The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry
by Zevin, Gabrielle
- Used
- Hardcover
- Signed
- first
- Condition
- Fine in Fine dust jacket
- ISBN 10
- 1616203218
- ISBN 13
- 9781616203214
- Seller
-
Modesto, California, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
Extended Description and Notes
Signed First Edition/ First Printing.
Reviews
The Collected Works of A.J.Fikry (aka The Storied Life of A.J.Fikry) is the fifth stand-alone novel by American author, Gabrielle Zevin. Alice Island, a New England summer destination requiring bus and ferry travel, boasts a main street book store. Island Books is owned by recent widower, A.J.Fikry, an opinionated, often cranky man in his late thirties with a (self-described) porcupine heart. Since the unfortunate accidental death of his beloved wife, his plan has been to drink himself to death and drive his business to ruin. This plan is derailed by three occurrences: thirty-six-year-old sales representative for Knightley Press, Amelia Loman makes her first visit to Island Books to present the publisher’s Winter List (and is treated rather shabbily by A.J.); A.J.’s escape valve, a rare and valuable edition of Tamerlane, a collection of poems by Edgar Allan Poe, is stolen; and a bright two-year-old girl named Maya is left in his bookstore. Against all odds, A.J. finds himself (with frequent help from Google and occasional input from the Island’s residents) bringing up a young girl. Zevin has given the reader characters who are appealing despite their flaws, or perhaps because of them. The story has an element of mystery and the plot has a few unexpected twists. Each chapter is prefaced with a paragraph of A.J.’s comments for Maya about a certain literary work: advice for writing and advice for life. It contains many words of wisdom, making it, as others have said, a very quotable book: “Sometimes books don’t find us until the right time” and “We are not quite novels. We are not quite short stories. In the end, we are collected works” will resonate with many readers. This book is filled with lightness and dark, with laugh-out-loud moments and lines that will have the most cynical reader choking up. It is a book for anyone who loves to read or loves book stores, and lovers of fine literature will be especially captivated. This delightful read is one of those books that is almost impossible to put down and most readers will be sorry to reach the end. A keeper.
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Details
- Bookseller
- West Side Books (US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 1707
- Title
- The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry
- Author
- Zevin, Gabrielle
- Format/Binding
- Hardcover
- Book Condition
- Used - Fine in Fine dust jacket
- Edition
- First Edition; First Printing
- ISBN 10
- 1616203218
- ISBN 13
- 9781616203214
- Publisher
- Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill
- Place of Publication
- U. S. A.
- Date Published
- 2014
- Keywords
- 1616203218
- Bookseller catalogs
- General Fiction;
Terms of Sale
West Side Books
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About the Seller
West Side Books
About West Side Books
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Title Page
- A page at the front of a book which may contain the title of the book, any subtitles, the authors, contributors, editors, the...
- Jacket
- Sometimes used as another term for dust jacket, a protective and often decorative wrapper, usually made of paper which wraps...
- Fine
- A book in fine condition exhibits no flaws. A fine condition book closely approaches As New condition, but may lack the...