Cover Image: The Lido

The Lido

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Member Reviews

This is a love story but not in the usual boy-meets-girl style (although there is that as well). Rather, 'The Lido' is a love story filled with nostalgic simplicity. Rosemary and Kate have both lost themselves: one a geriatric who is struggling to come to terms with her new widowhood; the other a young twenty-something trying to make it in a big city whilst riddled with panic. The pair develop an unlikely friendship that crosses generations, with Kate bringing Rosemary into the modern world and Rosemary providing Kate some roots in which to ground herself. This is a perfect girls weekend away-style book. Quick and easy reading with the odd lump in the throat quality to it, 'The Lido' is about falling in love with your community, and its people; it reminds us that human connection is why we’re alive. – Leza Bredenkamp

This review will appear in Romantic Intentions Quarterly #2, out July 2, 2018.

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This was an enjoyable read- I need to read something a bit lighter than the normal psychological thrillers I normally read and this one was just right. It was somewhat predictable but I enjoyed it nonetheless. The characters Rosemary and Kate are just delightful and I loved their beautiful friendship. This is an excellent story you won't want to miss.

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

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The Lido is a public pool in the Brixton neighborhood and 86 year old Rosemary has spent most of her life swimming there daily and spent a lot of time there falling in love with her husband, whom is now deceased. Kate is a young journalist who writes for the local paper and gets assigned to covering the possibility of the Lido closing and being replaced with a high end apartment complex. Kate and Rosemary become quite good friends as they both fight to help keep the Lido open by trying to prove what it means to them personally and the community.
I think I’m definitely in the minority with my opinion on this book as most of the reviews I’ve seen have been very positive. Don’t get me wrong, this is a very heartwarming story about a beautiful relationship that develops over a mutual love for the lido and the writing is great, but I was just bored at times. From a sentimental and emotional standpoint, this is a wonderful story worth reading.


*** Special thanks to NetGalley and Simon Schuster for allowing me an ARC in exchange for an honest review***

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The Lido by Libby Page is quite possibly the sweetest, funniest, and loveliest story I have ever read. I laughed and cried throughout the entire book. I couldn’t put it down. This book is guaranteed to put a smile on your face as Rosemary and Kate’s friendship blossoms as they work to save a neighborhood treasure.

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I picked up this book and couldn't put it down. I loved it from start to finish. It was such a great read that is really in the spirit of "a Man Called Ove." This intergenerational story of friendship, love and overcoming personal obstacles, touched my heart.
Kate is reporter whose dreams of becoming a star reporter have dissolved into writing fluff pieces for a small, local newspaper. She is almost paralyzed by her own fears and loneliness. When she is assigned to write a piece about a local lido closing, she meets Rosemary Peterson. Rosemary is 86 years old and has been swimming at the lido her entire life. The unlikely friendship between these two women is heartwarming and you won't want to put it down.

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The Lido is a wonderful feel good story about 20 something Kate and 86 year old Rosemary. They meet and become friends when Kate is sent to interview Rosemary about her fight to save the neighborhood Lido, the outdoor pool she has swum in her entire life. As the story progresses, Kate learns so much about life and love from Rosemary, and it helps her become a stronger, more fulfilled woman, and to really see the world around her. This novel is strong on the importance of friendship and community, and how they influence and shape our lives. I found it very moving at times, and hope to read more by this author in the future. Many thanks to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for the e-arc! Loved it! A perfect summer read.

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A feel-good story about a mission to save a community swimming pool. While this story was heart-warming, it was missing some character depth and at times, dragged. Perhaps worth a quick read by the poo this summer.

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The Lido is a charming heartwarming story about a community's efforts to save a beloved swimming spot. The local pool is in jeopardy from a corporation that wants to privatize it and create an exclusive club instead. The campaign to save the lido is spearheaded by Rosmary, a fixture at the lido, and sad, pathetic journalist, Kate. Along the way, Kate pulls herself out of her depression by actively engaging in her community. The entire community pulls together to save their beloved landmark, illustrating the power of people. The end is sweet, it sad.

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It’s been years since I’ve gone swimming but after reading The Lido, I am eager to get to a pool and dive right in. The Lido tells the story of an outdoor public pool in Brixton, England and the people who love it. The city council is threatening to close the lido because it is financially unsustainable and as luck would have it, there is an eager buyer — Paradise Living, a property company, that wants to convert it into a members-only tennis court.

The Lido centers around new friends Rosemary (86 years old) and Kate (in her 20s) who band together with the community to save the beloved pool. It is also the story of Kate, a young journalist who struggles with what appears to be a Panic Disorder. She feels very much alone since moving to Brixton and appreciates her new friendship with Rosemary, who she has met while writing a story about the threatened pool closure. In return for an interview, Rosemary tells Kate that she must go swimming there. Rosemary has been swimming at the lido for 80+ years and it was a special place for her and her husband George who recently passed away. For Rosemary, the lido is a way of remembering George because many of her fondest memories were ones she shared with him at the Lido. Kate learns to love the lido as well as the community members she gets to know through Rosemary.

The Lido is a warm, friendly, lighthearted, and enjoyable story that would be perfect as a beach read or better yet, out by a pool. The central characters are fully developed via the current story as well as their respective backstories. They are very likable and you can’t help but enjoy spending time with them. The story flowed well and there weren’t any parts that felt like filler. It kept me engrossed, wanting to find out what ultimately happens to the lido and these caring characters. It is Libby Page’s debut novel and I am hoping she will share more stories with us in the future.

Thank you to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

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Thank you Simon and Schuster Inc. and #NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book before it is published in July. I truly enjoyed it. A Heartwarming story about friendship, community, standing up for what is important and self acceptance/realization. If you enjoyed Britt Marie was Here, or The Storied Life of AJ Fikery, give this a chance, I promise it won't disapoint. This is Libby Page's first book, so I'm hopeful that more will follow.

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I don’t like swimming but if anything were to change my mind it would be this book. Kate is a young journalist who is lost until she is assigned a story about the closure of the local Lido (outdoor swimming pool). She interviews Rosemary, a local who has been swimming at the Lido for 80+years. The interview turns out to be the beginning of a unique friendship and they become fierce allies as they seek to save the Lido.

The romantic scenes were a bit stilted but overall didn’t detract from the story.

This is a heartwarming story of friendship, community and overcoming loneliness. A perfect beach read.

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I highly recommend this beautifully written and heartwarming story, focused on Kate and her burgeoning friendship with eighty-six year old Rosemary. Kate feels alone living in London and working for a small newspaper until she is assigned the story of gentrification and the closing of a local lido, or community pool. She meets Rosemary, and as their friendship blossoms, the fight against closing the pool becomes a lifeline for them and the tight knit community. The chapters about Rosemary and her husband, George, are so well written they are almost poetic, describing such a deep love over many years of marriage. I loved this book, and will remember it long after reading the last page.

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Loved this book for the complex character development and the beautiful display of friendship and how it can blossom at any age.

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This was a fair, interesting read. Not much new with the plot, younger/older person gets together and each inspire the other and helps them grow. But this was beautiful writing which helps propell will book from a 2 star to a 4 star for me.

I am similar to someone else on Goodreads. This book really reminds me of the song "Bridge Over Troubled Water".

Great writing Ms. Page.

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A fun and entertaining read about caring for the places and people that matter and about finding out who your friends really are. A young woman, Kate, moves to just outside the big city to follow her dream of becoming a journalist. She lands a job with a small paper doing personal interest stories. However, she finds it difficult to make friends and never really feels at home in her new town. The local Lido, outside pool is possibly going to be sold. Kate meets Rosemary who has lived in the town all her life and who has wonderful memories of what the Lido has meant to her all these years. Kate and Rosemary become friends and allies as they try to save the Lido. Along the way, Kate learns to make new friends and appreciate what she has. Wonderful characters and backstories.

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I enjoyed reading this heartwarming story about the development of a friendship between a young woman overcoming her anxiety and a older, widowed woman while trying to save a neighborhood pool. I did find it very predictable at times, but was still glad that I had read it.

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Thank you NetGalley for an ARC. An incredibly sweet read about friendship and community. As a swimmer I could definitely relate to the calm found underwater.

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This started off kind of slow, and honestly I had forgotten what it was about. Still, I continued reading, and it was just adorable! Really cute and super emotional - not really something I would typically read, but I really did appreciate the relationships and friendships throughout the story. A cute contemporary read, not really focused too much on romance, more on the concept of fighting for something you believe in, building relationships on the way, and battling the loneliness that comes with new places and new people. An enjoyable, quick read!

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There have only been a few books in my life that I could say were perfection but this is one of them. The Lido is a book that will stick with me for a long time. It is my favorite type a book. A book about people, people who together are together, people who are a bit quirky in their own special way, and about community.

There is not one single thing I would change about this book. It was a book that I didn't want to end but didn't want to put down.

Libby Page is an exquisite beautiful writer. Some of my favorite sentences and quotes are as follows:

"...there was a breeze arguing with the trees".

"...before she caught the infection of self-consciousness".

"In the silence, loneliness is like a third person between them. They nod their heads to it, acknowledging it is there but never calling it by its name."

I received an ARC from NetGalley. All thoughts & opinions are my own.

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Thankyou yo netgalley for accepting my request.
The lido is a beautifully weitten book.
An easy read but a memorable one.
A lovely story of love and friendship and how we can all come together at difficult times,
How age is just a number and you can meet friends at any time of your life.

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