This book was fine. I really wanted to like it more than I did (especially being, ya know, a librarian). This book follows five individuals who feel stuck in their ways of life for one reason or another but become motivated to make positive change after a visit to the library. 

Here's what I didn't like: these stories were all much too similar to be interesting for me. They all followed the same trajectory, which is the point, but I wasn't having fun anymore the third time I read it, let alone the fifth. It felt dull and predictable. Four of five of these stories centered around the characters' occupational anxieties, but I would've preferred a more expansive approach, like the librarian solving problems in interpersonal, economic, and family aspects for example. But hey, if you want to read about someone hating their job before reading a book and deciding to switch things up (and then reading that again, and again, and again...), maybe this book is for you. I also didn't feel that the full potential of a multi-perspective story was utilized. All characters noticed the same few things about the librarian, had the same internal thoughts about her process, etc... While the overlap was cool at first, I wish there had been some unique details that each person noticed that related to their worldview. It just felt like missed potential for characterization.

I liked the last story the most, probably because it was least related to job problems and more related to retired Masao's personal life. In general, I think this book was conceptually interesting, but lacked a lot for me in terms of execution. I wish I'd liked it more.