Pick up one of these books if you’ve ever wondered how making different choices might have changed everything in your life
I once read in Susan Jeffer’s book Feel the Fear and Do it Anyway that there is no such thing as a wrong decision. I love this bold approach to living but as someone who has stumbled through life leaving a spectacular train wreck of poor decisions, the idea of a life do-over to make some different choices is hugely appealing. This would be why I can’t get enough of reading the life do-over theme in books. Or TV shows actually (Being Erica? Classic!!).
The six books in this week’s blog approach the life do-over trope from different angles but all do it wonderfully well. They are stories that require a little suspension of disbelief and invite you to wonder what if…? What if you’d married someone different, gone on the overseas trip, chosen a different career? We’ve got some older books in the mix, some new and even a Young Adult. Let’s go!
Fancy meeting you here. By Ali Berg and Michelle Kalus (2021)
This one is quirky and a bit unusual but also pretty fabulous. Evie Berry is trying to figure out what went so wrong in her life. Ten years ago she was on her way to a promising career in filmmaking and life was filled with unlimited possibilities. However, at 30 years old, she is still working in same the part time job she had all those years ago and life has left her behind. She feels stuck and ashamed of how she wasted her golden opportunities. And then, one day she meets an unusual man who sends her back in time so she can figure this out and get her life back on track. The tricky part is knowing which decisions are the right ones to change.
Evie’s story moves at a quick pace which I find very satisfying. There’s no messing around with exactly how this has happened, she just gets on with the whole time-travel-life-do-over and it’s fantastic. I also love how even though there is a romantic element to the book, the main focus is on Evie making different choices in her career and on valuing family and friendships. A fun and satisfying read.
What Alice Forgot. By Liane Moriarty (2009)
I was in two minds about including this one because it’s not *technically* intended to be a life do-over story, but I think it does play out as one in a unique way. It’s an early Liane Moriarty title (author of Big Little Lies and Nine Perfect Strangers) and it’s one of my favourites. Alice is 29, recently married and happily starting a life with her husband in their new home, pregnant with their first child. But all this changes when she finds herself catapulted 10 years into the future, where her life has not turned out happily at all. Instead she and Nick have three children, are divorcing, and Alice does not like this version of herself at all. But is she really in the future? Just what is going on?
I found Alice’s story completely engrossing and thought provoking, giving an honest account of how life can veer so far from what we thought we wanted. It asks questions of us about who we are and who we become as life changes us. I truly loved this book.
The Summerhouse. By Jude Deveraux (2001)
I stumbled across this one many years ago and loved every minute of it. The story is so easy to read and plays out all the plots you could imagine wanting to happen in a life do-over trope. The summerhouse is a magical house that can send people back in time to a point where they can change something they regret. The story follows three women, Leslie, Madison and Ellie, who come together at the summerhouse and take the opportunity to go back and see if life would be better had they done some things differently.
If you are in the camp where stories must be believable to be enjoyable, maybe give this one a miss. The Summerhouse is for those who want to follow the thought of how good could life be and imagine if that really happened – even if it’s a tiny bit unrealistic.
If you read The Summerhouse and love it, good news! There are two sequels – Return to the Summerhouse (2008) and As You Wish (2017) – and these are just as lovely.
It’s Not You, It’s Me. By Gabrielle Williams (2021)
This is not your average life do-over book. It takes on many twists and turns, including a supernatural and thriller element (nothing too dark though). It’s also worth noting that this is technically in the young adult category, however the protagonist is 40 year old Holly, who has travelled back in time into the body of a 16 year old girl. We hear the story from her point of view so I found this to be more adult fiction, though admittedly in the context of teenagerhood.
The downside to this book is that there is a lot going on at once, probably more than necessary – time travel, maternal abandonment, divorce, family relationships, music, kidnapping, teen drama, adult life choices, and social injustice!! However, I loved that the story was unusual and that it gives readers the opportunity to hang out in the 80s which was really fun. It was an engaging read, fast paced and definitely had the most unexpected ending!
The Midnight Library. By Matt Haig (2020)
We get a bit darker with The Midnight Library where there is more at stake for the life do-overs than in other more light-hearted titles. Trigger warning – The Midnight Library centres around suicide and the real meaning of life so it may be upsetting for anyone in this headspace. We meet Nora on a dark day where she is questioning the meaning of her life and whether she should even keep living. Her actions take her on a fascinating journey into The Midnight Library, a place that exists between life and death. Here she learns so much about herself and what really brings happiness to our lives.
I have heard criticism of this book being too idealistic or unrealistic but I did not feel this way at all. I found it absolutely beautiful and loved the concept of exploring many life do-overs and finding a deeper meaning to life. The metaphor of the library of all our choices was a wonderful bonus and gave a vivid insight into Nora’s story. Read this if you are feeling introspective and delving into what your own library of lives might look like.
So there we are, some excellent reads for those moments in life when you wish you could have a do-over switch and try again. This is such a great premise and I hope find one that is a great read for you.