I love getting lost in a library. It is extra fun when I get lost in a library in a book. And the most fun is when I get lost in a magical library in a book. Here are the best ones.
Definitely not a favorite, but a HUGE influence. The Ministry for Truth, where “ignorance is strength” rocked my world as a sophomore in high school. It was really the first true dystopian novel I read and I had no idea such a thing was possible! Little did I know how relevant it would be. It was a WARNING, not an instruction manual!
The Midnight Library, Matt Haig I read this recently, (the inspiration for this post, actually), and was surprised to see a true parable getting mainstream play. It’s a clever book about regret, choices, and quantum physics. And like I said, it’s just a straight-up, unapologetic parable.
The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern. Time and Fate fall in love in a library for all stories beneath the earth. Also, there are bees. And the librarians get their tongues cut out. The ending fumbled a teeny bit as the story got away from her, but my god, the library was spectacular!
The Invisible Library by Genevieve Cogman. A spy steals fiction from alternate realities and brings it back to one huge library of everything ever written anywhere. This one is a teeny bit slow to get started, but it’s another with multiple universes. (What is it about a library that lends itself so well to different versions of life?
Abhorsen Trilogy by Garth Nix. Technically there is only a library featured in one of these books, but this trilogy is classic! Who would have thought a necromancer would have been so romantic? This is YA, and the contrast between the girl who can see the dead and the rest of her people who can see the future broke my heart the first time I read it.
The Memory Librarian by Janelle Monae. Multi-hyphenates are all the rage these days, but a singer who can write like this? I’m slightly jealous. This is a series of stories set within her albums in this unique Afrofuturism book less about a library and more about who curates the rest of our information.
These are some of my favorite books. Please send your suggestions if you know of any other good magical libraries! Truly, they are one of my favorite things.