This book had a lot going on. It was improperly formatted, so reading it was a challenge for me. I also just felt like it had so many different storylines going on that it wasn’t as enjoyable as it could have been. It gave me a lot of anxiety.

I was so excited to read this book because the premise was so interesting to me. Plus, books about bookstores are such a treat. I found this book difficult to get into. I didn’t understand what was happening. I probably would have DNF’d if I hadn’t received this from NetGalley. That said, it really started to come together at the end for me. That was where it felt the strongest and I felt more connected to the characters. Finally, we were in the bookstore interacting with authors and customers!

Thank you NetGalley and HarperMuse for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I really wanted to enjoy this book but sadly this fell so short. I was so disinterested in where the story was going and the characters.

The whole doomsday aspect was weird and off putting.

I am a huge fan of books about books, libraries, bookstores, authors, and other bookish people or places, so had high hopes for Bookish People. I have mixed feelings about this one. This story is set in an independent bookstore owned by Sophie Bernstein, and she is burned out. She is mourning the loss of her husband, her favourite store manager is leaving, and the world looks grim. She just wants to hide, but things don't work out that way. Clemi is the bookstore's event's manager and has booked in poet Raymond Chaucer, who is rumoured to have driven his wife to suicide. All the other bookstores on the tour have cancelled, but Clemi wants to give him a chance. She actually wants to meet him as she believes her might be her biological father, and this might be her only chance to find out. Sophie is worried about the backlash from the public, but lets Clemi move forward. From there, the story is full of vignettes that might fit together, but seem to be disconnected. Will Raymond Chaucer appear? Is he Clemi's father?

I really wanted to like this book, but it was just "meh" for me. There is so much going on in this book, it was confusing. There is a broken vacuum cleaner, a pet tortoise that is kept in a closet, people protesting dressed up as cats? and more. We do see the daily workings of an independent bookstore with customer interactions and mishaps, scheduling issues, inventory issues, unread galleys piling up, authors and publishers and aspiring authors with whom Sophie interacts as well as personal issues that cause some angst. I liked the premise of this book, but it didn't deliver for me. There were parts that made me laugh out loud and some interesting characters and that is what made me continue reading until the end, but it was not a standout for me. Remember, this is just my opinion, so if the synopsis interests you, you might still want to grab a copy and give it a go.

Successful independent bookstore owner Sophie Bernstein is officially burned out. She’s over people, social interactions, sugar coating things, technology, her family, and even books. Meanwhile her event coordinator for the store, Clemi, has her own odd circumstances and agenda running. Successful and yet controversial poet Raymond Chaucer has been causing quite the stir on the airwaves amidst the bizarre death of his wife and all his appearances have been cancelled but one - the one at Sophie’s bookstore. A series of crazy and comical yet frustrating events lead to an unforgettable night.

This was a fun and amusing read. Sophie strapping her vacuum cleaner in so her car remote would be in the car is such a relatable thing when life is just not going according to plan. A different genre for sure but this comedy and writing style reminded me of the Finlay Donovan series which is one of my favorites and also centered around a bookstore, one of my favorite places on earth. A solid vacation read, and I also highly recommend the audiobook! The narrator does a fantastic job.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I am obsessed with this cover and I loved the premise but the writing just didn't do it for me. The books, and falling in love in DC were a treat.

Maybe it’s because I work in a bookstore but I really loved this novel.
Sophie is a bookstore owner who is recently widowed and just wants to hide away in a back room and leave the pressures of running a bookstore behind. Clemi, the events manager, finds it hard to keep up with all the demands of her job - appeasing customers and making sure author visits go smoothly despite her guests being controversial and mildly neurotic. Both women are “bookish people” who love books but they’re burned out by it all. This story is funny, satirical, quirky, and well-paced with characters to cheer for.

I tried really really hard to finish this book, but I didn’t. The internal thoughts of each character just kept going and going and I’m not sure it was relevant to the plot.

Susan Coll’s Bookish people is a cute book that grapples with some heavy topics. The book was character rich!

The story takes place in a Washington DC book store. I really enjoyed this book because it brought back sweet memories for me. I used to travel to DC regularly for work and would go to independently owned bookstores in the evening!

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Muse for the digital advanced readers copy! I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Bookish People...you tempted me with your cover!! Don't forget the blurbs/description that sold this as a romantic comedy. Well, I read through quite a few Anne Frank references and current events references that are causing a mental collapse in our heroine. This was so intense and sad that I could not continue reading.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC for an honest review.

This book is adorable! A light, easy read that was very enjoyable. The best part about it was the characters, I really got invested in their stories.

Bookish People had an excellent premise of the day to day events in an independent bookstore, unfortunately it does not translate into text as well as it would have on screen. There was a fun cast of characters and a I loved how they all came together for a big event surrounding a controversial author. In the end, I found the characters one dimensional, except for Sophie who was written to include every Jewish trope in existence. Sophie could have been written as a proud Jewish woman, but instead was made to be the punchline to every joke,

Rating: I was incredibly disappointed in this book. It had so much potential, but was slow moving with characters who had very few redeeming qualities. With some tweaking and giving the characters more substance could have ,Adele this book exceptional.

The title of the book Did. It. For. Me. I knew right away I wanted to add this to my "to read" pile. The cover is everything. I was so so excited to dive into this one as soon as I was able. My excitement soon turned to disappointment however. For me, the book was boring making it hard to follow along at times. I think I was checked out pretty early on. I definitely was hoping for more out of this one!

First of all I would like to thank the publisher for sending me the digital ARC copy of this book.

I have to be sincere, the book cover and the title attracted me since the beginning.

The plot was okay, it deals with an easy reading to pass time. Even though I have to admit that sometimes it was difficult to go on.

Recommended to people who want to read a book about love, which sounds like a sort of love comedy. That type of comedy that involves books and readers.

After first hearing about this book during a roundtable with the publisher, I was very excited to have the chance to read this book. While it was a nice and easy read, it did feel rather disjointed and lacking a "point." For me a two-star book is a book that's okay, but misses the mark a bit - and that's exactly how I feel about Bookish People. I'm not sure there's one thing I can put my finger on that would've made it better, but it just felt a bit like it was still I the draft phase. It's not of the quality I would expect from a major publisher.

Thanks to NetGalley. and Har;per Muse. Why do people include a dog in a book just because people like animals? This book was about books but it was all over the place trying to be everything to all readers. It was not for me.

2.5 rounded up. This was a mild read, for all the chaos constantly erupting in the story. Nothing really new here. The characters were all a little flat and the storyline itself just never grabbed me. Not a bad book…just nothing memorable here.

This witty book features many characters including Sophie, bookstore owner who lost her husband and is going through a mini break through, Clemi, the events coordinator and aspiring novelist stuck in a rut and most importantly Kurt Vonnegut Jr the tortoise, Romba (yes the robotic vacuum), Queen III (vacuum clear), swallower of things.

I could immediately see this was my kind of humor and my kind of characters. The characters were so very well developed and written, I felt like I know them. But for some reason I just couldn’t get into the book and get lost in the story.

I received a complimentary copy of Bookish People. Opinions expressed in this review are my own."

The premise of Bookish People was intriguing so I was pretty excited when my request was approved.

Sadly, the premise was a bit confusing with multiple POVs and their personal issues.

Sophie, a widow struggling with the loss of her husband Solomon and the frightening state of our country, was not as likable as I had hoped.

I didn't dislike her, but she seemed one dimensional, boring and not interesting. Maybe it was because she was grieving.

Clemi was a more interesting character; as the events coordinator of the bookstore, she has scheduled a reading with a controversial poet, a man she believes is her biological father.

The writing is good, but bogged down with unnecessary and random filler:

Pages about a wonky vacuum cleaner

Pages about disagreeable patrons and clients

More pages about the oddball characters who come into the bookstore.

On top of all that, the Kindle version of Bookish People featured the obnoxious Harper Muse logo on almost every page. (to combat copyright infringement, but incredibly distracting to me as a reader).

I wanted to like Bookish People more, I love the setting of the bookstore since I love love love to read, but I couldn't connect to the characters nor was I invested in the story.

I am always and forever going to be drawn to books about books, libraries, bookstores, etc. Sadly, this is one I should have passed on.

On the surface it had all the elements that I am drawn to: a character navigating grief, a bookstore setting, and well, bookish people. The execution of the promising premise did not work for me.

I'm all for quirky characters, but this felt like it tried to hard to be clever, funny, weird for weird's sake. The internal monologue of every last character went on way too long. There were genuinely funny moments, but there were just that - moments that did not work as a whole.

364 pages is not a long book, but this one felt much longer.

Thanks to the author, NetGalley and Harper Muse for the complimentary digital copy in exchange for my honest review.