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Title: The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend
Author: Katarina Bivald
Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark
Release Date: January 19, 2016
Pages: 400
Book Source: eBook

4star

Once you let a book into your life, the most unexpected things can happen…

Broken Wheel, Iowa, has never seen anyone like Sara, who traveled all the way from Sweden just to meet her book-loving pen pal. When she arrives, however, she finds Amy’s funeral guests just leaving. The residents of Broken Wheel are happy to look after their bewildered visitor — not much else to do in a small town that’s almost beyond repair. They just never imagined that she’d start a bookstore. Or that books could bring them together – and change everything.

There’s a book for every person … and a person for every book.

My Review:

If you enjoy books, I think this one will really speak to you. I hate to use the word adorable, because when I see it describing something, I think of it as being little and not always of consequence. But this book is adorable. And I mean that in the best way. It’s full of warm fuzzies, and makes me want to find a small town like Broken Wheel.

Katarina Bivald has to be a lover of books, and it feels as if this novel was written with other bookworms in mind. There is even a chapter about smelling books, which I just did earlier today when some new ones came into my place of work. Bivald dropped various titles and authors throughout, and it was a delight to see which ones I’ve read. I’m sure there were some other clues she left within the pages, that I was totally oblivious to, since I’ve not read every book under the sun.

This novel would be a great read for book clubs, especially if each person were to write down every literary reference that they came across.

Besides Sara’s love for books, we also get to know the various residents of the town. In a short time, Bivald writes well developed characters, that had me rooting for them. The letters that Amy had sent to Sara also helped to find out more about the characters, in a fun way.

I really enjoyed this book, and hope that Bivald continues on the stories of the town’s people. If you enjoy books about love, redemption and small towns fighting to survive, then you need to read this book.

 

#1 INDIE NEXT GREAT READ January 2016

#2 LibraryReads Picks

Midwest Connections Pick February 2016

 

“Touching and lively, Bivald’s genuine homage to the power of books vibrates with fondness for small-town life and fascination with its indelible connections.”  

Booklist

 

“[A] heartwarming and utterly charming debut novel by Swedish author Bivald…. This gentle, intelligent Midwestern tale will captivate fans of Antoine Laurain’s The Red Notebook, Nina George’s The Little Paris Bookshop, and Gabrielle Zevin’s The Storied Life of A.J. ­Fikry. An ideal book group selection, it reminds us why we are book lovers and why it’s nice to read a few happy endings.

Library Journal (STARRED)

 

“Between the book references and the idyllic setting, readers won’t want to leave Broken Wheel, either.”

Kirkus Reviews

 

“Bivald’s The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend is perfection. Every word on every page is sheer perfection. I haven’t been this in love with a book in ages! Sara has traveled all the way from Sweden to meet her pen pal Amy in Broken Wheel, Iowa, only to discover Amy has recently passed away. The townspeople of Broken Wheel quickly adopt Sara as one of their own and what follows is one of the loveliest and endearing books I’ve encountered in ages! I’ll carry this book in my heart for years to come.”—Bess Bleyaert, McLean & Eakin (Petoskey, MI)

This heartwarming story is the answer for those who loved The Storied Life of AJ Fikry.  Book lovers will applaud Sara and her love of books.  Book clubs will delight in this delightful caper through book-loving middle America. Read this and smile!”

—Nancy Simpson-Brice, Book Vault (Oskaloosa, IA)

 

LOVED IT!  Readers will cheer for Sara and all the residents of Broken Wheel as a friendship that began with An Old Fashioned Girl renews and offers hope to an entire town.”

—Jennifer Winberry, Hunterdon County Library (Flemington, NJ)

 

I thoroughly enjoyed reading [this book]. The descriptive language was wonderful.”

—Lesley Marshall, Perry Branch Library (Gilbert, AZ)

ReadersRecommend_logo

READERS, RECOMMEND YOUR BOOKSTORE!

Sourcebooks Launches Reader Voting Campaign to Grant Money to Community Bookstores

NAPERVILLE IL (January 5, 2016) — Independent publisher Sourcebooks announces the “Readers, Recommend Your Bookstore” campaign, which will give grant money to three nominated bookstores. The “Readers, Recommend Your Bookstore Campaign” is inspired by the phenomenal support booksellers have given The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend by Katarina Bivald, which was selected as the #1 Indie Next Great Read for January 2016

Katarina Bivald’s international bestselling debut novel, The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend, is a charming, big-hearted story about the joy of books and the transformative power of community bookstores.

“Bookstores are the heart and soul of their community and have enormous impact on readers’ lives,” said Dominique Raccah, founder and CEO of Sourcebooks. The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommendinspired us to create a campaign that will not only give back to a few deserving bookstores, but hopefully highlight all the many wonderful bookstores that service communities across the country.”

Anyone can nominate their favorite bookstore at http://books.sourcebooks.com/readers-recommend-your-bookstore-sweepstakes/. Sourcebooks will award the winning bookstore with a $3,000 prize; two additional bookstores will each receive a $637 prize (the population of Bivald’s fictional Broken Wheel, Iowa). In addition to bookstores receiving prizes, weekly giveaways for those who nominate will be held throughout the campaign. Voting began January 4, and runs until February 19, when the winning bookstores will be announced.

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