A.J. Fickery is not a particularly likeable or happy man; but, in his defense, he's had his fair share of sorrow. For one, his beloved young wife was killed in a car accident while pregnant with their first child. A.J. is now a widower and the solitary owner of Island Books on the fictional Alice Island. To make matters worse, Alice Island was his wife's hometown, and it was their shared dream to run a bookstore together.
Now A.J. is alone, bitter and drunk most evenings after barely tolerable days. The bookstore is not thriving, and A.J. treats customers with disdain rather than as the source of his livelihood. After a night ending in a typical drunken stupor, he awakes to find his rare collection of Edgar Allen Poe poetry stolen. Reportedly worth more than $400,000, A.J.'s plan B is now gone.
In a strange twist of fate, weeks later a child is left at Island Books, and although a local cop tries to help place the girl through the regular channels, A.J. decides he cannot let this young girl go. The bookstore curmudgeon surprises readers with his devotion, and not surprisingly, his life and attitude begin to improve. It turns out his heart still works, and this particular, fussy, middle-aged guy can't help but start to grow on you. A.J.'s life is transformed in ways he never imagined, and becoming a dad is just the beginning of these changes.
"The Storied Life of A.J. Fickery," by Gabrielle Zevin, is a charming novel that has several elements readers enjoy: romance, mystery and good character development. There are a few times when the plot seems a little implausible or neatly resolved in places. Nonetheless, there is enough charm and mystery to hold most readers' interest. Book lovers and fans of libraries and bookstores alike will especially enjoy the story's setting and the literary aspects woven throughout the book.
Claudia Schoonover is the director of Missouri River Regional Library.