Imagine, there is a multiverse that exists right here when you are reading this review but your decision to read it or ignore it could lead to different outcomes. These small decisions–yes!!! even reading my review is life changing LOL–as a consequence, can result in a long life full of happiness or a short one with depressing death.
The Midnight Library by Matt Haig is the story of a girl, Nora Seed, who became frustrated with her life and decided to kill herself by overconsuming some drugs. Although the beginning of the book sounds depressing, the story later evolves into a deep spiritual journey to find the meaning of life. After the suicide attempt, instead of dying, Nora finds herself trapped in the middle of being alive and being clinically dead. In this grey zone between life and death, she found herself in a mysterious library, watched over by an old lady–a figure from Nora’s real life.
The library was a trick of her mind to keep her alive, and yet, somehow, it was connected to reality as well. It was a gateway to a multiverse where Nora (root Nora from now) could access every possible life–each in the form of a book–in other universes, each shaped by different choices Nora could have made in her original life. She could open any book and enter the life of another Nora in another universe to live that life, briefly. The root Nora explored many lives including a few where she tested her limits, followed her passion, tried different careers, and even fought with a Polar bear. This whole exploration about herself–living through many successes and failures, dealing with the pain of losing loved ones and friends–brought her a new perspective: that life is full of possibilities but true fulfillment comes from appreciating the small, meaningful moments, rather than constantly chasing after something bigger. She learned that it was her short-sightedness in her root life that convinced her, somehow, that she was a failure and that it was better to die than live in misery. In the end, this trick of the mind worked and she decided to live.
This book partially belongs to the science fiction category where the author uses the concept of multiverse and quantum theory in the story. However, through these physical theories, the author attempted to answer existential questions of philosophy such as, ‘Who am I?, What does it mean to be alive? and How our current choices could lead to different outcomes in life?’. This is also the story of a philosophy enthusiast (Nora) who, transitioning from being depressed by theorizing about the world, learns what it truly means to be alive rather than simply following theoretical knowledge. In all her different lives Nora had her love for philosophy and Henry David Thoreau. She quoted several times from the book Walden which I have never read but this book encouraged me to do so.
I very much liked this book, especially due to its attempt to introduce philosophy–existential questions, to be specific–in such a simple manner to a wider audience. The story was an effective way to delve into such complex topics, which is very much needed in modern times where people are so much caught up in materialism that they take life for granted, leading to a hedonistic approach followed by an existential crisis, as Soren Kierkegaard once said*. The author successfully conveyed his message that through philosophy, we can discover the meaning of life. The key to this understanding is in the following quote:
Never underestimate the big importance of small things
On the other hand, using physics theories is always a matter of debate, especially among Physicists. So I recommend this book to those who do not mind the scientific accuracy but love fiction and philosophy. The book is short and a quick read. There are also a few thrilling moments, making it the perfect entertainment through which you can learn something about the implications of philosophy.