Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an electronic copy to read in exchange for an honest review.

Why oh why did I sleep on this book?! The way my heart broke and mended and broke and mended over and over again. Just beautiful. A gorgeous tribute to the impact that one book can have.

No Two Persons was an interesting story. We often say that "no two people read the same book" as we each come to a story from a different point in our lives, and we take different things from it. This book takes that expression and runs with it. The first vignette is from the POV of the author, her motivation for the book, her journey while writing it and finally letting it go out into the world. We than get the stories of 9 others who interact with the book. We learn what is happening in their lives and how it affects them. I found this an intriguing book and I really enjoyed hearing the various stories and how "Theo" affected each of them. I thought the story from the artist's perspective very original and really liked it. From an actor, who narrates the story to a Homeless teenager, an Agent and more, I found what they took from the story and how it affected their lives genuine and intriguing. I definitely recommend this different book to those who enjoy reading about books and readers.

I loved this book! It's well-written, enjoyable, and a great read. The author did a great job of writing in a way that captures the readers attention, and makes you not want to put it down until you're finished! I would highly recommend it!

This book is like a love letter to avid readers. It's a collection of short stories with the through line being that they've all read or encountered the same book, "Theo," at a major juncture in their lives.

Bauermeister does an excellent job creating dynamic characters for each chapter. Each character has a fully realized life and backstory that led to this dramatic time in their lives. Some books have only one or two dynamic characters with thinly-created secondary characters, but this one does a great job of really making you feel like you've just met someone new in such a short amount of time.

Even though each character is going through a difficult experience in their lives, the book doesn't feel too heavy or depressing.

It's an interesting concept that most book lovers will enjoy.

I loved this book. A book about books and why we love them but such a unique premise with interwoven stories. I loved Each perspective and was captivated by them all!

This book ended up being not the right one for me at this time so it is one I did not get finished. Maybe I will come back to it one day!

I think the problem is I don't like short stories. I don't like collections of short stories and by the end, when I was expected to remember which character was which... I was just done.

I loved the idea of this book - one book can affect different people in different ways. Sometimes the right book just falls into your lap and it's a perfect fit. I love the idea of no two persons read the same book or get the same things out of the same book... but the stories were too short in that I didn't get invested in the characters before moving on. And then some (all? I have no idea) of the characters came back in the last chapter? It was just too much. There was also no complusion to keep reading.

I loved how all of the different lives in this book are intertwined with each other and come full circle in the end. Character development of each person was so good and i loved reading each persons story and having it be all wrapped up nicely in the end. I loved this book.

A marvelous book about the power of writing, and the magic of connecting through storytelling. I have to confess that I felt slightly disappointed initially by the varying points of view but I was quickly won over, immersed in each new story-within-this-story, witnessing how Bauermeister subtly pulled threads from here and there and wove them into surprising new places.

The epigraph, a quote from The Writings of Madame Swetchine, is, "No two persons ever read the same book, or saw the same picture." This truth is elegantly illustrated as we dip in and out of the lives of disparate readers of Alice's book (and one who doesn't even read the book but employs it in a brilliant way).

Some favorite quotes:

"But he understood the feeling of living in a world where few questions had a single, solid answer. Understood, too, that in that world, creativity often dwelt next to confusion."

"Science heard that fragment of a second and wondered how to make it fit into a whole. Fiction wondered what hearing it felt like."

"...but that was the beauty of books, wasn't it? They took you places you didn't know you needed to go."

"Ignoring the fact that grief is not a stalker but a stowaway, always there and up for any journey."

A gorgeous, moving, and fully satisfying read.

I loved this book and highly recommend. It is a collection of linked stories more than a novel. The first story centers on an author writing a book. The following stories are all about people who interact with the book in multiple ways: readers, book sellers, editors, audiobook narrators, etc.

This was a charming read and I've heard that the audiobook is also excellent.

I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via Net Galley.

Oh my gosh-I loved this book! Each perspective so intently drew me into every individual story about how one book has the capacity to change the course of a life. Highly recommend. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

I loved the original concept with this book. How does one book look in the lives of a variety of individuals? There were multiple mini stories with some more interesting than others. One of my favorite mini stories involved a homeless teenager. Would have loved to learn more of her story.

This was the book chosen to read on a book retreat and we all really enjoyed it and recommend it to others. It brought up a lot of great conversations and would be a great book club choice.

Synopsis:

One book. Nine readers. Ten changed lives. That was the beauty of books, wasn’t it? They took you places you didn’t know you needed to go… Alice has always wanted to be a writer. Her talent is innate, but her stories remain safe and detached, until a devastating event breaks her heart open, and she creates a stunning debut novel. Her words, in turn, find their way to readers, from a teenager hiding her homelessness, to a free diver pushing himself beyond endurance, an artist furious at the world around her, a bookseller in search of love, a widower rent by grief. Each one is drawn into Alice’s novel; each one discovers something different that alters their perspective, and presents new pathways forward for their lives.

Review:

This book highlights how the same book can mean be experienced so differently depending on who is reading it and even what stage of life they are in. That's actually why I stopped posting starred reviews on my Instagram - I never want to discourage someone from reading a book because it's not something that I typically enjoy or if I read it at a time it didn't resonate with me. This is a lovely book to read to recognize the importance of books and how they can change lives.

Alice has always wanted to write a book. A couple of events propel her to finally do it. Her novel is found in a "slush pile" at a publishing house and is deemed a gem. THEO becomes a novel that touches many readers, even ten years after its release.

The story is told in chapters from a variety of characters points of view. They are all quite different people who run the gamut of backgrounds. Many have had the book passed on to them by an enthusiastic reader. They all have personal reactions to the novel. Most of the vignette type chapters are almost like interconnected short stories. Some do have threads between people in other sections.

I love books about books. NO TWO PERSONS touched me on a deep emotional level. The author knows just how to add poignancy without it becoming too maudlin. The author's notes at the end added more understanding and authenticity for me. I am again embarrassed that this lovely book sat too long on my NetGalley feedback list. A fiction book club finally nudged me into reading this. I found out through this meeting that this book has a link to THE SCENT KEEPER which I read a couple years ago.

I highly recommend this tale to all readers. As the title implies, no two people will read this beautiful novel in the same way. Of course, that is often the case with most books. Thanks to St. Martin's Press (my all time favorite) and NetGalley for giving me a chance to read and review this novel.

No Two Persons is about a book and 9 people that read it. Each chapter is from a different perspective starting with the author. Each person comes across the book at a pivotal point in their life, causing them to take another look at where they are.

I don’t think I’ll be able to do this beautiful book justice with my review, but I will do my best.

No Two Persons opens with the quote “No two persons ever read the same book” and then takes you through an author’s journey of writing a book: “Theo”, and 9 others’ journey of reading it. With each chapter it continuously proves the quote. A different part of Theo resonates with each character but for all of them, it helps them take a look at their life and either make a change or accept it. Theo's impact on all of their lives is undeniable.

NTP is such a poignant book that I felt connected to each character even though for the most part they exist within the confines of their chapter. All the characters gave me something to think about, and most of them got me teary eyed.

Despite how little time you spend with each character in this book, you still get to know them intimately, care for them deeply; all 10 characters leave their mark. (Though I did have favorites). I also loved the little ways the characters’ paths crossed one another. I delighted in finding one characters’ fingerprints in another’s chapter.

Themes of parental trauma, human connection, communication and miscommunication are weaved throughout each of these chapters. It deals with loss, grief, strength, relationships (familial and romantic). And it does a great job of showing the weight and impact of these things on our lives.

This is a book I will be thinking about over and over again, for all the little life lessons that are in it, and all the nuances it manages to highlight.

It also helps that it’s beautifully written. 😆

🎧 While I loved reading this as an audiobook thanks to the great narrators, I feel that I would have benefited more from the slower pace reading with a physical or ebook. To highlight, pause, and really savor the words.

Thank you so so much to St Martin's Press and NetGalley for the eARC.

This book is a tribute to the power of books, and the fact that every book touches the reader in a different way. Alice's brother, Peter, dies young, and Alice, always wanting to write, pours her grief into a book, Theo. After many rejections, an agent decides to publish it. Various readers read the book, and each reader takes a message from the book - as if it was written for them.
It is touching and heartfelt. It resonated with me, because I have always believed that there is a book for everyone - and reading special books can really touch your heart, and help you through various situations.
This book was a treasure to read. I enjoyed each story and each character.

I’m not sure how I feel about this one still. I liked it while I was reading it but I found it very forgettable. I did really like the characters and the story line.

No Two Person is based on the premise that no two people experience the same book. What an ode to reading and the power of words. This novel follows a variety of people affected by a book from the author, the literary agent, the agent's assistant, the audiobook narrator, and readers. It's both a mundane and personal look at each person's life and how the book in question, Theo, impacts them in ways both big and small.

These characters were so fleshed out and sunk deeply into me as I was reading. This covers hard things and is not sweet and saccharine at all but rather a deeply nuanced look at a character during their slice of life in which the book was placed into their path.

LOVED LOVED LOVED - one of my favorite books of 2023. Books about books can be hit or miss for me and this was a definite hit. I loved how it was essentially a bunch of vignettes that were semi-interconnected, but showing the many different ways that books can impact our lives. It was beautiful and lovely and I can't recommend it enough.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book captured my deepest feelings for a book. For as many people who read a book, no one ever reads and perceives it the same one. Every person reading the book is reading a unique story. This book is the telling of how one book, named Theo changed the lives of several individuals who read it. Theo had a powerful impact for the characters in this story who all found themselves at different points in life and on different paths searching for something. From the writer to the assistant to the actor to the artist to the diver to the teenager to the bookseller to the coordinator to the agent, Theo’s story had a profound impact. I will be recommending this one to all of my friends, bookish or otherwise.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.