If you like memoirs and/or books this one is for you, as it is written by the women who has been called NY's biggest book influencer Zibby Owens. We learn about how a love of reading was passed down to her from all sides of her family and how both reading and writing saved her during her early years, when she had social anxiety and few friends. Each chapter of the book is named with the titles of another book, and she also mentions what she was reading at different points in her life, with a full list of books mentioned including in the appendix -- it was fun to see how many I have read myself. The book is written mostly in chronological order, though there are moments that jump in time as she shares a side story here and there as different people or places come up.

Owens is in a tough spot as a writer. She can't help the circumstances of her birth and upbringing, but it makes it a challenge for her to write in a way that will build a connection to or sympathy/empathy from her readers. I really tried to keep an open mind, appreciate her story as an individual and not write her off as just someone who got where she is because of the privileges given by generational wealth. She makes a valiant effort to prove that she worked hard for what she has achieved professionally and personally... and to prove that no amount of money or wealth could keep her safe from the tragic loss of multiple friends and family, including her college roommate who died in the 9/11 attacks.

I appreciate that upfront Owens shares her family history and does not try to hide the fact that she is daughter of billionaire Stephen Schwartzmann. I also appreciate that she is trying to protect her & her family's privacy by not discussing her first marriage or subsequent divorce. However, those two facts make me feel that there are important aspects of her story missing from the books - ones that would enable the reader to really understand what was going on. Instead we are left to guess how much of her life and her business ventures were funded by daddy's money or facilitated through her billionaire networking connections (I am guessing all), what caused the breakup of her marriage (since she met her second husband when she was just week postpartum with her fourth child, we can make our own inferences) and more importantly, how did that breakup impact the sense of loss and the depression that she experiences throughout her life.

If you love reading or writing, or want a glimpse into the world of the 1% this is a great choice.

NOTE: Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a free advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

BIG Thanks to NetGalley for this amazing read! I was on my wishlist just because of the title and I was so excited to get a chance to read this FIVE STAR book.

Bookends is the Zibby Owens brilliant memoir that takes us through her life growing up, college, falling in love with books, tragedy and deaths, 9/11, relationships, more books, falling in love, and pretty much everything else you can think of.

I absolutely loved this book! It is a must-read for any book lover, anyone who might feel alone with their feelings and just need a place to escape and realize you're not actually alone, to the lovers and dreamers ... I could go on. Her story will give you hope because we all need it. And it comes with an amazing list of book recommendations!

I'm grateful to receiving a copy of this book from Net Galley and I really cared about Zibby Owens and her story (and I've enjoyed many of her podcast interviews so was excited to learn more about her). While she has had a privileged upbringing and acknowledges that (and it was fascinating to hear about), she has experienced more loss than any one person should - each loss so painful and my heart broke for her.

She was candid and generous in her story with one major gap - I actually wondered if my electronic copy of the book was missing a chapter or two. She never talks about the man she married, their relationship, or how it ended. And this gap led to my confusion about subsequent events - I wasn't sure if she was married or not when she met her love. I could understand that she didn't want to speak poorly about the father of her children, but after candid chapters about past boyfriends and her current love, it was a confusing gap and reduced my enjoyment of the book.

She also listed books she read throughout key moments of her life - would have liked for her to say more about select titles instead of just listing them without much context in the middle of chapters. Maybe she can write about books she has loved in her next book, which I look forward to reading.

Thank you for the opportunity to review this new novel.

When I downloaded this I thought it would be a story that included books much more than it does. Many years ago I read "So Many Books, so Little Time" by Sara Nelson and hoped this would be similar. Unfortunately this was a very whiny story and I actually put it down. She apparently has no self awareness of how lucky she is in life and it rubbed me the wrong way and I didn't want to waste my time.

I really have enjoyed all the virtual events that Zibby Owens has done during covid so I was really excited to read her memoir! A very honest and brave description of all that she has been through to lead her to the career she has today. She talks about the terrible loss of her best friend on 9/11, issues with food, depression and the sometimes overwhelming feelings of motherhood. I love how Zibby has found happiness through all of these dark times and is such a supporter of other authors and their work! Really loved this book!

The book begins like a love letter to book nerds. The connection at the start is immediate in this memoir as she explains how she felt like a
“A book messenger” to the people (yes, #relatable)

I have a soft spot for memoirs, peoples journey’s into finding out where they want to be and looking back at where they’ve come from. I also struggle with giving stars to memoirs as it’s experience and who am I to rate experience?! So I will say, that I found it easy to flip pages even if there were parts that felt redundant in tone.

I’m off to check out her podcast! Thank you to the publisher for a copy in return for an honest review.

I absolutely devoured this heartfelt, and at times quite heartbreaking memoir. It is inspiring, full of hope, friendship, life lessons and has sent my TBR into utter chaos with how many beautiful book recommendations are scattered throughout. What I loved the most about these little sprinkles were how they really had me reflecting on all of the different books I’ve read at different times throughout my life, and how they have been pivotal in shaping who I am.

Her tone is friendly, conversational, fun and just flows so easily. She is also the ultimate cheerleader for other authors which I absolutely love! Zibby’s coming-of-age story has touched my heart in such an honest and beautiful way, and I will definitely be buying myself a hard copy. I would recommend this book to anyone and everyone!

I love Zibby Owens and her podcast! I'm a mom who "doesn't have time to read books."
I loved reading her story.
I bet this one is great on audio too if it's read by her.
A beautiful book about finding yourself again and a new beginning.

Thanks NetGalley for this ARC!

BOOKENDS read more like an autobiography than a memoir. The thread of loss and books wasn't as evident for me as I expected.

I was interested in this memoir for the bookish angle and was expecting something similar to I CAME ALL THIS WAY TO MEET YOU. Therefore, I think my thoughts and reaction to BOOKENDS were lead by what *I expected.*

If you read expecting a typical autobiography, you may really enjoy this story.

I am not a huge fan of memoirs. I often find my brain wandering off...wondering if I needed to know all of these things about someone. I am, however, a very big fan of Zibby Owens and the unsurpassed empire she has built within the publishing world. That being said, her memoir, Bookends, did not disappoint me. I found myself riveted by her story, her life, her shortcomings and her rise to (unpretentious) fame. I was surprised by most of her background, especially the strength and financial prosperity of her family. Although truly successful, she is first and foremost humble and extremely grateful for all that she has achieved. That's the type of person I find myself cheering for, and I now believe the type of memoir that I will find myself enjoying.

This book wasn't what I expected (a book more wholly centered on books and reading) but it sure came close! I thoroughly enjoyed reading about Zibby Owens' coming of age, fighting her way through high school, college and beyond, being a very shy and introverted young woman. The books she mentions are ones that "fit" the stage of her life at that time, and I found that a clever way to market a memoir. Recommended!

I find Zibby Owens to be very annoying. I hoped that this book would help me like her, but her constantly talking about how privileged she is just made me dislike her more. I couldn’t even finish it.

I went into reading Bookends with no preconceived notion of what to expect. I had not heard of Zibby Owens before but the concept of a memoir about love, loss and literature appealed. What an emotional rollercoaster the book was and I devoured it in one sitting.

The book has short chapters (of which some could literally be stand alone pieces which correlates to Zibby's experience writing essays) and is broken into collections by chunks of time. I appreciated that Zibby acknowledges her privilege throughout the book (growing up on the UES, a house in the Hamptons, a dad who helped launch Blackstone etc) but privilege does not mean a person does not suffer. Each loss Zibby deals with throughout Bookends made my heart ache and I cried. The death of her best friend on 9/11 rocked me so completely. The fact that this death seemed to be the first of many (trigger warning for cancer, suicide, addiction etc) just left me reeling so I can only imagine how the author felt.

I really liked her time spent addressing her weight and affiliation to weight watchers. The way it was something to control and how much of a driver it was in how people viewed her. I grew up in the 90s and 2000s my mum was one of the many attendees to those weekly weigh ins and our cupboards were stocked with their treats and bars.

Her exploration to find something that satisfies her was fascinating. Yes, her privilege's means she didn't have to work and had the luxury of time to explore what she liked and could have basically got an internship wherever she wanted but it is a basic factor many struggle with. What job do we want to do that would be worth dying at our desk for? But it allows you to question for yourself: if money was no object, what would I like to do for a living that would give me peace if I died doing it?

With regards to literature. Books are included as noting which books she read in each period of time. Books that helped her through her grief, books she drew parenting tips/cooking advice from, books she read when in love etc. She also used books as medium to help others in the difficult times of the pandemic, connecting authors with readers on her podcast/hosting a book club. I wish I could make my living this way! I do wish though we had a little more insight into what she got from each book - how it helped her/what she learnt/what world she escaped to in her dark times etc. I am glad there is a reading list at the end though for me to start working my way through.

If you are somebody interested in reading a book that feels personal and raw and focuses on love and loss, I recommend it. If you are a reader and enjoy seeing what people read and when, I also recommend. Do not read though if you expect an in-depth dissection of how books helped a person through love and loss.

I really enjoyed this memoir. I haven’t read too much in this genre and when I do I usually opt for the audio version. However, I really enjoyed this. Truthfully, I wasn’t too aware with Zibby prior to picking this up but I loved learning about her story. Her writing was beautiful and as a lover of books, I really enjoyed her perspective.

Bookends is a perfectly fine. It is decently written (nothing special, but quite readable) and moderately interesting. I didn't know who Zibby was going into this, so I didn't really have a compelling reason to care about her story. I think this will appeal more to listeners of her podcast than to a wider audience; without knowing anything about her, she comes across like a very, very privileged person who also likes books and has decided her story is extremely interesting.

Speaking of privilege, this book would've been a lot better with just a little more self-awareness. There were a couple throwaway sentences where Zibby mentioned how fortunate she was, but no real interrogation of how her privilege helped her get where she is. In some sections, that's fine. In others, especially when she keeps talking about how she just started a business like it's the easiest thing in the world... her privilege feels like a missing piece of the puzzle.

One other note-- other than the fact that Zibby loves books and would occasionally list out the books she was reading at various times in her life, there really was not enough of a book tie-in to justify the title.

I love reading about books and I follow the author on line. I wish this was a little more about the books she read rather than just the titles. as for Grief, Owens' has encountered her share. Writing about her best friend missing during 9/11 was especially moving.

copy provided by the publisher and NetGalley

I received a complimentary copy from the publisher and all opinions expressed are entirely my own.


Bookends is a memoir by the relatable, funny and inspiring Zibby Owens perfect for a lazy day or afternoon. It is a story of Zibby’s life. It is filled with lessons on life, loss, pain and success . It was a relatable read and it seemed like a conversation between friends. It is a must read and it's very inspiring.

A privilege upper east side woman is anythinf but the stereotype - Zibby grows up with anxiety, shyness and a desire to do. But what? She tries many things, she’s smart as a whip and compassionate. She overcomes numbing grief - finding her place as a book ambassador - a champion of authors, herself a terrific writer

I didn’t realise when reading the blurb that Zibby Owens is real and this is a memoir rather than a fiction story. Once I did I was completely torn about whether to continue reading. But I did so here’s my thoughts…

For a book entitled Bookends and an emphasis about her turning to books and writing books I was massively disappointed with the manner in which Owens references them. For that is all she does, there are a lot of books mentioned but none of them are given care and attention. We find out little about their impact on her, what she thought of them, we just know what she read and when. I’d really hoped for more insight into her relationship with the books.

Zibby Owens has experienced some incredibly difficult things in her life, and she is very open about them and the impact they had on her mental and physical health. But there is something about the tone of her writing, the way she talks about her upbringing and opportunities in life that makes it difficult to fully empathise with her. There is a coldness and formality to parts of the story which keep the reader at a distance.

An interesting life to read about but not one that will move you.

Words can’t express how much I loved this book!!! Bookends: A Memoir of Love, Loss, and Literature is the story of Zibby’s life and I can’t even begin to tell you how powerful her story is! Zibby Owens has always been one of my personal heroes and hearing how she rewrote her story was such a transformative and deeply moving experience for me.

As someone who has also rewritten her story, and has found lifesaving solace in books to the point that I now also spend my days sharing the books I love, I related to so many aspects of Zibby’s journey. There were so many moments that I had either chills or tears in my eyes while reading this, and I now feel like I may need to pay Zibby for this very powerful therapy session.

Zibby Owens has created a book empire and I am so in awe of her creative, enduring, and powerful spirit. And I can’t wait to see what she does next! This is her fight song. And she’s absolutely winning this fight.