What a brilliantly charming read.

I loved entering Tom’s world, it was sad at times but I was rooting for home throughout.

The relationships he develops within the story were authentic, interesting and very credible.

I was whisked away into their world and feel a whole lot better for having read this book, brilliant!

Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for gifting me this arc in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

The Library by Bella Osborne is a good pick for bibliophiles because it touches on how public libraries are central to communities - not only for their books and services, but as a place for people to connect. In this book, a small-town public library is threatened with possible closure and the story fondly reminded me of The Last Chance Library by Freya Sampson.

But for me, this was much more of a heartfelt story about the unexpected kinship that begins at a public library. Tom is a socially awkward teenage boy who finds friendship, community and help dealing with his loneliness and family problems when he meets sassy septuagenarian Maggie at the library. This unlikely pair tells their individual stories through alternating POVs, and I found their bond to be endearing and authentic.

With the addition of emotional topics (Trigger Warnings below disclaimer), the story took on a surprising and enjoyable depth and the issue of the library closure took a bit of a backseat to this social aspect (which I was okay with). The characters made this book for me and were, for the most part, well-developed and readers will connect with Tom and Maggie equally. My only beef, as a Library Assistant, was how Christine the librarian came off as bumbling and almost incompetent.

Equal parts heartwarming, charming and insightful, The Library is a story about the importance of public libraries within communities, friendships at any age, and second chances.

Disclaimer: My sincere thanks to Aria and Aries for my complimentary advanced digital copy given in exchange for my honest review.

Trigger Warnings: alcoholism, grief, family dysfunction

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 their local library, a 72-year-old widow and a 16-year-old boy, both with heartaches, loss and regrets in their lives. But as they work together to save their small library from closing, they find peace and purpose from each other.

A warm feel-good story.

My thanks to #NetGalley and #Aria for providing me the free early arc for review. The opinions are strictly my own.

I am a sucker for books that are library related so this one was an automatic must-read!

And omg what a book it was!

I read this, coincidently, at the library and was literally grinning to myself at all the cute moments!

I loved everything about it; the plot, the characters and the ending was just perfect. Honestly, I'd read a book with short stories of Maggie and Tom's lives.

A lighthearted book that also covers major topics, like alcoholism and bullying, which was perfect for me after being in a bit of a reading slump!

The Library by Bella Osborne was a surprise because I loved it so much about this book. I am a sucker for anything related to a library, much like most book nerds, but this book was beautiful to read. I did not expect to fall in love with an unlikeable kid like Tom, but I was rooting for that kid by the end. It was also pleasant to unravel Maggie's story from the perfect human to a genuine human.

The backdrop of losing the library seems to be a minor setting for such a powerful book. This book covers many topics: grief, alcoholism, anger, depression, family abandonment, and loneliness. It is handled very delicately because the character development is solid. I love the characters because they are flawed, making them so much more relatable.

I would love to read more from this author!

A book to pull you in heart and soul. It captured my attention from the opening moments and didn't let go.

Character creation was especially poignant through out with Tom and Maggie's connection stealing the show hands down. Their unlikely pairing kept me reading on as their scenes stole the show, it was purely magic.

The Library is a touching tale of warmth and community that I didn't want to end. Yet another glorious story from Bella Osborne.

This book blew me away! I was unable to but it down. Perfect, dazzlingly, very well written. The details the author described throughout the book was so amazing. The characters and storyline were fantastic. The ending I did not see coming Truly Amazing and appreciated the whole story. This is going to be a must read for many many readers. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! No spoilers. Beyond amazing I enjoyed this book so very much. The characters and storyline were fantastic. The ending I did not see coming Could not put down nor did I want to. Truly Amazing and appreciated the whole story. This is going to be a must read for many many readers. Maybe even a book club pick.

This was adorable, honestly one of the sweetest books I've read recently.

A really enjoyable read, very well written, with some very heartfelt and moving moments as well as amusing ones.

Such a lovely story celebrating multi-generational friendship.

I loved the relationship between the characters and how their stories tied in with the main storyline of saving the local library.

A really good read which was wonderful from start to finish!

The Library is a delightful story of friendship, family, and community. When Tom, a 17-year-old teenager, and 72-year-old Maggie meet at the library an unlikely friendship develops. Together they help to rally the community to stop the local library from being closed. Along the way, they discover that friendship has no age limit, and sometimes family is by choice. Thanks to author Bella Osborne, publisher Aria & Aries, and NetGalley for providing a copy of this ebook for an honest review.

3.5 stars.

This was a heartwarming story about an unlikely connection between a seventy-two-year-old lady and a sixteen-year-old teenage boy. Maggie and Tom met under an unfortunate (albeit quite comical) circumstance. They continued bumping into each other at the local library where both of them were members. Having suffered great losses in their lives, they found family in each other, while trying to save their local library at the same time.

I really liked Maggie. She was pretty much Yoda. Full of wisdom, funny and very capable in most things. Tom, however, I didn’t quite connect with. I found his thought process and actions to be much younger than a sixteen-year-old. He felt juvenile, more of a middle grader than a high schooler to me. The connection between the two characters was beautiful, though. It was the main thing that tied the story together.

The library itself didn’t really have much involvement until way later in the book. Maggie and Tom’s story building could’ve been set in any place. The library was just a background till the later half of the book. I wish it had featured more prominently from the start, seeing that it was the main reason I picked up the book.

Having said all that, while the details might not have been perfect for me, the overall story still moved me enough that I got misty eyes in the end.

It took me a minute to really get into this story, but once I did, I didn’t want to stop reading. I love Maggie. I love how the characters grow and become the people they truly are. I saw people and situations I could totally relate to. I bet you will too. The story line just kept getting better as I kept reading. I would love to know what happens next with Maggie, Tom, Paul, Christine and Penny. I received this book from NetGalley, but my opinion is my own.

When I first picked this book up I wasn’t sure if it was going to be for me but I ending up really enjoying it. Maggie and Tom were both interesting and complex characters and I liked that it was told from both of their POV’s. My favourite part of any book is usually the romance and this book didn’t have one, which was again another reason why I thought I might not like it. While it didn’t have a romantic focus it did have a lot of focus on friendship and the unlikely friendship that blossomed between Maggie and Tom was really special and lovely to read.

The Library by Bella Osborne is a charming, at times heartbreaking, but ultimately uplifting book about intergenerational friendship. I'd call it a love story too, a love story to libraries and how intergral libraries are to communities.

Although this book purports to be a "save the library" story, many other issues are discussed. When teenage Tom and senior citizen Maggie meet at the small local library, they do not expect their lives to intertwine as they do. Themes addressed include alcoholism, bullying, freedom of speech, and generational understanding. The story alternates between the two different viewpoints of Maggie and Tom.

I liked Maggie as a strong character, who survived through many heartaches and disappointments in life. She was willing to help others and showed a caring spirit. Tom had some redeeming characteristics, although he was a whiner and judgmental of adults. Tom had a lot of growing up to do. I wish the book had stuck to a lighter "save the library" theme instead of going off into so many darker tangents; maybe two different books could be written here, as the two themes really did not have a lot to do with each other.

I received this novel from the publisher and from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

As a big reader and user of libraries, this book called out to me. I was worried it might be a little too saccharine, but it wasn’t.
Maggie is a 72 year old widow who comes to the library for a weekly book club. She also still manages her small farm of sheep and chickens. Tom is 16 years old. His mom is dead and his dad is an alcoholic. The library becomes a sanctuary for him on the weekends. When the council decides to close the library, their unlikely friendship really blossoms over a united cause.
The chapters alternate between Tom’s and Maggie’s POVs. Both characters felt fully realized and I was equally invested in both. Osborne does a great job of portraying Tom as a boy verging on manhood but not there yet. All of their issues (loneliness, alcoholism, money problems, grief and trust issues ) are handled sensitively and realistically. Flip side, Tom’s introduction to farming provided some comic relief.
This was a lovely, heartwarming story about the families we make and not being afraid to rely on others.
My thanks to Netgalley and Aria&Aries for an advance copy of this book.

Quite possibly my favourite book of the year so far!

When I saw this book I knew I had to read it... and it did not disappoint!

The Library will have you wanting to visit your local library at the very next opportunity.

I liked how the topic of alcoholism was covered and it was refreshing to have a different, varied range of cast from the usual types of characters and the relationships between them. It was nice to see different age groups connecting in positive ways.

The Library made me laugh, it made me emotional... this book ticked all the boxes!

This was a completely excellent read and i quite unexpectedly loved it. upon reading the synopsis i wasn’t sure if it would be for me but it really was. I enjoyed the characters and the writing style and I found it so easy to just sit for hours and read.

Rating: 4.5 Stars

Isn’t it the best when you stumble upon something wonderful? That’s how I felt about The Library. I will admit, I wanted to read this book because libraries and books on the cover; however, I was not prepared for how lovely this story was and how much it made me feel.

This book was about Tom, who had been complacent blending into the background. Following the death of his mother, his father became an alcoholic, and Tom was sort of left to care for himself. His home life was rather heartbreaking and grim, and Tom seemed a bit lost, even if he would not admit it.

A trip to the library made a world of difference for him. There, an unlikely friendship formed between him and Maggie. Maggie was much, much older than Tom, a widowed hippie who lived on a farm. Let me tell you, there is nothing I love more than an unlikely friendship, and this one, was spectacular. You might think it was one-sided with Maggie stepping in to offer care and support to Tom, but it wasn’t. He made Maggie’s life better too, and oh, my heart! Their relationship was really a thing of beauty.

This book was about friendship, but also about forgiveness. Tom’s father had sunk deeper and deeper into his alcoholism, and Tom struggled with that and his emotions regarding his father. Osborne did a great job exploring those issues and the fragile bond between father and son, as well as dealing with the grief Tom carried associated with his mother. This was a source of some very heartbreaking and heartwarming moments for me. Maggie carried some baggage from her past that she needed to work through as well. Osborne was slow to reveal her full story, and it was sad and surprising, but the results were extremely satisfying.

How wonderful that fate brought these two together at their local library just when they both needed someone most. This was an absolutely lovely and feel-good story that filled me with joy.

I had great expectations for this book from the blurb and the setting but it didn't quite blow me away as I had hoped.
That said it was still an enjoyable read but I was expecting some wow moments and they didn't come through.
It is a lovely tale of friendship and I loved the fact it was told from both Tom and Maggie's POV's.
The two of them make an unlikely duo but that does set the book apart from others, there were a few parts of the plot that I didn't particularly enjoy but also a few heart wrenching moments that gave it back an edge,.
Overall an enjoyable read and fabulous setting.