My mom took me to the bookstore to buy a book for my birthday - which, I guess, is the adult equivalent of going to the toy store and being told to pick out any toy you want. I was excited when I saw this book because I had just read somewhere what a great book it was, and then I spent the next 10 minutes trying to figure out where I read that it was such a great book (which I never did). I have always loved the idea of the multiverse where the various choices we make create multiple universes where we live different lives.

I read the book in a week, which is embarrassing for a librarian to admit, but for me that is quite the accomplishment. I was excited to go to bed each night because I knew I would have a few minutes to read before I passed out (10 minutes if I'm lucky, but usually 5 minutes tops). It's not that the writing was so great. I love beautiful writing - those lines that are so perfect in their simplicity and the way they capture the emotion (although I do love the line in this book, "There is something so lonely about a place that is almost home". I thought that was beautiful.) But the writing was definitely engaging and I think the author did a wonderful job of setting a tone of desperation as the protagonist fights to find his way home. I could not put it down, but I also didn't want it to end. The struggle, as they say, is very real.