No Two Persons was a book I dove into, not having read any reviews and not knowing what to expect. I sped through the chapters in two days, and I found it a delight to inhabit the world the author created.

The book starts with the story of Alice. She believes she has a book in her, and eventually she writes Theo. Getting it published is another challenge, but eventually she gets the good news that a publisher has accepted the book. The next chapter skips to a completely different character, entitled The Assistant. Lara previews books in the slush pile for her publisher, trying to find that book which is worthy of publication. As Lara's story finishes, we jump to new characters, The Actor, The Artist, The Diver, The Teenager, and so on. Each character is given a short story of their own, and we find they each have read Alice's book, Theo, and that it has affected them in varying ways.

In 1993 Robert Altman did a movie called Short Cuts, a day in the life of various people in Los Angeles . It was several vignettes of people and their story on that particular day, none of which seemed relevant to each other. But eventually their stories connect or cross paths, even in the slightest of ways. I loved the concept, and a similar idea is carried out here. I loved the reveals showing how some character's lives intersect with another's, usually in a minor way, but cleverly drawing their disparate storylines together. I also liked the chapter format for each character, their story revealing a lot about their personality in a few strokes.

I also enjoyed the concept that no two persons take the same thing away from a book. One of the characters doesn't want her husband to read Theo, because it spoke to her so deeply, and she is afraid if he doesn't feel the same, she will judge him. The book explores how the same book can speak to people in different ways, or maybe not at all!

Finally, Ms. Bauermeister is a talented writer, with sentences scattered like gems throughout the pages. The story itself was good, but it is the writing that makes it rise to a five star read for me!

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and St. Martin's Press for allowing me to preview this book in exchange for an honest review. I can highly recommend it!

This novel is a love story about the power of words, and how stories have the ability to heal, break, empower, enlighten, and forever change the trajectory of our lives.

When Alice writes a debut novel that springs forth from her soul, she has no idea the impact that it will have as it circulates out into the world. No Two Persons tracks this novel and how it forever changes the lives of ten people. The assistant who discovers the manuscript sees a future and hope in it, a homeless teenager learns the power of forgiveness from its words, an actor whose popularity has diminished finds worth in narrating the audiobook, and a literary agent remembers that stories are the dreams of writers, loved and cherished. As these ten people experience the novel, their stories intertwine and connect in unexpected ways.

Quite simply put, this novel is beautiful and the writing is impeccable. Each character’s storyline seems to lift off of the page, with life lessons attached to each one. I found myself immersed in each one, watching how each person changes while reading the book and remembering stories that have forever changed me. This is a character-driven novel, one that takes its time to develop. But any person who loves to read, who has found comfort or hope or acceptance after reading a novel, who has ever thought, “I am not alone” because of a book…this novel will live in your bones and remind you why books exist, why they should be celebrated, and why they should be protected.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this advanced copy, in exchange for my honest review.

I read this book during a really hard time for myself and my family, and it was this little piece of escape when it seemed like everything else was falling apart around me.

This premise of this book is really interesting. Each chapter is a totally different person, most unrelated, but what connects them is a book. The novel progresses from the creation of the novel, then goes to the publishing staff who chooses the book, to the narrator, then the so on through different readers, and then circling back to the publisher and the author.

It demonstrates how a book can impact people at different points in their lives in different ways. I found some character’s chapters more compelling, and it felt like more of a collection of short stories? With a comment theme threading through each chapter.

I enjoyed reading it, I don’t think it’s the most amazing thing I’ve read, but I’d recommend it for the premise.

“We’re all caretakers of the stories, Alice. Writers are just the lucky ones that get to know them first.”

No Two Persons is a short story collection disguised as an adult contemporary novel. The story opens with Alice, a quiet young woman who has a strong desire to be a writer, but lacks the life experience to write with depth. Then a tragic turn of events sparks something in Alice, spawning the creation of an immensely popular debut novel.

But just when you might think this is Alice’s story, both before and after fame, the narrative switches. A few chapters in and you realize each new installment is less about the person the book comes across, and more about the impact the book had on each one of them.

Just like with any vignette storytelling, some chapters, and some of the individuals, are more interesting than others. Still, in the end, the overlap that starts to emerge is pretty cool to watch unfold. This book reminded me a bit of a movie that came out years ago called Twenty Bucks that followed the path said currency took by way of all the different people who it touched, quite literally. Coming full circle, no two readers will be impacted by No Two Persons in the same way either.

(𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬𝘴 𝘵𝘰 @𝘴𝘵𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 #𝘨𝘪𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬.) We all know that a single book can impact the various people who come in contact with it in very different ways. That IS the premise of the connected short stories in 𝗡𝗢 𝗧𝗪𝗢 𝗣𝗘𝗥𝗦𝗢𝗡𝗦 and author Erica Bauermeister did it beautifully. I’ve never been a big fan of connected short stories, but this group of nine truly spoke to me. They so thoughtfully delved into the many ways a book can impact people’s lives and how so many of us often feel when it's the right book:⁣
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📘 “She’d fallen into stories before. It was why she’d wanted to do this job in the first place, that experience of opening a book and feeling it reach out and grab you.”⁣
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📘 “It’s like eating the best ice-cream cone of your life on a hot day,” she told him. “You want to eat it fast, but have it never end."⁣
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📘 “For Rowan, getting an advanced copy felt like someone telling you a secret while still holding a finger to their lips. The experience made more exciting by its exclusivity…”⁣
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📘 “He’d worked in a bookstore long enough to know that no matter how good a book is, someone will hate it, and they’ll likely tell you. But as long as that book is only in your head, it is still perfect.”⁣
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📘 “I’m just saying that a character can be as real as a person. Or teach you as much, anyway.”⁣
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📘 “...but that was the beauty of books, wasn’t it? They took you to places you didn’t know you needed to go.”⁣
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Bauermeister is definitely a book lover I can relate to. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

NO TWO PERSONS by Erica Bauermeister is an intriguing read which begins with an introverted author, Alice Wein. Subsequent sections deal with other people who have some relationship to her writing, including a publicist and her assistants, the audio book narrator, and a variety of readers (a young, homeless girl, an angry artist, a daring free diver, etc.). Bauermeister has very cleverly, yet subtlety, linked the stories. Each person is impacted by Alice's text in a unique way. In fact, the title conveys the idea that we all come to books with different perspectives and therefore also have different take-aways; it is from this quote: "No two persons ever read the same book, or saw the same picture" (Madame Swetchine, 1860). NO TWO PERSONS will have readers reflecting on their own lives and others. For example, Alice's college professor gives the class a task to go to a coffee shop: "Close your eyes and listen. Write down what people around you are feeling. Not saying. Not thinking. Feeling. Ask yourself: How do you know that? Is it a dip in a sentence? A scrape of a chair?" One of my favorite parts is the description of creating an audiobook and the idea of using colored highlighters and multiple notes to be sure to convey an intended emotion, with "everything held in the voice." I was surprised and happy to see that the author's notes refer to Cassandra Campbell who narrates the audio book for this title as well as James Comey's recently released Central Park West. Enjoy Bauermeister’s writing ["Picking up a book was a decision: I’m going to go away. The exciting possibility: I may not come back the same."] plus her thoughts on the beauty of books: "They took you places you didn't know you needed to go."

I was intrigued by the premise of this book. I love books about books, and this one was really written for book lovers. It's about an author who publishes her debut novel, nine people who read it, and the ways that it changes or touches their lives. I enjoyed each person's story. I was really wanting just a little more from each one. I really got into each individual story and thought we could have had more, but I also thoroughly enjoyed it. It was a really quick read and I think the author did such a great job. I will definitely read more of her books in the future!

Out NOW

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the gifted copy. All opinions are my own. My review will be posted on Instagram, Bookbub, Goodreads and Amazon.

Can reading a book change the course of your life?

Alice has been fascinated with the concept of creating books since she was a little girl, & has enormous raw talent as a writer - but has never quite produced the kind of polished story that becomes published. After a life-altering personal trauma, she spends years working on a single story that eventually becomes an actual novel. With its release into the world, her life & the lives of several very different readers are forever changed & connected.

I’m starting to have a new favorite genre, which is books about books. This story is formatted a bit like Olive Kitteridge in that each new chunk of story focuses on one person, but the book (& sometimes people from other segments) appears in each. I really enjoyed how people in the publishing industry were impacted by Alice’s work, & could relate to the late nights described in the new mother’s section. It was fascinating to learn about free diving & ghost towns, and to basically just take a walk through several different lives & see what sort of influence the book had on each person. I have never read anything from this author before, but I own a copy of one of her previous works (The Scent Keeper) & I definitely need to read it.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press & NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was totally drawn in by the premise - one book, nine readers. I love thinking about other people reading a book at the same time I am or all the other people who might have checked out my same copy of a library book.

I also really appreciated that this book is written for people who really love reading - there were parts I loved and had to immediately highlight. But ultimately this didn’t work for me because as soon as I would feel like I was really into a particular person’s experience, their chapter would end and it was on to someone else. I wanted more. This may work better if you are a short story reader or know to expect that going in.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the advance reading copy.

This book REALLY surprised me. As usual, I went in fairly blind, and I'm so glad I did in this case. This book is a love story to books and how they connect us. I loved seeing the different ways a book can touch the lives of so many different people and how we all intertwine. This was so beautifully done and I wanted more from each story, but they left me so satisfied. 4 stars

3.5 stars
I love the idea of this book. I listened to it on audio and wonder if physically reading this-I would have enjoyed it more. Lots of characters and one book that connects them all. However, I felt like I never really got to really bond with each character because there were so many and we only got a tiny glimpse into their lives and the it was on to the next.
I did love how at the end several characters were connected.

“We’re all caretakers of the stories, Alice. Writers are just the lucky ones that get to know them first.”

This book takes the sentiment “no two people read the same book” and runs with it. It follows nine readers (and an author) experiences reading one book.

As someone who reads so much, it is often hard for me to find a really unique and fresh book. But NO TWO PERSONS did that for me. I truly couldn’t put it down. It was almost like reading a collection of intertwined short stories. And despite each chapter focusing on a different character, every new story immersed me in their world.

This reminded me of why I love books 🥹🥹🥹 the power that words on a page have to literally change our lives. It was also an important reminder of the individuality of a reading experience - different parts of a book will tap into different emotions and experiences in any one person. And in my opinion that’s what makes it so fun to talk about books (like on this platform). OK I’m going to stop gushing about my love for reading but read this book if you want to feel like this 🥹

the premise of this one was SO unique that it immediately drew me in and kept me there!

not only does it show how books change people’s lives in different ways, but it also shows how people influence others to change their lives for better or for worse. it felt like one big book club that I just wanted to give a hug!!!

I definitely gravitated towards certain stories over others, but the point was to find the different things that resonate with the readers - and it felt very meta doing it myself too!

the author wrote beautiful passages and I cannot wait to pick up more by this author soon!

thank you to netgalley and st martins press for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

A beautiful testament to the power of fiction and literature. Each section is from the perspective of a different person - all loosely connected - and how their life has touched a particular novel. The biggest criticism I have of this book was that I wasn't ready to be done with several of the narrators, and leaving them was a like a loss. By the end, though, I was sold on the structure, and will be thinking about it for a long time after.

No Two Persons by Erica Bauermeister is a book about a writer, and the way that each reader interprets her story. Alice writes her debut novel; and when it is released into the world, it ends up affecting each reader differently. This book tells the story of Alice and of nine different readers, and it is truly unique and beautiful. Here's a paragraph that I especially enjoyed. "I guess I come at it a bit differently," he said, settling back in his desk chair. "I think each story has its own life. In the beginning, it lives in the writer's mind, and it grows and changes while it's there. Changes the writer, too, I'd bet." He smiled at her, then continued. "At some point it's written down, and that's the book readers hold in their hands. But the story isn't done, because it goes on to live in the readers' heads, in a way that's particular to each of them. We're all caretakers of the stories, Alice. Writers are just the lucky ones that get to know them first." Thanks to NetGalley for the free digital review copy. All opinions are my own.

No Two Persons has an interesting concept. The first chapter is about the author and the backstory of her writing the book. The remainder are basically short stories about how the book touched the readers lives. It also spans nine years. Although I was fascinated by the concept, it wasn’t at all what I thought it would be. Each person touched by the book is a completely different story. I found some of them interesting and some forgettable. The book did make me think, however, about how everyone perceives things differently. Not just a book but life itself.

Is this book on your radar? It should be. I usually pause over a passage once maybe twice in a book but in this one it was too many times to count.

I had both the audio and ebook and both were great. It was slightly easier to digest every word with the ebook but I loved how each of the readers was narrated by a different narrator and it seemed they were all the perfect pick.

A young debut author, who’s lived through some issues, writes a book that resonates with nine readers. We get a glimpse into each of their lives as the book touches them.

I loved how they unexpectedly touch each other’s lives. While I’m not sure if it was intentional or me, but as I went through I was reminded of others books I’ve read.

It really is a great premise that is delivered. This is a readers book and it will stay with me for a long time.

The premise of this book sounded wonderful. I just love the idea of books changing lives, and the same book affecting different people was so exciting to me.
I enjoyed this book, but it didn't quite have the impact I had hoped for. I felt like every chapter had a different character to get to know and understand the way the book helped them. When I got used to one character, there was a change of POV and it was pretty jarring.

I really loved this booki. There's so many beautiful quotes and language in it. It's all about how a book can find people at the right time and be something different for each of them. "No two persons read the same book." I really loved how the characters stories stood alone but were also intertwined. The book almost reads like a collection of short stories.

Overall a really beautifully written book that I'd recommend.

Five billion stars. Incredible. Please read this book. Ms Bauermeister - please write or release 'Theo'. I wonder if you did write it to be used as the story within the book or if it is in fragments (like my heart 🩷) Thank you so much for these wonderful stories. I am in awe…from 'magic to magician' and back again. I loved this so much I'm certain I will read it again (and I NEVER do that)!