, heartwarming, feel-good book about friendship and community and I am going to recommend it to all my friends.

What a fantastic, sweet/homely book that was to read. Great characters and a simple but very nice storyline that was a joy to read!

This is a delightful. Set around the Brixton Lido the characters and their stories are lovely and you can really relate to them. The comradery that develops when they try to save the Lido from closure is beautifully developed. You feel ike you are with them on their early morning swims

If this is a debut novel then sign me up for the next , loved it !! Just the kind of feel good book I needed to read. The main characters Kate and Rosemary are a delight and the friendship that blooms between these 2 from a negative situation only helps to make the book even more uplifting. There are lots of tender moments and are all written beautifully with the skill of this new writer. Highly recommended !

I really enjoyed this debut novel. It is a gentle tale involving the friendship developing between strangers. Loved that Kate and Rosemary met in a bid to save the lido. A real insight in to a city community and it's characters and their back stories. Sensitivily written.

A well written book with a lovely story of how a community can pull together. Friendship can be found in very unusual circumstances. A good holiday read.

This is being billed as one of the feel-good reads of the summer and whilst I don't entirely buy into that, I did really enjoy this debut novel from Libby Page. It made me smile, but it also made me cry - quite a lot - and I don't think that was entirely because it was my last day of holiday and I didn't want to go home!

I really liked the story of Kate and her friendship with Rosemary and it was delightful to watch the two characters learn and take strength from each other. By the end of the novel Kate was a happier and better person because of her friendship with Rosemary and everything that came with it - and she's the one who has done the work to achieve that, it's not because she's been "fixed" by a man. I liked the setting, the sense of community and all the side characters - I would happily have read more about many of them. I'm almost tempted to try outdoor swimming in a lido, but who knows if I'll actually manage that. I will however be looking out for more from Libby Page.

I was sent an advance manuscript proof of The Lido by Libby Page to read and review by NetGalley.
This is an idealistic story of a community coming together to fight a common cause and a tale of friendship and love. At times it is predictable, sometimes a little repetitive and at others a good insight into the human condition. The descriptions of The Lido, which the community and especially protagonists Rosemary and Kate are trying to save, are very evocative making it easy to conjure up the imagery in your mind, especially if you are lucky enough to have experienced a similar location in your life.
While I think that this novel is too long and I personally believe that the episodes surrounding the fox are quite unnecessary – put there, I presume, to add some sort of lyrical quality to the story – it is an easy read and ultimately a gentle, rather romanticized statement about the greed of capitalism and the importance of community and friendship in our lives.

An enjoyable debut novel. A well told story about the power of friendship and community, the characters are likeable and believable, and the story comes to life through the well written descriptions of Brixton. Heartwarming and touching, I enjoyed reading the book. An ideal summer read.

I loved it! Yes, it's a lovely positive book with diverse characters working to help each other, but nothing is actually unbelievable and it's all just lovely, but with a tang and depth to it, as all lovely books should have.

Read my full review on my blog, linked below.

Rosemary is in her 80s and desperately misses her late husband George but her one solace in life is her lifelong passion for swimming at the lido. Kate is a young girl in her 20s, new to Brixton, and has just taken a job as a journalist on a local paper. When the lido is threatened closure by a development company Kate takes up the banner to try and save it with help from the local community.

A lovely book showing the bond and friendships that can develop between two very different people from different generations, I loved the flashbacks of Rosemary to the courting of herself and George and what the lido meant to her, and the joining of the community to fight for it

This is a gently enthralling read. It is the story of Rosemary and Kate who are generations apart but come together to save the local lido. Both women are lonely and at a cross roads in their lives.

Rosemary has always lived in Brixton and the Lido has been a huge part of her life and is full of memories for her, particularly since her husband has died. Now that the Lido is under threat, everything seems different.
Kate has just moved to live in London and feels very alone in her new life. The closure of the Lido is Kate's introduction to the world of outdoor swimming and the start of something new for her.

The book is beautifully written with well drawn characters and a real sense of community. Libby Page's debut is a great read and I look forward to reading her next book.

I absolutely loved The Lido. The main characters are Rosemary and Kate. Rosemary is a larger than life 86 year old. She’s lived in Brixton all her life and been swimming at the Lido for 80 years. Twenty six year old Kate on the other hand works for a local paper and suffers from anxiety and panic attack’s.

When Kate is assigned to write about the closing of the local lido, she meets Rosemary. These two strike up an unlikely friendship and rally the community together to save the lido.

Beautifully written, this is a feel good book that will draw you in and keep you company to the very last page.

Thank you to NetGalley, Orion Publishing Group and the author for the chance to review.

Brrrr...

My grandkids swim in an outdoor pool, I doubt it is heated, but I know their mother sits and watches wrapped in several blankets with a hot drink and a hot water bottle! Me - I like my water 30 degrees at least  - above permitted heat I know but...

So I maybe wouldn't have joined the petition to keep the Lido open, not for me, but certainly there are lots of people who don't mind the cold so maybe I would join for them. And for a Community Asset which should be kept of course!

I read a recent article by Libby Page who wrote of friendship. Across age, backgrounds and cultures. And the importance of community assets as meeting places to facilitate these friendships. without somewhere where everyone is welcomed, we are impoverished and the lesser for it.

This novel reminds us of the richness of a locality where feet traverse the soil and encounters with others is the norm.

I really must visit Brixton and the market!

A lovely story of how important community is, no matter where you live or how old you are.

This is a such a lovely book and I am planning to buy it for lots of family members and friends. It’s a wonderful, feel good story about two women, one young and starting out in London and one older looking back on her life, who become friends and get together to save a lido. The characters are so real and likeable, the plot is exciting and the writing is fresh and engaging. I loved the descriptions of Brixton. The streets come to life and there’s a great sense of community. The author cleverly builds up the scenes so you feel part of them. I often read a chapter and made myself put the book down, to savour what had happened, as I didn’t want to finish it too quickly. There are lots of examples of courage and overcoming adversity and at the end I thought, ‘What a great story’ and wanted to read it again.