One can instantly tell that a books person wrote A Window Opens. Elisabeth Egan, the books editor at Glamour magazine, has crafted a story
that I identify with greatly. You see, I
went kicking and screaming to the Kindle, and I still 1000% prefer opening up a
real, genuine book to reading on a technological device. While so much more far-reaching than that, A Window Opens has basically the same
theme – what is hardcore technology doing to the independent bookstore and
library?
Alice Pearse has a happy, comfortable life with her three
children and lawyer husband, working a few days a week as a book reviewer. When her husband doesn’t make partner and
therefore throws his laptop across the room at his office (never a good idea),
he tries to get his own small practice going.
Money is tight, and to make ends meet, Alice lands a “dream” job at Scroll, a new high-tech
concept idea in the book world (basically a Starbucks for books without actual
books). It’s a super-demanding job, and
Alice is dealing with a recurrence of her father’s cancer at the same
time. The rest of the plot is quite
predictable but still very entertaining.
Alice is a likable character, but she can also be very frustrating.
Like many people nowadays, she is never fully “with” someone, always
checking her e-mails and texts even off the clock. This even applies when she’s with her
dad. But this is so like real life
anymore, right? Unfortunately, yes.
MY RATING - 4
