I really loved this book! The story pulled me in immediately and it was one that stayed on my mind long after I finished it. I found the characters intriguing and the plot contained lots of twists, which kept me hooked until the end. The fiction I’ve been reading lately tends to be more tragic and filled with despair, so it was refreshing to read a book that genuinely brought me pleasure and made me happy. The lightness did not come at the expense of good writing though – Pooley’s style felt fresh and original. I read this book early thanks to NetGalley and was recommending it to friends before it was even published.

This story affirms how we all think that the grass is greener – that everyone else’s lives are better than our own – and how very misleading appearances can be. Also, how, by telling the bald truth, several disparate and flawed characters come together in friendship. A ‘feel-good’ read that confirms that happiness is possible but it sometimes requires more effort than a lot of people are willing to expend. Or sometimes perhaps, it is just ‘kismet’.

This might seem like a light story, but it has several important messages. Didactic fiction wrapped up in empathy and humour, this is a story about hopes, dreams, addictions, parenthood, social media, friendship, and community.

I loved these characters and this story. With astounding clarity and transparency, Clare Pooley has written her own truth via a fictional story that will be sure to touch the hearts of its readers.
Highly recommended!

This was an uplifting and very entertaining story. Hats off to the author Clare Pooley. When cafe and responsible does everything by the book owner, Monica finds a notebook entitled The Authenticity Project she’s sure it was left behind in her cafe by accident. But when no one comes to claim it and she reads the entry from “Julian” about what life might be like if we told the world how we were really feeling, she in time, writes her own response about her greatest fears, wishes and truths and passes the book on as per the instructions...,,.from there the book is found again and again and soon a group know enough about the area it jails from and roughly who the writers might be. Soon enough under the leadership of Monica, she has assembled enough people to get the once sensational artist but now reclusive pensioner out of his home and teaching art to various people who wrote in the book at Monica’s café. Slowly but surely we read about the authentic lives of the cast of characters who are in this book as it continues to be passed around. What we have is a story and novel concept of people coming together in the most unlikely and surprising way. A true gem of a read and I urge anyone to pick up this uplifting and original novel. Special thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for my ARC. Well done!

Wow.

Wow!!!

I'm speechless. This book is a beautiful reminder that you have only one life, and to live it plainly. That whatever happens, you need to choose yourself first. Don't live a lie, and don't lie to yourself either. If you're lonely, get out of your comfort zone, and go meet new people. If you're sad, find the reason why and try to change the situation to be happy. Try not to judge so quickly everyone: nothing is what is seems. You are not perfect: why does anyone have to be?

This book will create waves, I'm so sure of it. It wouldn't surprise me that it would be made into a movie, too.

It's amazing. Read it.

Many thanks to the Penguin Random House Canada for the complimentary e-copy of this book through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

When someone asks you 'How are you today?', how often do you give an honest answer? Have you caught yourself politely asking someone how they are doing, but then not listening to their answer? What would happen if you told the truth? If you shared your true authentic self?

The Authenticy Project begins with an old, lonely man, Julian. He spends days in bed, eats all his meals alone, sometimes out of a can in bed. He used to have a life full of friends and fun. He used to be an artist. Now he is none of those things. One day Julian writes his authentic truth in a notebook. After his story he challenges whoever finds the book to share their truth. He leaves the notebook in his local coffee shop.

Monica owns the coffee shop and finds the notebook while cleaning up. What's Monica's truth? She wants to get married and have a baby. Certainly 79 year old Julian isn't the match for her but she can help with his loneliness. She posts a flyer in the coffee shop window trying to entice Julian to come teach an art class.

With a little help from the next recipient of the project book a new group of friends is formed over an art class in the coffee shop. But is telling your authentic truth to strangers a good idea? Does life stay the same or is it life changing?

I really enjoyed The Authenticity Project. I loved all the characters and wanted to find out all their truths and how they were changed for sharing them.

A small notebook left on a table in a café finds it’s way into the hands of Monica, the Café Owner. The small book has three words inscribed onto the cover “The Authenticity Project”. Julian, a renowned artist, now in his eighties has left the book behind, with his story beautifully written on the beginning pages, leaving the rest blank. One night Monica writes her own story in the book and leaves it on a table in a bar. Monica then vows to help a lonely Julian by advertising for an art teacher for the café. The book now in the hands of Hazard, travels the globe only to return to England in the hands of yet another person. As the story unfolds, the book and the characters lives become intertwined as the book keeps traveling throughout the story.

I absolutely loved this book. I loved the characters and how they told their stories in the book and also how they helped each other by knowing each others’ stories. It really made me realize that being your authentic self is what is lacking in todays society and how we can grow and learn through others lives and experiences. I couldn’t put the book down, wanting to know where and who it would go to next. Clare Pooley wrote a brilliant novel and to know that a part of her was in the story made you love it even more. Thank you so much to Clare Pooley, Penguin Random House Canada and NetGalley for an advanced copy to read and review.

THE AUTHENTICITY PROJECT begins with Julian Jessop’s story. Julian a seventy-nine year artist is alone and lonely. Julian has been grieving the loss of his wife for the past 15 years. During his heyday Julian traveled in circles of well known celebrities and was a womanizer. Julian has many regrets especially the treatment of his wife. Julian decides to start a journal entitled The Authenticity Project in an effort to become real. He records his story and leaves the book in Monica’s cafe hoping someone will pick it up, read his story and add their own. Monica does just that. She leaves it in a bar where it once again gets picked up, read and passed on. As we read the individual points of view the reader discovers how this group of people come together in friendship and support. Without giving too much away a fly appears in the ointment and things get turned upside down adding a bit of drama to the story.
I thoroughly enjoyed THE AUTHENTICITY PROJECT. I liked reading the story from the various point of views. The characters were engaging. There is a bit of a twist towards the end that I enjoyed. I would recommend THE AUTHENTICITY PROJECT to fans of Fredrik Backman’s novels. Great vacation reading.

It all started with a green notebook left behind at a local coffee shop. Inside a fashionable artist reveals something about himself that starts a chain of events for each new person who finds the book to help discover their authentic self. Those who find it include the coffee shop owner who took a chance by leaving a focused-driven life behind for something that might bring her joy, an addict ready for a change, a kind Australian gardener looking for adventure, a young mother who finds that life is so much more than her perfect Instagram account, and a caregiver who knows so much more about the people that surround her than they could imagine. The stories lead to selfless acts of kindness that only come from revealing the truth behind the sometimes carefully crafted facades and ultimately lead to amazing friendships and sometimes, love.

I just knew from the first few pages that I was going to love Clare Pooley's debut fiction novel, The Authenticity Project. Trust me, you will too....

An older, lonely widower/artist who has spent the last fifteen years pretty much by himself in his home is determined to get back out into the world. He comes up with an idea.....he writes his truth in a green notebook and leaves it on a table in a local cafe.....and The Authenticity Project is begun.

"Everyone lies about their lives. What would happen if you shared the truth instead? The one thing that defines you, that makes everything else about you fall into place. Not on the internet, but with those real people around you? Maybe nothing. Or maybe telling that story would change your life, or the life of someone you've not met me. That's what I want to find out."

What a great premise eh? I couldn't wait to see what would happen next. Well, the notebook is picked up again and again - and the lives of six strangers intersect.....

I loved Pooley's characters - they're all wonderfully drawn, strengths, foibles and all. (And yes, I'd like to be sitting around the table with them at the back of the cafe.) I was immediately invested in their lives and kept quickly turning pages to see who would next pick up the book. The narrative moves from player to player and again and this only ensured I couldn't put the book down. Those intersections get more and more complicated, changes happen and I certainly didn't see some of them coming. Some I liked, some I didn't, but they were all 'just right' for the book.

Pooley's writing is so easy to read, flows so easily and is utterly addictive. If you're looking for a warm, feel-good, uplifting, unexpected, just be yourself tale, this is one you'll want to read. After I turned the last page, I wondered - what would happen if someone actually did this?

"If we all stopped making each other feel sad and inadequate by pretending to be perfect, and instead opened up about our struggles, we would all be much happier, and feel less alone." Clare Pooley.

This is easily one of my favourite reads for 2020 - and yes, I know we're only in February!

The loveliest, most charming book! So disappointing to see it end because these characters deserve to live on.
A wonderful story of strangers who share their Authenticity in a most surprising fashion. The book showed the misunderstandings and judgements we accept and pass on to others and how all these form our own story.
Would love to see this book turned into a movie.
Thank you #NetGalley for this advance copy and I will look for further writings from #ClarePooley. #TheAuthenticiyProject

In this world of social media and being surrounded by all sorts of messages, it is easy to get lost in the things that society expects of us and the way life is going. If we do not stop to ask ourselves important questions and get to know ourselves, we would never know how much of our existence is authentic. I finished reading The Authenticity Project last week by Clare Pooley and it brought some thoughts about our vulnerabilities, social media, influence and authenticity to my mind.

One of the coolest parts about this story was how taking part in The Authenticity Project and writing in the journal, knowing about the people who had already written in it, made Riley feel like he was being inauthentic. As my friend, Lauren, pointed out when I was telling her about this book:

There is authenticity in recognizing that one is being inauthentic.

When we identify those moments when we are putting on a face or going against our values, we are being true to ourselves. Those moments are important in defining how we proceed going forward, highlighting the parts of us we want to work on and change. They also point to the act of being mindful about what we are thinking and how we are behaving.

Another really good reminder from this book was that as much as we would like to go about life the way we want, we live in a society – what others do and say affects us. It might not be to a large extent all the time, but the little things that our friends do for us without us telling them, a smile from a stranger, or a surprise cuddle from a cat all contribute to how we feel. Just like other people and beings influence how we feel, we have the power to affect others as well. We choose to have a positive or negative effect, based on our own actions. When Monica first reads the journal and realizes how lonely Julian is, she finds a way to connect with him and bring the spark of his passion for painting back, even though she doesn’t know him very well.

Even though we cannot go around life thinking about how each and every decision affects someone else, when we genuinely and thoughtfully take a step to help someone, we are not only living by our true values and being authentic to the world and society we want to build, but also spreading some joy and happiness, which only helps us be more content in life.

Overall, I enjoyed this book. It was a cozy read. I am thankful to the publisher and author for providing us a complimentary copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

you know when you invite someone over for dinner and the night starts off really fun but after a while gets tedious and annoying and should have ended sooner than it did? clare pooley's 'the authenticity project' is the overstayed welcome of fiction.

the book introduces us to monica, an uptight, baby crazed single woman who quit her job as a lawyer to open a cafe (called, of course, 'monica's cafe'). she stumbles upon a notebook titled 'the authenticity project' in which a man named julian who frequents her shop confesses his deepest truth and invites whoever finds the book to do the same and pass it on. intrigued and feeling depressed at her prospects of ever having a child, monica writes in the book, and leaves it in a bar.

the book follows monica, julian, and a number of other characters who are brought together through the book, the cafe, and a weekly art class held in the cafe after hours. had the book introduced us to the first four characters and left it there, the book might have remained as charming as it set itself out to be. however, more and more characters stumble upon the notebook, and it makes the novel feel unending. at only 350 pages, the book shouldn't have felt as drawn out as it did.

in addition, many of the characters who at first felt complex and who i was excited to get to know quickly became caricatures of their one defining trait. with so many new characters being added to the mix, and a plot that was unnecessarily quick paced and tedious at the same time, it left little time to get to know the characters, and left me disliking most of them by the end.

the ending of the book was cute, but very cheesy. it didn't make up for the number of pages i had to sift through to get there.

not my favourite book in the world, but i'm sure it will find its audience.

thanks to netgalley and penguin random house canada for providing me a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

A fun, light read in the vein of Bridget Jones. I truly enjoyed the varied characters and settings! I could definitely see this becoming the next successful romcom movie, as well.

The Authenticity Project starts with just that - a green notebook with the same title, mysteriously left behind by an older gentleman for Monica, a café owner, to find. Inside, it poses the question: What if we told the truth about our lives? From here, the notebook travels from person-to-person, from place-to-place, until it ultimately touches the lives of six people in the Fulham neighbourhood of London. From there, a group of Londoners - and one Australian - connect and form a group mismatched but loyal friends, as they come to grips with the secrets they have all entered into the little notebook.

One of the first things I noticed in this novel was the paragraph-jumping. From paragraph-to-paragraph, the narrative jumps through hours or days without much of an evident transition. For instance, instead of saying "later that day," the writing would just jump forward in time and as the reader, I felt that I was often struggling to keep up or determine when in time the scene is taking place. For me, that was really disorienting as it distracted from the overall fluidity of the story.

I wasn't sure if this novel took a feminist perspective or not, which was one of my primary issues. Monica's story was a little contradictory to me. On one hand, she idolizes Emmeline Pankhurst and speaks about being a strong female in a male-driven society. Then on the other hand, there's a lot of discussion on how Monica needs a husband. She doesn't regard her accomplishments as being very worthwhile, because they're not related to marriage or family, but the other characters are also unusually invested in Monica's romantic life. There's even mention of how Monica's strong personality traits are threatening or off-putting to men. Yikes. While I respected the message that Monica could have great ambitions and also have a husband and family, I think that essence was lost and rediscovered one too many times throughout the novel.

I thought the overall message of the novel, however, was lovely and thought-provoking. As a society, we've established a collective mindset where we feel we can only show the best version of ourselves and of our lives. The Authenticity Project challenges the idea that we need to keep all of our secrets to ourselves. And on the flip side of the coin, it challenges us to not be so quick to judge others for the version of themselves that they allow us to see.

This was a perfectly enjoyable novel! I had a few mixed feelings, but overall, I found it to be interesting and entertaining. The novel ended on what I thought was a good note. It wrapped everything up nicely and I think that everyone - particularly Julian - got the closure they needed.

I loved this book so much! It was charming, fun and quirky. It was definitely a page turner for me, I just couldn’t wait to see what happened next! It was such a fun read with lots of great characters. I’m kind of wishing for a sequel. I highly recommend checking it out!

Thank you to the publisher and @netgalley for providing a free advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

A clever concept that effortlessly weaves characters together which makes for a light enjoyable read. I instantly fell in love with the characters and couldn't wait to find out what would happen next. Although somewhat predictable there a few surprises as well. I appreciated the underlying tone of wanting to have more authentic connections to those around us.

If you are in the mood for a light hearted read full of charming characters, I'd highly recommend the Authenticity Project.

(Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for the ARC of this book)

I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher through Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.

The Authenticity Project follows the story of how a simple green notebook with the words “The Authenticity Project” written on its cover left in a café leads an eclectic group of strangers to become friends and to confront their deepest truths. The Authenticity Project starts with Julian Jessop, an eccentric artist who is in his 70s, leaving his green notebook in Monica’s Café. In this notebook, he writes the truth about how lonely and invisible he’s been since his wife passed 15 years ago and then he invites the next person who finds it to write their truth. Throughout the story, this green notebook gets picked up by Monica, Hazard, Riley, Alice, and Lizzie, bringing them together and allowing them to reflect on the truth.

I don’t know what I was expecting when I started this book, but I ended up really enjoying it. My favourite thing about this book was how each character was seamlessly introduced to the story. I loved how each character was gradually introduced, how we got to see them react to the stories before them, and how later on, once another character was introduced, we got to see what they wrote in the notebook.

Another thing that made this book stand out to me was the characters. I thought that Julian was a quirky character who brought a memorable amount of razzle-dazzle to the story. I loved Monica and how brave, committed, caring and organized she was. I enjoyed reading about Hazard’s struggle with his addiction and discovering who he really is. Riley kind of reminded me of a puppy dog, and I liked his positive attitude. I also liked reading about Alice and how she struggled with the difference between the picture-perfect life she’s showing on Instagram and reality.

I liked that this book dealt with serious issues, especially addiction. To a certain extent, addiction plays an important role in the life of most of the characters in this book. I also liked that addiction took many different forms in this book, including alcohol addiction, drug addiction, compulsive behaviour, vanity, and lying, to name a few. I think that addiction is an issue that plays a part in the lives of a lot of people, and I like it when it pops up in books in a way that feels real and authentic.

One minor complaint that I have about the book is that Monica felt too much like Monica from Friends. I like Friends, and I appreciate its contribution to pop-culture, but unfortunately, every time Monica was mentioned, I thought of Monica Geller.

Overall, I enjoyed this book. I loved the characters and the friendship that formed because of the green notebook. I liked that this book dealt with various kinds of addiction and I enjoyed the discussion of what is authentic. Once I started this book, I had a difficult time putting it down, I definitely recommend it.

DNF @ 75% but not because I didn’t like it - simply because I just didn’t have enough time to finish it which I am now kicking myself over. I really enjoyed reading about all of the characters so far - I felt connected to most of them and/or at least tried to understand and feel what they were going through. I'm not sure I'm going to be able to finish it by tonight - but I’m going to try as it is eating away at me. However, I guess it’s the best of both worlds because I’m just going to have to buy the book when it comes out and I can't wait!! I also think it's a great book to gift someone. Here are some of my thoughts on it! I will be posting my review on Goodreads also.

Things I liked:
- Really great character building, it is a slow and well-thought out process.
- I was connected to the characters from the start.
- The POV from each character and the amount of them is never confusing.
- I had a lot of empathy for each of the characters but in different ways.
- I felt like I was a part of the ‘project’ and thought multiple times of ‘what if someone did this in real life’ how interesting would that be to find this book!
- This book will bring people together - a feel good story in a time where we need it most!

Things I didn’t like
- Hazard was not my favourite character and the only reason why is that I found him to be not that believable. This could very well be my own bias as I work in finance, have worked on a trading floor and all of a sudden he gets very ‘soft’ and I just couldn’t picture this in real life from that type.

Other:
- Not sure why but T-Shirt is capitalized on p.130

My first ARC (advanced reader copy) of 2020! This book has been on my radar since last year. A unique premise with a motley cast of characters, The Authenticity Project is a rare little beacon of positivity that shows you can live a more fulfilling and wholesome life if you try to be your most authentic self.

My one issue with this read was that I had a hard time feeling a connection with the characters. I find with fiction, I enjoy it a lot more if the characters are well developed. Some of these characters had great arcs, but I didn't have a connection to them. I think this would make a great TV show adaptation as a quirky British comedy!

I received a copy from NetGalley; this is my honest review. #TheAuthenticityProject #NetGalley
-I loved that the book had multiple POVs. Each time a new friend came into the picture, the author gave you a look in the window of that person's life. Very interesting.
-You can see how the characters developed as the story goes along and how they each welcomed a newcomer into their small circle.
-The scenes where the action happens doesn't change much: the cemetery, the cafe, the beach, and a cottage. Sometimes a few other places.
-The book kept my interest and I went through many emotions, not like a roller-coaster, but as the story enfolded. Fun, sad, entertaining, baffling at times, endearing and LOL.
-I loved how the book made a complete circle, then started back again. Loved the end, even if sad.
-This is about friendship, relationships, loneliness, how we react to certain circumstances, having fun with our dear ones, alcoholism and a bit about drug abuse.