If you enjoy complex characters and meandering tales you will want to read this book!

Bob is a retired librarian who lives alone and spends his time walking around town and eventually spending time at a senior center visiting with the residents.

I enjoyed the first part of the book very much. I liked learning about Bob and found him to be quite quirky and humorous. The middle of the book pulled things to a slow stop. For me, the chapters sharing about his childhood shenanigans derailed my interest for a moment. By the time I got to the end- I was needing a little more heartstring pull.

Overall, this book was beautifully written with unconventional characters who are well developed. This was my first read by Mr. DeWitt and I can see why he’s revered.

Love, love, loved this quiet story about a man's life. Sounds simple to state it that way, but it's a very substantial and compelling story about just that - one man's life. Would recommend to any lit lover!

This is a very fast paced, easy to read story. The characters, especially Bob, are well developed. It was especially easy to relate to Bob as the protagonist. Bob is a retired librarian, alone since his wife left him for his best (and only) friend, Ethan decades earlier. Bob is very much the introvert, living a happy, but solitary life at home with a large collection of books.

The book tells the story in two sections, one in the present time and a large section going back to Bob’s youth. The story opens as Bob discovers a woman in a 7-Eleven staring at the cold drink cooler. Bob rescues her and returns her to the senior center from where she escaped. As Bob explores the senior center, he decides to volunteer his efforts there.

Then the book covers Bob’s youth and the time he ran away from home for four days. This section takes up a large part of the book and reveals a lot of background information on Bob in his formative years.

After this detour, the story returns to the present time. Bob suffers a fall in his home, breaking his hip. After recovery, Bob decides to move into the senior center and become a resident there. I will not divulge any more of the plot as it would spoil the ending, but there is a small twist at the end.

I enjoyed this book very much and recommend it highly.

I want to thank New Galley for a complimentary advance copy to read in exchange for an honest review.

I’m a big fan of Patrick deWitt. He can take a simple story and make it interesting, with appealing characters, lively dialog and just enough action to keep things moving. I loved The Sisters Brothers and liked French Exit, and now I’m taken with The Librarianist.

Bob Comet is a retired librarian, quietly living out his life alone in his small mint-green house. One day he encounters an unusual woman who turns out to be a “runaway” from a local retirement house. When Bob returns the woman to where she belongs, he learns that the house could use a volunteer (or two) to liven things up. Bob volunteers and moves quietly into a new role, with new friends and a place that feels like home.

Behind Bob’s regular exterior lies a story of an unhappy childhood, one he himself ran away from when he was eleven (or so). Bob met and spent time with some colorful characters on his four-day outing before being taken home by the local sheriff. His propensity to attract colorful characters lasts his whole life through, with a marriage, a divorce and a librarian’s position. deWitt tells Bob’s story using spirit and humor. He has a knack for drawing characters that are one-off from everyday people, those who have unusual stories to tell. I will read anything he writes at this point.

A big thank you to NetGalley and Ecco Books for providing me with an e-ARC to review.

A wonderful read enjoyed from first to last page.So well written so entertaining an author to follow.#netgalley #ecco

In The Librarianist Patrick deWitt introduces us to Bob Comet, a retired librarian who is trying to live a simple, quiet life when a seemingly random act of kindness leads him in a completely different direction. As we learn more of Bob's life we see that this is a pattern for him. Life seems to happen to Bob and throw him into adventures that he is not looking for. His life is far from ordinary through no fault or will of his own. As he encounters different characters and situations, he takes them in stride and confronts them with a calm cool demeanor and logic. The circumstances are often outrageous and comical and Bob reacts to each with a dry intelligent wit. that comes across as easy going although you get the sense that he is definitely ok with the circumstances he finds himself in. In the end it is a story about making the most of your life no matter what may come your way. Bob teaches us to stay true to ourselves, and to face each day with curiosity and an open mind.
Patrick deWitt's prose is intelligent and witty. The dialogue is complex although the story is rather straightforward. The book was a pleasure to read and moves quickly. It is full of dry humor and interesting characters. It was my first time reading this author, but I will certainly be checking his other works.

This was a highly enjoyable read. I loved spending time with Bob Comet. I do wish there was a bit more of Bob as a child; I truly enjoyed the section about his short time as a child runaway. That section really felt full of life and fascinating characters. For a relatively short volume, there is a lot here with almost three distinct narratives reflecting different eras in Bob's life.

This was a quiet, detailed tale without a lot of action, but very character-driven. I enjoyed it, but found that it took longer to finish that I expected. It wasn't a core to read, but I didn't rush to pick it up again. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

This was beautifully written. It is a reminder that big events often happen in small everyday acts. It was brilliant how it is broken up into 4 parts, each part a little different in the role of one’s memory.

A boring guy has a boring life, manipulated by everyone he knows and never quite sharp enough to put things together. Why did people like this?

The Librarianist is a character driven, meandering tale, about Bob, a retired librarian. If you like complex characters and winding stories, you may enjoy this book.

I prefer a more fast paced read but can see how this would appeal to fans of this writing style. Overall, I enjoyed the first half of the book more than the second. The first half focuses on Bob as a retiree and a young man, the second half is about him as a child. The stories are varied and his relationships are awkward and few.

Full of complex characters and winding stories that seem to go nowhere, yet eventually you arrive somewhere with the character and then are led somewhere else. If that sounds like your jam, give it a read when it comes out this summer!

Thanks to netgalley for an eARC to review.

Well written but a little too slow and meandering for me. I certainly liked the references to books, which is why the title led me to request it

This is a quietly told story of a small life, which is not the same thing as an uneventful life. It’s calm and thoughtful. It tracks a life of small and big regrets in a scale commensurate with the tiny acre it tracks.

But the writing! The writing is alive and swaggering and deadpan and absolutely hysterical when it wants to be. Patrick deWitt can write his ass off and I couldn’t love this book more. You’ll love each and every character, from our hero, Bob Comet, to a scene-stealing pair of elderly matronly thespians and a town sheriff in full control of his small jurisdiction and his empathy. His dialog is peerless.

This is a beautiful, beautiful book, and I’ve never read a deWitt book I didn’t love unconditionally.

Many thanks to Ecco and NetGalley for the advance reader’s copy.

Even now, ten years later, I remember how much I enjoyed the experience of reading Patrick deWitt’s “The Sisters Brothers,” so when the opportunity to read this newest, not-yet-released novel came up, I jumped at it.

Our unlikely hero is the quiet Portland (Oregon) librarian Bob Comet. We first meet Bob after his retirement when he chances into a volunteer opportunity at a local senior center. But, just as the reader began to think that she may know the direction in which this novel is going, it hangs a uey into important times of Bob’s past, and we begin to learn a bit about the childhood and relationships that shaped his life. This one of those modern Dickensy kinds of books in which even the cavalcade of minor characters pop right off the page, fully formed. We learn about Bob's childhood, his four days on the lam at the age of eleven after he runs away, his education and job at the library, his friendship, his marriage, and his heartbreaks.

The plot is somewhat meandering, but the story is consistently engaging. Patrick de Witt writes the kind of perfect, weird dialogue that I want to recite out loud just to roll the words around in my mouth. He is a true lover of language; every sentence of this book feels shiny, as though it has been polished in a rock tumbler.

And, finally, two more comments: 1) This book is very funny, and 2) the author fully understands how important books can be in shaping a person’s life. What reader doesn’t love a book that love books?

Thanks to Ecco press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC.

DeWitt’s novels are always original and consistently delightful. He is a must-buy, read-immediately author for me.

The story centers around Bob, the retired librarian with a broken heart. DeWitt crafts an intricate narrative of Bob’s relationships with his wife and his best friend, and the cataclysm that results when these two central figures in Bob’s life connect. Bob’s childhood backstory, however, is somewhat farcical and causes the middle of the story to drag. I wasn’t ever sure of the relevance of Bob’s adolescent escapade, although it’s often repeated that it had a profound effect on Bob.

I enjoyed the first half of the book more than the latter half, although it was still a pleasant read the entire way through. We’re introduced to some amusing and peculiar characters, my favorite being Linus, the resident pragmatic curmudgeon.

Regardless of my misgivings, I still recommend this to fans of DeWitt. If it’s your first foray into his work, however, I would begin instead with <i> Undermajordomo Minor </i>or <i>French Exit</i>.
Many thanks to Netgalley and HarperCollins for the advance copy in exchange for my review.

I guess my final word for this book upon finishing it, is, "What?" The ending left SO MUCH to be desired! I was cruising along, immensely enjoying this story, (although the middle part about the main character running away as a youth was a tad long and not as important to the tale as I hoped) the essence of the story -or what I hoped was the essence- was brushed past so quickly, I was quite disappointed. I kept an eye on the pages I had left and wondered how the author would tie this up in so few pages, and it turns out, they didn't.

Great little story with humor and great little details that all add up to a satisfying story. This author has some talent on display here, and I look forward to his future work.

I really appreciate the free ARC for review!!

Thanks to Netgalley and Ecco for the ebook. I always love the humor and pathos from this author and this new book offers the same. It’s about a retired librarian in Portland, Oregon, named Bob Comet. Bob is living a very simple life when he has a chance encounter with a woman with memory issues that has wandered away from the senior center where she currently lives. Bob returns the woman to her home and Bob decides to give the gift of literature to these seniors with weekly readings from some of his favorite stories. The readings are a disaster, but Bob feels a strong pull towards the residents and decides to volunteer his time as just someone that they can spend time with and talk to. This goes much better, but brings back a flood of memories of Bob’s own history. From the time he ran away as a child, to his magical, but short lived, marriage and to embracing the solitary life that being a librarian gave him. Filled with rich characters and always a great sense of humor.

What a gorgeous novel full of loveable characters and a storyline that I couldn't put down. This one is a must read!

What a nice story. At time I found it a little slow but I continued on. I would recommend this book.