While comparisons to The Midnight Library don't really hit for me, I enjoyed this story for what it is; finding the luck and human connections in everything we do.

This edition of The Lucky Ride: A Novel Full of Opportunity by Yasushi Kitagawa is translated by Takami Nieda and narrated by Brian Nishii. Our story begins with Suichi, a middle-aged family man who has been going through a difficult patch in life. Suichi's daughter has stopped going to school, which worries and frustrates him. His work as an insurance salesman isn't going well. He's just lost a number of his accounts and will be forced to repay his company for them. This money has been saved for a trip to Paris, and Shuichi can't bear to tell his wife they can't go. Then Suichi's mother calls, asking him to visit her. All of this is weighing on Suichi as he hails a taxi to take him to his daughter's school for a meeting with the teacher. Suichi is not ready for the friendly, chatty driver who seems to know who he is or the taxi meter that starts at a ridiculously high number and goes down. The driver begins to challenge Suichi to change his behaviour to attract more luck. Suichi and the driver begin to discuss the philosophy of luck, and gradually, Suichi begins to take the driver's advice and to try new things. This leads him to self-discovery and a new path for himself and his family. The discussions on the nature of luck went over my head at times, but this was still an enjoyable story that leaves you with something to think about.

This one was an interesting concept. What are your thoughts on luck? Do we earn luck? Can it be passed on? I was interested in the story to find out how his life changes. I struggled with the takeaway for this one. Choosing to live happy is easy to say, but it is hard to achieve. I'm definitely glad I read this, but it wasn't life altering.

Thanks to Netgalley for my audiobook ARC. I did listen to the narrator with the speed increased. I couldn't get into it at the normal voice pace.