First of all... Thank you for the opportunity to read this wonderful book.
The Lido is a lovely story.. with relatable characters. The plot was surprisingly unexpected... A new multigenerational friendship to remind me the importance of friendship... This book is sweet and easygoing... I loved the genuine way of the author's writing. .. It made me laugh and cry.. but I ended with a feeling of joy and happiness. I definitely recommend it!

Kate Matthews moves to Brixton to take up a journalist position with a local paper. But life is different to what she imagined it to be. She’s anxious and lonely with only work and microwave dinners featuring in her life. Being asked to write a story on the closing of the local Lido (swimming pool) changes her life, when she meets 87 year old Rosemary, whose life has revolved around the Lido.
This was just a beautiful, gentle story about finding yourself and a place in the community. The characters were very vivid and I could easily imagine every one of them. Set in the present day, the community comes together to fight the closure of the pool but there are chapters interspersed with Rosemary’s story over the years and why the pool is so special to her.
I also enjoyed Kate’s growth throughout the story as she started to believe in herself.
A very satisfying read.
Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for an ARC to read.

4.5 Stars

"When you're weary, feeling small
When tears are in your eyes, I'll dry them all (all)
I'm on your side, oh, when times get rough
And friends just can't be found
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down"
-- Bridge Over Troubled Water, Simon & Garfunkel, Songwriters: Paul Simon

At eighty-six years old, Rosemary has lived in the Brixton neighborhood of London her whole life, a bustling neighborhood that brings to mind a scene of Notting Hill with a small, quaint bookstore, amid a colourful array of street vendors selling everything from flowers to coffee. The shop owners and vendors know Rosemary by her name, but she is best known at the Lido, where she not only learned to swim, as a very young child during the war, but where she has gone her whole life since.

When she met the man who was to be her husband it was there that they met, and it was where she and George went every day of their lives together. But George is gone now, and her morning swims at the Lido are even more precious to Rosemary, it’s where she can still picture him, remember their time together. Relive the memories. It’s where they had their first kiss. It’s where they fell in love. But there are other memories of this place, as well. It is the place where the neighbors gathered after a bomb fell on the park just clear of the Lido, and nearby Dulwich Road that ran along one side of the park. Eighty-six years of memories and all the best ones were from here.

Outside the park, places are beginning to change. Once upon a time, she knew the names of everyone, every shop, and every shop owner. Where the grocery once stood, there is now a bar. Even the library where she used to work is now closed.

Kate Matthews is relatively new to Brixton, a young woman in her mid-twenties who has no friends, who is acutely depressed, prone to panic attacks, and has sister she rarely speaks to. She dreams, dreamed, of becoming a writer and is working as a journalist, but, so far, she has only covered relatively insignificant stories. She’s lonely, desperate for a story she can believe in, some way she can make a difference. She can’t even remember what happiness feels like, anymore, or what it would feel like to meet someone else who might understand how hard it is to get up and face each day.

Everything begins to change the day that Kate is given a job covering a story about the lido, tossing a leaflet with “Save our lido” written on the outside. She reads their plea; the council has declared that due to financial worries they are considering a private bid to buy the building from a corporation who wants to turn it into a gym for private members. Finally, a real story; she hopes she can help, make a difference

This is how Kate first meets Rosemary, when she goes to the lido to interview her for the story, and Rosemary agrees providing Kate, who claims she can’t swim, swims in the lido. She will never understand the importance of this place unless she can see it for herself.

This is how they join together, these two women sixty-some years apart in age, to save the lido, Rosemary’s memories, and maybe even Kate, as well.

This is being promoted as similar to Fredrik Backman’s A Man Called Ove, and while I loved Ove and love Backman, I would say this is more comparable to Rachel Joyce’s The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, as Ove was a rather cantankerous old man, and there is nothing even remotely grouchy about Rosemary, whereas Harold Fry was about a journey that begins as a personal journey, with others joining in, an awakening of the inner spirit to follow our hearts, and to lend support to others. Still, this is really its own story, and it is a wonderful debut story about the gentrification, love, relationships, change, aging, mental health, the power of community, and the almost miraculous power of friendship.


Pub Date: 10 JUL 2018

Many thanks for the ARC provided by Simon & Schuster

I was a skeptic. Comparing a debut to Fredrik Backman--well, that's some lofty praise, and I was kind of prepared to hate it based on that decision alone. (Nothing against S&S's marketing team, really.) But this completely and utterly won me over, and Libby Page should throw more books at me soon because I'll totally read them.

Rosemary! Rosemary. If you thought it impossible to love someone as much as you loved Britt-Marie, think again. Her love story was sweet, sentimental, and sappy as you'd expect, but it wasn't overbearing and I didn't roll my eyes, not even once. Kate was similarly sweet, and felt very well developed--a lot of people I know are currently in her disillusioned state, and it was refreshing to see this expressed with optimism in a novel.

I'm a huge fan of the way that this community was portrayed and the way that development and money was causing it to change--this felt incredibly realistic, and I could see this happening to any small town. I liked the way that the community banded together and the various methods they used to attempt to save the lido. I loved how it demonstrated the importance of having someone to spearhead a campaign.

The web of characters from throughout the neighbourhood was woven delicarely but surely together. I, gasp, managed to actually remember everyone's names because each character had such a distinct role and such a unique personality. I especially loved the way that Kate and her sister interacted and evolved.

Someone please get me another book like this and soon. Highly recommended.

Thanks, Simon & Schuster, for the complimentary review copy!

This was a fantastic, sweet little story about a community coming together to save their pool.

I loved the book right away because the author so perfectly captured the feelings of a swimmer - any level of swimmer. The gritty touch of the cement beneath your feet, the solitary world below the water, the loud and joyous world above the water. If you have ever swam in the rain, if you have ever jumped into the water when it's 36F in the air outside, if you've ever swam for an hour just processing a life problem through your mind, you will understand this book. The author captures perfectly what happens when you commit time to that solitary underwater world.

I also loved how the book starts a meandering path through the neighborhood, and introduces you to each character in the story and the role the lido plays in their lives.

The story of Rosemary and George will have you in (happy) tears, as will the growth and strength of Kate and her friendship with Rosemary.

All in all I was just completely charmed. It's not a complicated book, it's just a sweet story of many different characters coming together to do something good, and I needed this sort of book right now.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the opportunity to review an early copy. I utterly adored it.

The Lido is an uplifting, heartwarming debut novel showing how relationships and community connections can change lives. Kate who is prone to panic attacks is an introverted low-level journalist for a community newspaper who is assigned to cover a story about the potential closing of the local Lido (outdoor, open swimming pool) and community center for a developer who proposes to build apartments with a private tennis court in its place.  The receptionist at the pool suggests Kate interview 87-year-old Rosemary who has been swimming at the Lido for 80 years.  These two lonely souls forge a friendship as they endeavor to save the Lido, in the process allowing each of them to grow and discover an inner strength.  The coming together of the community to preserve the Lido shows the importance of community and the importance of those relationships brought together by a community.  This book will pull at your heart-strings as you experience their hope, loss, determination, struggles, and love.

A delightful story of friendship and community and finding your strength when you least expect it. When Kate becomes friends with 86 year old Rosemary when writing a news story to save the local Lido (swimming pool) the last thing Kate expects is how it will change her. Kate finds a community and herself.

"The Lido" is a story of a young reporter, Kate, who is assigned a story about the closure of the local swimming pool. She interviews Rosemary, who swam there for her whole life, and gets involved in the battle to save the place. Apparently up-lit is on the rise! "The Lido" is definitely that - a heart-warming story about community coming to the rescue of their beloved lido, the main character overcoming personal obstacles with the help of new unexpected friends. On a whole, this was a warm, nice story, which I maybe did not love, but which I definitely enjoyed, especially parts in which Rosemary was reminiscing about her life. The author set her story in Brixton and the Brockwell Lido is the real place, one I have visited in the past, which definitely added personal flavour to the story.

As an all-year-round sea swimmer I was interested to see what the writer made of such an addictive hobby. Just like with The Lido, our local (sea water) Bathing Pools came under threat, not from builders but disuse and disrepair and, just like the story, it was only through the hard work of the locals that it is useable again. This is a pleasant light read that ticks all the boxes. It’s nice to see the friendship developing between Kate and Rosemary, one young and one old. If you liked last year’s Chilbury Ladies Choir you’ll love this.

I was provided a review copy of The Lido in exchange for my honest feedback.

The Lido is a heart-warming story of friendships across generations and fighting for what's important in life. Kate is like many in my generation- overwhelmed with the constant busy-ness of everyday life, until she is assigned to write about the closing of the local lido. The lido opens her world to new friends, experiences, and an outlet for her anxiety. She quickly becomes invested and knows she must do her part to help keep it open.

I loved the friendship between twenty-something Kate and 86 year old Rosemary. Their bond was a reminder that we can all learn something from others, even if it seems that on the surface we have nothing in common. I gave this book 4/5 stars; this is a perfect summer read about hope and fighting for what you believe in.

A warm hug of a book that is sure to be a book club favorite! Eighty-six year old Rosemary has lived in Brixton, London her whole life and swum in the lido nearly every day it was open - much of it with her recently deceased husband, George, the true love of her life. But the lido is in danger of being sold to a developer to be turned into a private tennis club. Enter twenty-something Kate, a journalist at the local paper, who interviews Rosemary and takes on saving the lido. Love, hardships, hope, community, and a really wonderful swimming pool. Come on in, the water is quite fine.

Kate is a twenty-something who loves her job as a reporter for the local London paper. Her current assignment is to interview 86-year-old Rosemary who has swum at the local swimming pool, or lido, for years. The lido is now closing, and it's Kate's job to find out everything she can about the popular neighborhood spot. As she finds out more information about it through Rosemary, she begins to develop a rapport and friendship with the older woman, and a fondness for the history of her life as well as the lido's.

This is a lovely and heart-warming story about friendships across generations and about a community coming together for a common cause. It is also a very .good depiction of aging

A story of community and the importance of time and place to come together from all backgrounds into a common purpose. A quick and cheerful read that leaves you thankful for the multi-generational relationships and communities that you have in your own life.

Free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Book is available July 10th.

I was given the opportunity of this Advanced Reader Copy.
Thank you NetGalley.

A wonderful story of new beginnings, new friendships, and the growth within those friendships that lead a small town to one common goal.....saving The Lido. This place is held near and dear for many, but more so to one resident, Rosemary. Her entire life has revolved around it and she sits rich in its history. Small town and big business come head to head in what becomes a struggle to preserve the past and steer the future to new memories for its residents. As the community of Brixton, South London stands together, they feel certain defeat is imminent but they hold strong by helping one another, every step of the way....much more than any of them realize. This story will grab you. Written very well and flows nicely, a charming story with a true spirit of "love for community" and most of all, one another.

ARC/Novels & Latte Book Blog
Novels & Latte Book Club

It is all about water. It is all about life. It is all about love: for water, for life and for love itself.

Closing down local Lido to free the space for posh apartments sparks many passions to life. Some of them for good, some of them for even better. While the closing of swimming pool is still pending, lives will be mended, loves will be found and remembered and futures will be planned and imagined.

The Lido is a lovely, deep, warm and life-affirming story. It crosses generations and cultures, social statuses and educational backgrounds. It teaches you to dig deeper and reminds you not to look beyond the horizon for the best things in life.

Sometimes all you need is a park, a bench and a local swimming pool.

DEBUT AUTHOR

I was sent this book to review and I was leery; they compared her to Fredrik Backman (who is the top best author for me). Although, I would not compare her to Fredrik, I did enjoy her book. I will be looking forward to her next book. Her descriptions were so vivid, I could see it before me. As a librarian, the way she described being a librarian nailed it. She captured the heart, spirit, love, friendship, aging, loss of a community.

Rosemary, 86, has lived in Brixton all of her life. The changes are overwhelming; the library has closed, the grocery store is now a bar, and now the pool has announced that it is closing. Greedy developers only see landmark as land for another moneymaking opportunity.
Kate, 26, is new to Brixton and alone. Her job at the newspaper assigns her the LIDO closing story.

Rosemary and Kate begin to work together to save the pool, while also becoming good friends.
We travel with Rosemary from a young age going to pool through her lifetime.Through her romance with her husband. Now, after losing him, the only place she can still feel him is the LIDO.

This book highlights the need for creating, or building a community in a big city!
Never be sorry. Never be sorry for feeling. Never be sorry for falling in love.

The Lido by Libby Page is a heart-warming tale. Rosemary Peterson has watched a lot of her local area of Brixton in London change drastically over the years but one constant has been the local Lido where Rosemary loves to swim and socialise. Now, like many of the local, traditional shops and amenities, it is threatened with closure.

Kate is a new to the area, reporter tasked with reporting on the plight of the Lido and in doing so encounters Rosemary. As the two women talk Rosemary opens up to Kate and a wonderful friendship blooms.

I loved this book from the very first chapter. It was like a birds-eye view of the market and the passing interaction between Kate and Rosemary was a fabulous way to start the story. Following Rosemary as she goes about her shopping excursion and meets up with her friend Hope. With whom she had worked in the library for years prior to its closure.

This first chapter cleverly tells us quiet a bit about Rosemary and the area in which she lives. It is an example of the strength of writing maintained throughout this moving tale. I could almost see, hear and smell the market and this was a feeling that continued throughout much of this story.

The Lido is such a beautiful story and I enjoyed every single page of it. It is well written with true feeling and an understanding of the importance of friendships old and new. Kate is in her 20’s and Rosemary is in her 80’s but as Rosemary and Kate spend time together and fight to save the Lido their friendship grows. Through Rosemary, Kate learns a lot and grows as a person.

This book also highlights the impact that the closure of social amenities like Lido’s and libraries is having on the people that have spent years enjoying them.

Considering that this is Libby Page’s debut novel it is an outstanding, heartfelt tale.

This book just didn't work out for me. It's strange because on paper it's exactly the type of book I love. The marketing got me!

My issues with this is just simply that it's verrrry dull and boring. We get a glimpse into the lives of Kate and Rosemary with flashbacks of Rosemary's marriage with George. But the whole thing is just so one-dimensional. It sounds like all Rosemary and George did is swim in the lido and sleep on their mattress. Which is fine but surely there was more to Rosemary's life at the library or George's at the greengrocer's.

I really enjoyed the descriptions of Kate's struggle with loneliness and anxiety as I felt it portrayed it well. However, it was just all so obvious that the lido was going to solve all her problems from the start.

I found a lot of the descriptions downright bizarre. For example, the part where the author advises not to eat pink snow either...eh? Or describing Kate's boss as having a rubber life ring made of steak and chips. Just bizarre.

I think I can see what this book was aiming for but it lacks excitement and adventure to be that kind of book I feel.

Thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for providing me with a copy of The Lido.

I really wanted to like this book. I respect the author's idea - a story about two people connecting even though they are generations apart. It made me want to have a friend several decades older than me so I could learn from her. But the story itself fell flat. There were two main problems for me: First, I wanted more action, and, second, I wanted the characters to each have more of a dark side.

The story revolves around a swimming pool, apparently called a "lido" in British English. As the story opens, a large housing developer wants to buy the land and convert it to tennis courts. The pool, currently open to everyone, is a community hub in Brixton. The tennis courts, on the other hand, would only be open to the wealthy residents of the developer's housing. For me, the action happened too slowly. I wanted the book to be about a third shorter than it was, and I found myself skimming too often. On the plus side, the story arc was satisfying and is the thing I will most remember from the book. I won't give anything away, but I will say that it was a sort of "community development" learning opportunity for me. The resolution took me by surprise, in a good way.

As for the characters, I had trouble caring about them. They may have had a flaw or two (which of course always makes a character more interesting), but they lacked a dark side and nuance. They were all syrupy sweet, in my opinion. I wanted more grit. I'm not saying I wanted them to be horrible people; I just wanted them to be in a bad mood or to say something selfish or something once in a while.

In short, I liked the ideas in this book. I had trouble forcing myself to read it all the way through because I was tired of the syrupy sweetness of the characters and the slow plot development. But I am interested to see what this author comes up with next.